A quick run down: I've been using my spare time lately to de-clutter my house. Closets, basement, crawl space, garage, dresser drawers--everything's getting cleaned out!! Ava's room recently underwent a minor makeover, as well. Just moved some things over to the nursery and gave her a new *B-I-G* G-I-R-L bed!! She loves her new bed! And the napping hasn't stopped!! It's been a beautiful transition. :) She continues to surprise us at how easy going she is about everything. Sleeping through the night = 3 days old (ok, at least 6 hrs straight)... Potty training = 4 days (I expected months and months of agony)... Sleeping in her big girl bed without a struggle & napping = the first day we tried it out!! Unbelievable! We find that she does spend a lot of time up there talking to her "friends" and reading books before she falls asleep. It's pretty cute to listen to. Thankfully, she hasn't fallen out of her bed yet, either. But rest assured, I lined the perimeter of her bed with several pillows and blankets for weeks when she first moved into the big bed... just in case. : ) We always expect the worst, I think. I had nightmares of how this transition might go... up all night crying, banging on her door for someone to let her out, in our room every 2 hours, or the WORST scenario: no more naps!! My visions were not pretty. My anxiety was way worse than hers! She's such a peach. And now my 2nd will probably live up to my worst nightmares! Haha! See, the anxiety's kicking in already. ; )
Speaking of my 2nd, the big day is rapidly approaching! I'm so excited to meet her. So many emotions surround childbirth. I'm ecstatic to have another baby and constantly have dreams about her little pink cheeks, downy soft hair, and sweet baby scent. Snuggling, nursing, listening to baby squeaks, those little white bumps on baby noses. There is nothing in this world we live in that is more rewarding than nurturing & mothering a newborn baby. And then there are the days when I think, "oooh boy, here we go again!" Diaper changes, fussing & crying, non-stop nursing, wack-a-doo body, spit-up, up-the-back-and-out-the-sides-diaper blow-outs, ridiculous fatigue. For some reason, these things happen to come to mind at times when my toddler is showing her devil horns... conveniently. ;) But like I told my husband the other day, their babyhood is gone in the blink of an eye. It really amazes me...and saddens me...that my daughter is almost 3 years old. Her babyhood is gone. Those chubby thighs (she kinda still has them ;), silly raz-berries, backwards crawling, jumping like crazy in her bouncer are all over for her. Too fast! But in moments of chaos, it seems like they'll be babies forever and we'll never catch a break. Then you blink and 3 years have gone by! I can only imagine how it will feel when I've blinked and 26 years have gone by! It's all just ages and stages. Cherish them!
Some pictures from the past month...
The first really nice day of summer! It was 74 degrees and Ava decided to play in the leftover rain water in her water table. I later decided to fill it with lukewarm tap water... after she decided that she couldn't play in the water with a wet shirt on. :)
Teeny tiny baby crack : )
Yep, she dunked her head...
My girl on mother's day. Love her to the moon....and back!!
Posing with her baby : )
Here she's saying, "daddy baby got hurt, kiss it" That face says it all actually. : )
The first day in her pool! We will be here a lot this summer! She loves it. It's the perfect size and depth for a 2 year old + mommy's feet. ; )
Thought she was blowing bubbles...then it turned into body painting with bubbles. Gotta mix it up! :)
"Hiiii Mom!!!"
35 weeks, my friends ; ) I've loved every minute!
