Our little "monster" giggling

Avery has been known over the last month or so to make scary "monster" noises when she is really focused on playing with her toys. She will be babbling along, and then this weird little monster voice comes out of her. It's hysterical, but unfortunately every time I try to get the camera out she stops doing it. We do have witnesses that have heard it, though. We are a little worried that she will do her scary and semi-evil sounding voice during church one day and people may be a little concerned. If Ave was a rapper her name would surely be "lil' monster." She would be known for her low, raspy, slightly-evil sounding voice.

Along with the monster voice, Avery is a giggle monster. Here is a vid of her giggling like crazy. All I had to do was toss a toy in the air a couple times for her... the kid is easy to please!

When our friends Greyley (Grey and Haley) came to town a couple weekends ago, we went out to lunch with them and the Utsey's at East Blvd Bar & Grill. We decided that Avery should taste a lemon for the first time... and and her reaction was great - a little lizard baby sticking out her tongue. Just when I didn't think she liked it she would reach out for it and open her mouth to taste the lemon again. Any of my relatives would know that Avery is just getting ready for her first taste of Nana's famous lemon cake. It shouldn't be shocking that Avery likes lemons - it runs in the family!

For those of you that would like to see a funny video of Avery tasting a lemon for the first time, please visit a post of our friends the Utsey's blog: http://dandmutsey.blogspot.com/2010/02/greyley-visits-van.html. Thanks to Melissa, we caught the moment on video!

Fun with the Zarates!

Last weekend, Erin, Martin and Parker came to Charlotte.

Here are some pictures from the visit:

Hello Parker! My how you've grown...

The Zarates were driving into Charlotte as the 2nd snow of the winter was coming down. The last hour was slow-moving but they got here safely. The next morning, Martin made a snowman, and we had Parker sit on Frosty (he loved it, surprisingly). Look at that grin...

After running some errands once the snow melted away, Avery and Parker were pooped, so we let them snooze side by side in their car seats. Whew, being a baby is hard work...

Avery was obsessed with poking at Parker with her tiny little index finger. This developed into grabbing at him in general. We had to make sure she didn't poke him in the eye.

She also did "E.T. phone home" fingers with Uncle Martin.

On Sunday, it was Valentines Day. We let Avery explain to Parker what the day meant - he looked like he really was taking it all in.

Avery and Parker are both champion droolers. Here is a pic of Avery with drool upon her lip... showing off those teeth!

Soon enough, Avery will be able to eat Bo-berry biscuits from Bojangles with the rest of us. Yes, Bojangles made heart-shaped biscuits on Valentine's Day! (and we admit we enjoyed them)...

Avery's newest "voice" is her monster voice, and we are really hoping that Parker picks up this funny (albeit a little freaky) little monster voice since Erin and Martin got such a kick out of it.

All in all, the weekend was a ton of fun, and we enjoyed catching up and letting the babies play. Thanks for coming to visit... we love you!

Chugga chugga chew chew

Avery had her first organic rice rusk and went to town on it! Chomp, chomp.

Teeth #3 & #4 are on their way... and she's putting those first two teeth to good use!

(I really hope this video works this time!)

Who's your "Da-Da?"... Avery is 8 months old!

Avery sure knows who her daddy is! Her newest obsession seems to be saying "da-da" on repeat, and we tend to get a "ma-ma" thrown in when she really gets going. (Though it should be noted that she did say "ma-ma" first, back in December, and has said it many more time since. Usually when she is sad or wants something).

Our gal responds very well to music and loves to "dance." She giggles and wiggles when you sing just about anything, so there is a lot of random singing in our house. We can make the most mediocre tasks sound fun and exciting. "We're walking up the stairs" or "change change change the diaper" are pretty good ones... and then "dune-buggy, dune-buggy" for instance is a bouncing song, which is one of Avery's current faves.

Last weekend Grandma and Grandpa Bricker came to visit. They watched Avery during the day on Friday while Jeff and I went to work and successfully got Avery down for two naps (she fights said naps sometimes when we are home). On Saturday we had a long day of running errands and playing, but Avery did wonderfully, even taking her long afternoon nap in the stroller while we trucked around Ikea. She had three different meals while out and about, and was still 100% pleasant. She also got her first teeny taste of ice cream (I couldn't resist!). She had wide-eyes and leaned into it, and kept opening her mouth looking for it even after I polished off the cone. Oops, I'm in the process of creating a sugar monster!

You are considered an instant friend if you read to Avery - she LOVES books, and always reaches to them first over many other favorite toys.

One of our latest additions is the baby gate now at the top of the stairs. Now that Avery can roll and scoot, we have had to install (ok, my dad installed) the gate. It's the not greatest looking gate, but man it is sturdy and best of all safe. Now that Avery has started grabbing out for things while she is in our arms she always tries to leap from my arms to grab the gate. She also does this with the kitties, and apparently does this at Donna's to reach out to the other babies. She is very curious and wants to be a part of it all.

We are currently working on waving bye-bye and blowing kisses. It's a work in progress, and who knows what is going through Avery's head in the morning when Jeff and I repeat "bye-bye" with her at least 10 times in a row. However, she is definitely grasping the concept and kind of opens and closes her hand at her side. Donna helps her blow kisses to me when I drop her off there during the week.

Avery has this goofball side to her, and then also an almost shy side to her. She will be very friendly and then suddenly hide her face and play peekaboo games with people. She peeks out and as soon as she catches someone's eye she'll smile, then bury her head into me again. We are loving her hugs and cuddles - they are so sweet.

Happy 8-month birthday to our sweet little goofball Avery. We love you!

Here's a video of Avery on the move...

Where did January go, anyway?

We now understand why a baby's age in calculated in weeks and/or months. The changes that occur in weekly increments are monumental. If we would have written this post, say, a week ago (when our moms probably would have liked us to have) we would have had a totally different spin on things!

We have been very busy (who hasn't?) lately, so we wanted to send you some updates. Tooth #2 has made it's way through! Avery was a drool-machine and we knew it was coming... but it has finally arrived! She has now tried many new tastes such as strawberries, pears with cinnamon and green beans - which she gobbled up with delight! She loves green beans like her Mommy!

Other January highlights & accomplishments include:

1/16/2010 - Avery had her first official (non-family member or daycare) babysitter when we went out on date night to Del Frisco's. Alyssa came over to play with Avery and the two had such fun singing, reading and playing together. We enjoyed being out and catching up sans bebe, and enjoyed some phenomenal food.

1/17/2010 - The next day the White family went to a Charlotte Checkers hockey game. Avery watched the game intently and was very well-behaved. When the Checkers scored their first goal, the music blared, the fans stomped and everyone screamed the "na-na-na-na-na-HEY!" song. Avery jumped and then grinned from ear to ear - she loved it!

1/18/2010 - Avery has begun drinking out of a sippy cup at meals. Sometimes she just tips her head back and lets up hold the cup. Other times she tries desperately to get it to her mouth and tipped herself, which usually results in it ending up wedged between her and the highchair. Regardless, she looks like such a big girl with a sippy cup!

1/22/2010 - Our latest appointment with Dr. Amy Ryan at Eastover Pediatrics discovered ANOTHER - her third - ear infection! We caught it early because we were going in anyways, but we had to put her back on another antibiotic. We go back in 4 weeks to get her ears checked again and are hoping this is not a chronic problem (which would result in Avery having to get "tubes" put in her ears). Perk of being on antibiotic: plenty of "bare-bottom" time!

1/23/2010 - Avery and Mommy went to an infant massage class where Mommy got to learn some relaxing techniques for babies. Avery as much more interested in trying to grab baby Van's hand the entire time since he was laying near her on the blanket. She was just enamored with him!

Jeremy and Cassie came to visit last weekend and met Avery for the first time. Avery loved having Cassie read to her, and enjoyed laughing at Jeremy (We think because of his facial hair, but can't be for sure.)

1/27/2010 - Avery loves her baths in the big bathtub, and now spends most of the time chasing down rubber ducky and trying to eat him. We call it the "duck hunt." She getting very good at it, and we usually just have to hold on to her tight so she doesn't go diving face first into the side of the tub.

1/27/2010 - This past Wednesday night when we put Avery down for bed she flipped over and fell asleep on her tummy. This is the first time she had done this at bedtime, so we were so worried (they scare you to death with all the SIDS talk) so we took trips several times into the nursery to make sure she was ok. She was JUST FINE, and had actually flipped back to her back sometime in the night.

1/30/2010 - Avery has learned to roll everywhere she needs to go. She rolled across the room about 5 feet this morning. She started out playing with her toys in one spot and ended up moments later all the way over to the computer chair. Time are a changin.' She's definitely found out how to be more mobile! Yikes, guess we really need to get on that "baby proofin'."

Avery also has mastered the "compass," where she can spin in a circle pulling herself with her arms. Typically Jack the cat is always at North, as she likes to look at him at all times. She also can scoot herself backwards to get places - like backed into a corner or under the coffee table. Another favorite activity is standing...

1/30/2010 - Avery woke up to her first snowfall this morning! OK, it was a very, very light dusting but it was exciting nonetheless! We used the snow and icy roads as the perfect excuse to wear pj's all day and relax!

Things that make us go 'nerd'...

Aside from our near obsession with our beautiful daughter, there are two very excited things coming up that we are getting giddy about. The first thing is the return of LOST on February 2nd. This is the last season, and since there are many (actually too many) questions that need to be answered, we have come up with our top 10 AMBA (absolutely must be answered) list.

Dear Mr. Lindelof & Mr. Cuse, we beg of you... please answer these very important Q's:

(1) What is the significance of the numbers?

(2) What is the smoke monster?

(3) Why are Benjamin Linus & Charles Widmore fighting?

(4) Who is Jacob?

(5) What happened to the people/children taken by the Others?

(6) Is Christian Shepard (Jack’s dad) alive or is he a ghost?

(7) Why was Claire's baby Aaron so important?

(8) Is Libby good or bad?

(9) Why doesn’t Richard Alpert age? Who is he?

(10) Who will make it off the island?

The other thing that we are pretty pumped about is the Wizarding World of Harry Potter opening this spring at Universal Studios Orlando. We have to admit he mere thought of starting a day wandering through Hogwarts School of wizardry followed by a lovely trip to Hogmeade Village has us grinning from ear to ear. We each want our own wand to choose us at Ollivander's (we won't even pretend they are for Avery) and we will finish the day sipping butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks.

Here is a sneak peek at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter:

http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/wizarding-world-of-harry-potter-preview.htm

And, yes, we realize we can never make fun of our friends that are 'twilight' fans again. Well, maybe just once more:Jeff says that sparkly vampires that play baseball are lame.

Avery is 7 months old!

Lots and lots of milestones in Avery's 7th month... trying all sorts of new tastes like sweet potato (likes), peas (does not like), avocado (LOVES), squash (HATED her first experience, but has come to like a bit better). For her 7-month birthday we started out with blueberries in her rice cereal for breakfast and had a yummy lunch of potatoes with broccoli. Here is Avery with remnants of breakfast all over her face...

It's been fun experienting with the different tastes and textures, and Avery provides us with hilarious faces during each new experience. Sometimes she just holds the food on her tongue and sticks it waaay out so the food just drops off her tongue and onto her bib. Best invention ever: the plastic wipe-away bib! The one from Pottery Barn that we got from 'LaLa' (Adrienne's mom) is our favorite, because not only is it easy to clean, it also matches the Bumbo seat where Avery typically eats her lunch at home. Fashion matters! ;)

I am batch-cooking lots of different veggies for Avery, and love my new Babycook steamer and food processor from Grandma White! It goes great with my favorite baby cookbook, "First Meals" from Grandma Bricker. The main container both steams and purees; it's quick and efficient. Plus, the veggies just look so pretty once they are pureed... my favorites so far are the butternut squash and the potatoes with broccoli.

Avery is rolling over like crazy, but she gets really frustrated on her tummy, because she is just dying to get movin.' We know it will happen soon enough, but for now she ends up on her tummy kind of pushing herself forward and backward trying to tuck the knees up and under her body. She can turn herself on her belly to reach and grab all of her toys on her mat, and then when she gets bored of that she starts grunting and whining for someone to help her get out of her tummy situation. I remind her each time that I am not that one that put her in that position, that she got into it herself.

As I mentioned, on New Year's Day we discovered Avery's first tooth coming through. It is apparent now that the second tooth is right behind - another source of frustration for our little gal. She's taking any pain she may be experiencing like a little trooper, and really only seems to get fussy in the evenings for a bit. Baby Tylenol has done the trick so far! We've tried teething toys, but really, I think she just prefers chewing on her hands. Those little teeth are SHARP though. I think if it were me I'd prefer a teething toy. (Luckily I won't be getting any new teeth any time soon).

Here is Avery's latest vid playing in her exersaucer. Along with repetitive music from her baby boombox, you can also hear Jeff sweeping the floors and whistling in the background. :)

Happy 7-month birthday Avery (also now known as "Spike" due to her fine little blonde hairs sticking straight up on her head)! You continue to remind us what a true blessing being a parent is, and we love you more than words can say!