Time Flies

Time Flies! I can hardly believe it's been 6+ weeks since my last post. We've been having a great but busy summer, and I have a lot of catching up to do on our blog!

For starters, sweet Ava is now just over 3 months old. This post is dedicated to her milestone photos from this summer. In future posts we'll summarize other summer highlights as well!

Around weeks 5 & 6, we moved Ava into her room (from our room) and that first night she slept 6 hours! (10pm-4am). This nighttime schedule became a routine, along with catnaps throughout the day. We laugh that Ava is a loud sleeper - grunting, groaning and squealing as she sleeps. The older she's gotten, the quieter she sleeps....thankfully! :)

Ava also started smiling at around 6 weeks...or maybe even sooner, but it was hard to determine if those smiles were intentional. We love to see her sweet face light up in a grin. She brings us so much joy!

The night before Ava was 2 months old, she slept what we would consider "through the night"! (10:15pm-5:15am). This pattern of 7+ hours has been consistent ever since. What a girl! Ava visited the doctor for a 2-month checkup. She weighs 10lbs almost even, and is 23.25".

2 month photos

Ava's 10th week was highlighted by lots of cooing and talking. We love to hear her sweet little voice! She also slept 9 hours this week (9:30pm-6:30am) and continues to take frequent naps throughout the day.

3 Months Old! How fast the time has gone! Little Ava loves to look at and suck on her hand, she holds her head up well, has a wonderful smile (her whole face lights up, head turns side-to-side, and shoulders shrug), sleeps well through the night (about 9 hours, brief wake to feed, then 3 more hours), and does lots of "talking" - she is going to be a chatter box! Owen loves his sister, giving her lots of kisses. And she seems to recognize him also - often smiling at him when he gets laughing or silly. Thanks to generous grandma's and friends, Ava has quite an expansive wardrobe of dresses, bows, and lots of pink! We are thoroughly enjoying having a little girl in the family, and are so blessed that the Lord gave us Ava.

3 Month Photos

One Month

Sweet Ava - One Month Old!

(click photo to enlarge. I know I'm biased, but I think she's so precious!)

"birthday" flowers from grandma Pam

Starting to have more "alert" time. (I think she's looking at the photos on our wall?)

Not to be forgotten...the other girl in the house. Our kitty Ruby makes her presence known! She's a sweet kitty and has adjusted well to the new baby also.

Week 4

Ava's 4th week was a very full week of parties, visitors, and some special cozy family time.

The week kicked-off with a wonderful "welcome Ava" shower/party organized by my dear friend Kelly at my parent's house in Keizer. It was a lovely evening of special friends and yummy treats. We feel truly blessed to have so many people who wanted to come meet and welcome Ava! Our dear friend Mary Gene is a talented photographer, and generously agreed to help document the evening for us. We are so grateful to have a file of photos from the evening (perfect for Ava's baby book!) and below are just a few of the highlights!

Mary Gene with the party girl. Thanks for taking so many great pictures, MG!

Brian had Friday off work so we spent the afternoon at a nearby park. Neighboring the park is a pasture with cows. Owen loves to watch and "moo" at the cows. We brought a picnic dinner that evening, and instead of having dinner at the park we decided to park the car near the pasture. We all sat in the trunk to have our picnic and watch the cows. Owen was thrilled with this little adventure! Brian and I laughed, realizing it was a Friday night and although many people might be out-on-the-town, we were in the trunk having a picnic with our kids and the cows. And with Owen's sweet smile & giggles, there was no place we'd rather be :)

Good Morning!

Owen begs to have his sister lay in his bed with him. So sweet!

Coffee and snuggle time. What could be better?!

We enjoyed a visit from Auntie Angie, Cousin Landon, and Angie's mom Chris. Angie's entire family is very special to us, and we love our opportunities to see them!

Amazing to think that these two will be the same grade in school!

Owen - sharing his cars with Landon. Fun that they can begin to play together!

Sweet Landon (10 months old)

It also happened to be Grandpa Clark's ("sabba") Birthday! He enjoyed the special opportunity for a birthday photo with all 3 grand kids.

Ava - 4 weeks:

Week 3

Week 3 was a quiet week at home. Ava is still sleeping much of the day and night, up every 3 hours to feed. Owen has continued to transition really well - he loves sister and is very gentle with her. We are so grateful everything has gone so smoothly!

A party dress from grandma. Too cute!

Linnea's mom got Ava some Linnea flowers as a welcome gift. Linnea is essentially a small and delicate ground-covering with small pink flowers. In perfect timing - it bloomed during Ava's 3rd week. So very special!

Week 2

Ava's second week included her first vacation - what a great way to start life! Linnea's parents have a vacation rental at Black Butte Ranch in central Oregon. It's occupied most days of the spring/summer, however it happened to be available Memorial Day Weekend. So, we all took a spontaneous get-away to their place - a wonderful way to spend some special family time and get a little R&R following Ava's arrival!

Ava getting a bath from her two grandmas. Clearly she's enjoying the experience :)


Oh my goodness - all the gear for just a few days away!

Owen ready to go - and now he has a partner to ride in the back seat with him!

(Although truth be told, Linnea ended up sitting between the kids for much of the drive. With Ava continuously needing help with her pacifier, and Owen with his snacks or toys that he dropped, it was much easier just to join them in the back. Oh how our road trips have changed now that we have kids!)

We love Black Butte!

Our sweet Ava - taking a bottle like a champ! After the struggle we had with Owen taking the bottle, we started Ava on a bottle week-2. She's been taking one each day ever since, and does a great job. Good girl!

At the two week checkup Ava was up to 6lbs 11oz! Although she's still in only about the 5th percentile (our little peanut!), with a birth weight of 5lbs 14oz this is great weight gain in such a short amount of time. We are so grateful to have such a healthy girl!

2 Weeks....exactly! (3:53pm)