Walk like an Egyptian

I shot some video of Avery walking this morning while we were getting ready to leave the house. She has been getting pretty good, but I put shoes on her and it totally messes up her balance!

In other news, we had a great, but very busy Christmas! Avery met some of her Williford relatives she hadn't seen before, and we ate a lot! Avery got a baby Karaoke machine (from me, of course!) We haven't gotten it out of the box yet, but I can already tell she has an aptitude for singing and acting a fool! Since I got my new handy dandy flip video recorder from Uncle

E, I can now upload video in a snap and will be posting some Avery performances very soon!

AND...some Christmas photos:

This is the load of toys we delivered to needy families for the Sunshine Center.

A close up of that muscle man!

Avery in our bed this morning.
And finally, another subtitled photo by Floyd.

Christmas and Commentary

Obviously, this is not my commentary on the first ones. Fortunately, Floyd added his own, and is much funnier than me anyway!

Santa came early to the mill.
And here is Uncle Evan taking Avery's new paci for a test drive. He was a paci baby himself and still hasn't quite given it up yet. Here's to a great New Year's Resolution E-man.
We took Avery to the Zoo last night to see the lights, and we took our photo with a Capuchin monkey. I will try to scan that one in and post it later. Avery also met Santa for the first time last night, and that is another I will have to get on here at a later date. Merry Christmas Everyone!

Getting Ready for Christmas!

10 Honest Things

Thanks to Olivia, you (my readers, or whoever is left, and not totally board with baby talk) are so fortunate to get to hear 10 things about me. Let's see:

1. I love rain at night, but HATE it during the day. I also wish everyday were 85 degrees, but I love wearing winter clothes. Too bad you can't have both.

2. I used to be seriously obsessive about germs. Thanks to having a baby, I get snot bubbles rubbed into my shirt and don't notice until a stranger mentions it at the grocery store. Shouldn't it be the other way around?

3. I miss book club in B'ham like whoa. I joined an all male book club to try to fill the void. First meeting is January 14th. I'll let you know how that goes!

4. I have a bizarre fear of saying the wrong thing, and I say the wrong thing all the time!! I am not a wordsmith! Please forgive me if I have ever offended you. TJ even bought me a book called "How to Say it Best". Still, I insert my foot on a daily, if not hourly, basis. I mean well, I really do.

5. Inside Jokes make my day. ("Shut up gul, you ain't got no pants on!")

6. Loves Montgomery! Even the not-so-nice areas.

7. I have no problems doing laundry, but I hate doing dishes. I love a clean house, and my mood is usually reflective of how tidy things are.

8. I love to give baby advice, so if you have any pregnancy, baby, or otherwise strange questions, I'm your Wo-man. I will research and find out if I don't know. It makes me happy that Liv wants more!

9. I love my job! I have time for TJ & Avery, me, and work! I wish everyone could know this feeling!

10. I love acronyms. Seriously, my favorite is USAMRIID (Unites States Army Medical Research Institute for Infectious Diseases) Yea, I know, I am huge dork.

And, I am going to add an 11th one, since I just thought about it.

11. I hated being pregnant, but I am ready to do it again! (Hold your horses, there is no baby on the way yet, but when the time is right, I will endure the torture all over again, to get a product as wonderfully messy, time eating, sleep destroying, perfect baby Avery.)

What Happens When G Daddy Babysits:

The Mill and Thanksgiving

Dad's Mill Project is almost finished. So close that we stayed there over Thanksgiving. Here are some photos:

The Update:

1. Avery can WALK! I am so proud of my kiddo. She is learning and growing so fast! And now, I don't get to sit down. I chase her all over the house!

2. Christmas Tree is up! Yay me for making that a priority!

3. Getting back on Weight Watchers didn't happen. No surprise here.

4. TJ is hosting Justin's bachelor party at Clearview this weekend, so Avery and I are on our own.

5. I am boring these days...sorry for this pathetic post. Maybe I'll be more inspired tomorrow.

Hiatus Over!

Sorry for the delay. We had our first official event at Alley Station last night. Here are some photos of the finished product. Call our office if you would like a tour! 334-277-1077 or go to www.alleystation.com

Avery is doing great! She finally got over the stomach bug she had, and is scooting all over the place. She will probably be walking soon, as she can pull up and let go, but no steps have been taken yet. She is eating finger foods and has said Mama, Dada, Baba, and she is positively obsessed with her stuffed penguin that her Great Aunt Patty gave her. She hugs it and tries to kiss(stuff the whole thing in her mouth)its beak. It gets a big smile out of her every time! Here is some photos to hold you over until I can take some more!Maybe I should have led with this one:

New Camera has Arrived!

Be looking for new and updated photos, as my "new" camera came in today! Get ready for some 9 month pics!

Aves has been sick for the last week, and I have been crazy at work, so I will be back to blogging soon, I promise!

I was right.

Guess who got another tooth, and messed up her sleep schedule? That's right. My little strawberry. Lucky she is back on track now.

Here are some of the photos from the Anne Geddes dress up party:

This first one cracks me up. I edited it to be an old movie still. I love that you can't tell if Avery or Riley made Jake cry, but now they both want to help him! Love those three little musketeers.

Grrrrrr.

My little lioness:

Mimi got Aves this outfit, and I love it! The bow cracks me up.

I wanted to post Avery's schedule at 8 1/2 months so that for the next kid (hopefully) I will have something to compare to. So this is really for my own benefit, but feel free to read anyway!

7:00 wake/6 oz formula bottle

8:30 breakfast (oatmeal & fruit or yogurt)

10:30 6 oz formula bottle

1:00 lunch (vegetable)

2:30 6 oz formula bottle

4:00-6:00 nap

6:00 dinner (meat & veggie or pasta)

6:30 bathtime

7:15 night night bottle (4-6 oz formula)

7:30 bedtime

Shew... that seems like a lot of eating. Love that kid. She is so sturdy.

Sleep is Good

So I had a dream the other night that Avery got her top teeth in (we knew she was teething in real life anyway) and they were HUGE! I woke up terrified that my baby was going to be the kid who gets made fun of because of her gigantic buck teeth. So over the weekend, we really began to get a peak at those little teefers peepin' through. They are perfectly proportionate to her head (whew!), and should be fully visible in about 2 weeks. Which is great. She won't be able to sing that annoying song about "all she wants" for Christmas. So that is a total of 5!!! I still don't quite know how she went from a baby to a kid who can almost walk and can totally bite your arm off in like point 2 seconds.

In other news, we went to the Grand Opening Celebration of SaZa's in Alley Station on Monday night. Avery did not get to go (thank goodness, because it was crowded and we stayed out late!). Did anyone happen to see me on the WSFA giving tours of the Ballroom? G Daddy was on there too talking about the scope of the project. I made the camera man promise not to put me on the news, so thanks for honoring that there Buddy. Anywho, SaZa's is now open for Lunch and Dinner, so go check it out. The pizza is delish. Here is the link: SaZa's.

The title of today's blog is all about Avery learning to self soothe at bedtime. Yes, we are re-Ferberizing. I swear we have to redo it once a week, because something happens and destroys everything she has learned. I suppose that is what parenthood is all about; adaptation, growth, and re-adapting when necessary. (Kara, did I use that semi-colon correctly?) I digress, she has once again taught her self to sleep, and now I am going to get overly excited about 2 nights in a row of good sleep, and then tomorrow night, she will get a cold, or another tooth, or whatever, and we will be back to square one. But for tonight, I am loving my sleep. She slept until 8:15 this morning. It is a beautiful thing.

AAAAND, lastly, a little Avery to make myself happy. That is a flower pinned to her head. Love. It.

The Mama Video!

The video, as promised. Pardon my annoying voice and Avery's screeching before and after. My editing skills are nonexistent.

In other news, last night we had a little Brazilian Themed Dinner Party, and had some excellent food, and even better company. I made "Pao de Quiejo", AKA the most delicious cheese biscuits on earth, Allison did a fancy skirt steak with Chimi Churri sauce and Brazilian turnip greens, and Angela made fried plantains with homemade whipped cream with vanilla and rum. Let's just say I don't need to eat again for a while, because I gorged myself on organic sharp cheddar cheese before the meal even started. Biscuit Recipe to follow.

Ma-Ma and ears!

Since my last post, Avery has found a new word to repeat! Mama!! It was a beautiful moment! I am not sure she is actually referring to me, or if she just likes the way it sounds, but she says it over and over! I will get it on video and post later.

With the lovely cool weather that came to Montgomery unannounced, I had little time to prepare what Avery needed to wear to stay warm. She had no jacket, mittens, hats, shoes, or anything that would make winter weather durable. I did manage to find one hat that still fit her (sort of), until I could get her some toboggans and such. Here are the photos from the beginnings of getting dressed and the car ride to buy new stuff:

I just love those ears!Also, with this blustery weather, came the fire that TJ and I so enjoy. Guess who was immediately drawn to it. So my other shopping venture over the weekend involved a baby cage. Well, they call it a "SuperYard", but it is pretty much a baby cage. (If you are wondering who the "they" are, in this case, "they" are the creators of said SuperYard. (This is specifically for TJ, who always makes me site my sources for the "they's" of the world.)) Anywho, the baby cage works beautifully! And keeps Aves out of the fire, and the soon to be Christmas Tree!!!!

My kid, the genius.

Mom and I were discussing when Avery was going to start talking Sunday afternoon. Mom assured me it would be soon. We were at the lake with Grandma and Avery, sitting outside on the porch watching the very few boats go by. Avery and Grandma were passing a ball back and forth, and I was trying (as I had been unsuccessfully for the past 8 months) to get Aves to say Mama or Dada. I asked her to give me the ball. She gave me a funny look, put the ball right in my hand and said "Ball"! Then Ball, ball, ball, ball, ababaababall. I watched her little synapses fire in her brain and make the connection that what I was asking for, what she had in her hand, and the word I was saying were all the same thing. Then brain to mouth, out it came! It was the most incredible music I have ever heard! Her little speaking voice (in a total different octave than the squealing/singing voice we hear everyday) was so perfect, and it just makes me want to cry I love it so much! I never thought that would be the thing she would do that would make my "heart melt", for lack of a better (and way less cheesy) phrase.

Moments after she said "ball", I had TJ on the phone, and I asked her to tell Dada what she had just told me. She looked at the phone, and said, "dadadadadada, babababbababall." Yes that's right, she said Dada, then ball! Once she figured out we would cheer every time she said something in that cute little voice, she used it all day. She even accidentally said Mama. It hasn't happened again, but I know she will say it soon, and mean it. This might be my favorite milestone yet, and I am sure I will regret saying that when she won't shut up a month from now. I love that kid. This is her, modeling her new monogrammed robe at the lake.

And, this is a very blurry photo of her playing in Riley's toy basket on Saturday as we watched football. Allison, make sure you email me those photos and videos so I can post some of those! The babies were so cute playing together!

NOT FIXABLE

Unfortunately, the camera is dead. I am so sad. These photos are from the phone, but I am hopeful that I will get a new and working (but lesser) camera soon. I am not to be trusted with another D70. Here are a few photos from the our anniversary trip in Atlanta, and some of Avery from the weekend.

We took Avery to her first Dove Shoot at Clearview on Saturday. Since it was also gameday, we dressed her up in her miss matched gear and her camo underneath with a pink frilly diaper cover so no one would confuse her for a little boy. She was one confused baby. She had a whole lot of fun regardless.

Avery playing with Mister Sam, Justin's mom, and an empty water bottle!
Just laying around on Sunday after church.
We went to U2 on Tuesday night in Atlanta on our 2nd anniversary. We met up with Jeff, Karen, and a bunch of their friends. Sorry for the poor quality images, we were on the floor, and I couldn't hardly see the stage, so these are of the enormous round screen. It was an amazing show, and I hope to see them again in the future.

We were not far from the stage, but it was so incredibly crowded, we decided not to push forward into them any further. You know me and crowds. Overall it was a very fun trip. We got a massage, ate dinner at Fogo de Chao (a Brazilian Steak house, that has the best freaking Parmesan cheese yucca rolls), played with starfish and anemone at the Georgia Aquarium, went to the concert, and saw the Da Vinci exhibit at the High Museum, all in 48 hours. Glad to be home, where I can relax (which was supposed to be the point of our trip, but TJ and I are no good at that:) ).

Camera Crash

I am devastated. I put my camera in the bag with the beach gear on Saturday, ready to take loads of photos of Ms. Avery in the sand and surf. But, my tanning oil with SPF 10 got jealous and decided to spray down the camera as I was walking down to the water. So, my wonderful and dependable Nikon D70 camera is on its way to Illinois to be cleaned and fixed. What does that mean for the blog? Well, it means that I will either post lots of poor quality photos from my blackberry or none at all in protest. It's a sad day. I hope it is fixable. If not, I may just have to get my Christmas present very early this year.

What We've Been Up To...

I promised I would post the photo of Avery in her Bama gear. So here it is! She looks like a little boy in that hat.

Avery learned to clap this morning, and I just happened to remember to video it on my phone. Also, she rode the Ferris Wheel at the Wharf yesterday, so I have that on video as well. The rest are photos to document our weekend at the beach, which Avery had a high fever from her viral pharyngitis, so we are lucky to have any smiley pictures at all! Glad she is feeling much better!

These are a few of my favorite things!

Well, at least my favorite photos of late.