Ava's first Christmas

Ava's first Christmas was full of family, friends, toys, Christmas parties and lots of fun! I've been looking forward to her first Christmas for a while now and it was great! She got lots of fun things to play with thanks to Santa Claus, Grandparents, cousins, Mom and Dad, aunts and uncles and friends. And lots of time to spend with each and everyone as well! Here are some pictures of the festivities....

Such a big girl sitting in this fun little chair at a friends Christmas party.

Getting ready to open gifts, she loved playing in all the presents!

Playing with her toys with Daddy.

Reading a book.

She loved her new cookie jar!

Vinny enjoying his new toy! ;)

This was probably one of her favorite toys, it's a book that sings songs, so cute!

Rub a dub dub

Now that Ava is pretty much mobile, with her rolling and scooting all over the floor, it's easy for her to get into things. I had some stuff to do on the computer, so I pulled out her bath tub, filled it with some toys and got about 30 minutes of entertainment out of it! Not bad....and she loved it. =)

Whoa Mom!

I put Ava in the front of the shopping cart for the first time today, and she just wasn't quite sure what to think about it! She was definitely holding on for dear life, too funny!

Mega catch up post!

It's been a while since I've posted, but we've been very busy and we all got sick! The whole family was taken down by a nasty stomach bug, thank goodness we're over that! Nanny and Papa came in from Colorado for Thanksgiving, and they even got sick...watch out, flu season has struck! I got a new job at a great steakhouse here in town for the holiday season, so I've been extra busy. Ski season has also begun, so there goes Ian until summer! Ava is getting so big! Everyday she seems to be doing something new, she has really been "talking" up a storm lately, saying baba and mama, she is so much fun! She is also doing really well with her torticollis, which makes us so happy. Anyway, here are some pictures of this last month...

Daddy taking care of Ava while they were sick.

This is a picture of Ava at physical therapy with her new therapist, she is so great!

All smiles, and she still loves her feet! We can barely keep her socks on anymore, I think she thinks they are toys to play with...

Such a big girl holding her bottle all by herself.

She's been trying to scoot lately. We usually keep her on a blanket on the floor and instead of scooting to get to a toy, she just pulls the blanket and the toy to her, it's so funny. But, when I set her on the floor without the blanket, she really started scooting forward to reach for things. :)

Cute little ponytail!

Half a year!

Well, our baby girl turned 6 months old yesterday! Where has the time gone? She is getting so big. She just started sitting up by herself (well for short periods and then she topples over). She also still loves to play with toys, and it's a good thing because she has so many! Books have also become an interest to her. We read to her every night before she goes to bed, and she likes to sit there and look at the pictures before the book finally just ends up in her mouth! ;) We still try to feed her baby food, but she just can't get the hang of eating off a spoon, but we'll continue trying! Her torticollis is pretty much resolved which makes us so happy! Yay for the new physical therapist. Anyway, here are a few pictures of this last month.

Such a big girl sitting up by herself.

Without the pillow for support.

Piggy tails!

Eating a banana out of the mesh feeder. She actually really liked it.

She rolls all over the floor now! It's so funny to see where she ends up...

Happy Halloween!

Well, when in Utah, do like the Utans do and celebrate Halloween on Saturday instead of Sunday! ;) As you can tell, Ava's a little ladybug this year and would only wear the costume for a quick photo shoot. I didn't get around to getting Vinny a costume this year, and I'm sure he's very upset about it....NOT! He hated when I dressed him up, and is probably glad that I have someone else to play dress up with. :) Anyway, Happy Halloween!!

Shoulder rides!

I can't believe Ava is getting big enough for shoulder rides (well with a little help from daddy!) And she loved it! It's so cute to watch these two play, she loves her daddy...

Who needs toys!

The other day I put Ava in her exersaucer, and instead of playing with any of the toys, she found this little tiny tag attatched to one of them and sat there and played with it for about 15 minutes! It was so funny. She's also been finding things like her burp cloths, socks and little buttons attatched to my clothes more interesting than her toys! We probably don't even need to buy her any toys for Christmas, since I'm sure the bows and ribbons will most likely excite her more! :)

The littlest Ute

Thanks to Uncle Jon, Ava's all geared up for U of U football season! He just couldn't resist this little outfit while at the U Bookstore when he was in town. Go Ute's!!

5 months!

Wow, where has the time gone? I can't believe Ava is already over 5 months old!! She is so much fun lately. Rolling over lots, smiling and laughing all the time, trying to sit up by herself and starting to eat solids. We just started feeding her baby food as of yesterday. It hasn't gone too well so far, she just can't get the hang of eating off a spoon. Oh well, all in due time... She now weighs 14 1/2 lbs and is 26 inches long. We are still having to take her to physical therapy for her neck. She really hates going, but is making a lot of progress. Anyway, here are some pictures of this last month.

Now with the cooler weather, she's been able to wear some of the cute jeans that we've had since the baby showers! :)

Such a big girl in her new highchair.

She loves playing in her excersaucer! Her feet can finally touch the bottom now. ;)

I love my toys!

Lately Ava has really been into her toys. It's so fun to watch her play with them! She mostly screams at them like they're not doing what she wants them to do, it's so funny. Here's a little video of her playing with her new Sophie the Girfaffe.

Bumpers

Mom took my bumpers off my crib because she was nervous I wouldn't be able to breath well with them on. Now I get to stick my arms and legs out of the slats and let Vinny lick me. Oh and I get to suck on the crib as well. She says it's not a good idea, so we had to put some new breathable bumpers on. And I was just getting used to all the freedom...

Hi!

Aaahh, feels nice!

I think Vinny was more interested in my stuffed dog, than he was me.

Me and the new bumpers!

End of summer fun!

Well, we are definitely trying to take advantage of the warm weather by getting out there and doing some fun activities. A trip to the zoo, Colorado Springs and Red Butte Gardens just to name a few!

Grandma Young and Ava at Red Butte.

Mommy and Ava.

The beautiful koi pond.

Grammy McPherson and Ava (sleeping under the blanket) in Old downtown Colorado Springs.

Daddy and the Giraffes at the Hogle Zoo.

Found some shade on a hot summer day.

Ava's first trip to the zoo! She pretty much slept the whole time... ;)

Testing

Well, I got a new phone, and I'm trying to figure out how to download the videos. I sort of figured it out, but I can't figure out how to rotate them! Anyway, turn your head to the side for now and enjoy a short video of Ava laughing!

Old school

We drove to California a couple of weeks ago, and wasn't able to take Ava's swing with us. Angi to the resuce! She happened to have a swing from when her oldest Sierra, was a baby (she's now 15!) No batteries required, it's the old fashioned wind up! And Ava loved it. It gave us 40 minutes of swinging each time, and worked perfectly for her naps. Thanks Angi! :)

4 months!

Actually, I'm a little behind on the 4 month update, but better late than never! Anyway, I can't believe how fast Ava is growing. Everyday, it seems like she is doing something new. She has been rolling over both ways like crazy, "talking" up a storm, smiling, laughing, playing with toys, grabbing everything in site (especially mommys hair!) and just making us smile every time we look at her! In fact, right now she is playing in her crib with her toys and doing this really funny growl that she just started, she sounds like a little baby lion, it's so cute! And now for the pictures of this last month.....

Our little princess :)

It's so hard to capture pictures of her on her tummy anymore, becuase she rolls over so fast. You can tell here that she's already on her way over!

Grandpa Bagley visits.

Mommy got sick, so Grandma Young came and bundled me all up and took me out to lunch with Aunt Lyla so Mommy could get some well needed rest!

I love my toys!

Uncle Aaron comes for a visit.

Daddy had to put me in the baby bjorn so Mommy could get ready for a BBQ.

I love my Daddy!

Little ballerina

Ava has recently found her feet, and has been totally obsessed with them! She has also started fitting into some of her shoes that we have for her, and I put on her little ballerina slippers and it really looked like she was doing some ballet moves, it was so cute!

So flexible! I remember when I could touch my feet, not so much anymore! ;)