Summer Lovin'

Avery's first summer is off to a great start!  (Well, yes, technically summer doesn't start until June 21st, but I consider the first nice weather streak to be the "real" kickoff, especially in San Diego!)

Avery had a fun playdate with Mr. Nicholas Wilkie and there were a ton of precious moments caught on camera...

What is Avery more excited about?  The cute boy in front of her or the fact that she can almost fit the entire block in her mouth?!

It may be a little too early for a first kiss, but...how will you know if you don't try?

Mirror me!

Fun playdate!  We LOVE the Wilkies!

Avery is very social and loves being around people, so this playdate was especially fun to see how excited she got to have a friend to play with.  Watching the two little ones play together definitely reinforced the idea that babies know when they see other babies...the way they look at each other and interact is very unique and intimate on a whole different level.

When Avery gets excited, whether it's playing with a new friend or going on walks and seeing new people/things, she flaps her arms like a little bird.  Too cute for words, so a video will have to do!

We spent the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend at the Goad's with some friends and secretly, I was hoping that Amanda would go into labor, because we cannot wait to meet Quinn!  She'll be here any day now and the anticipation is intense.  As much as Avery loves all of her boyfriends (at this point, all of our friends have boys!), there's something to be said about a girlfriend!

What a beautiful group of friends!

Memory lane...Simpsons and Goads pre-Avery and Quinn!

We spent the morning of Memorial Day with my parents at the Mount Soledad Memorial in La Jolla.  It was more moving than I expected to read through all of the plaques and see pictures of the men and women who fought for our freedom.  And, there were quite a few "family" plaques that paid tribute to entire families and generations of soldiers.  One of the more heart-tugging plaques was one dedicated to four brothers who all died in WWII.

It's important to Jeff and I to continue the tradition with Avery that my parents started years ago...taking time to reflect upon the importance of the day, as well as pay tribute to all those brave men and women who put their heart and sole on the line for their country and our freedom.

I like that all the "famous" soldiers were not given any special placement or exhibit...you had to look hard to find any celebrities.

A beautiful day at the top of La Jolla!

Hanging out with Dad and reflecting on the day...

We spent Memorial Day evening hanging out with our neighbors and enjoying some delicious food.  We are lucky to live in a neighborhood with so many young children and fun parents!  Avery loves watching the older kids ride their bikes up and down the street and kick the soccer ball around...she'll be out there with them in no time.   

We have been taking Avery in the pool for about a month now, but this past Saturday was her first official swim lesson at the Y (as official as a swim lesson can be at 8.5 months).  She LOVED it!  She is very comfortable in the water and loves to splash! 

Avery and Jeff chatting about how much fun they're having! 

She'll be surfing in no time...

Practicing the butterfly.  :-)

On the milestone front, Avery can roll around and scoot backwards with the best of them, but still hasn't managed to get onto all fours to start the crawling phase.  All in due time!  She is a fantastic eater and can't get enough of peaches and sweet potatoes (who can?!).  She loves books and gets a kick out of the narrator when they make animal noises ("moooooo" is at the top of her list!!).  She also loves banging on things...I think our new toy will have to be a tambourine! 

Funny picture time...

I'm a model.  This is my "fierce" face.

Celebrate Good Times, Come on!

Between my dad's birthday (March 28th) and Mother's Day (today!) there were a lot of celebrations to be had including my 30th birthday, Easter and my mom's birthday.  That's a lot of jolly cheer (and busy weekends) to fit into a month in a half!

As I mentioned in my previous posts, my dad's birthday at Balboa Park was a blast and my 30th birthday celebrations were fabulous (or as Jeff sometimes says when he's channeling his high school self, "off the chain"). 

Easter was amazing and all that I hoped it would be.  Avery woke up completely giddy, because somewhere inside her 7 month old brain I think she knew it was going to be a wonderful day!

Good Morning and Happy Easter!

On our way to Lindsay and Pat's we paid a visit to our friends, the Cotugno family.  They welcomed their second baby boy about two months ago and it was great to meet him, even if he didn't know we were there....ahhh, the joys of newborn baby naps!  Their two year old son, Vince, was there to entertain us and both Jeff and I loved playing with him.  He is such a cutie pie and has a sweet and fun demeanor.  And, I don't want to jump the gun here, but I think Miss Avery has a little crush...

Avery & Vince sitting in a tree...

Next, we headed to Lindsay and Pat's new house in Hermosa Beach for our Easter festivities.  I have to mention that their house is awesome.  Great location (Hermosa Beach - two thumbs up; being able to walk to the beautiful "what movies are made of" beach - 8,000 thumbs up) and their house is so cool!  They have been doing quite a few upgrades/renovations since they bought it about eight months ago and the place looks great.  Light, bright and airy with plenty of space and great neighbors - they definitely picked a winner!  And, to top off a great pad, they made a delicious meal for 10 people!  That's impressive on every level, if you ask me.

Did someone say "Easter Bunny?!"

Beautiful family in front; beautiful beach in back.  :-)

Next up on the busy agenda...my mom's birthday at the Wild Animal Park!

Apparently, these things hiss when they're uncomfortable...

Two peas in a pod

And, last up on the list of festivities was Mother's Day!  We had breakfast with my parents and took a very special "3 generations" photo...

I look back at last Mother's Day and feel like that was my first official time celebrating the holiday, even though Miss Avery was an "inside baby" at that time.  We had our entire family over to our house and enjoyed a tasty meal by the house chef (Jeffrey Wendall) and the big kicker was telling our families the sex about of our baby!  Jeff and I found out the night before and recorded the video that changed our lives forever.  (Click on the link to view said video.)  I wish I would have recorded the excitement and cheers from the room when they were watching the video...it was so moving and emotional and will be ingrained in my memory forever.

Between all the weekend parties, it's surprising we had any time to do much else...but, where there is a will, there is a way...

I get really excited for walks...

Pool time with the Taits!

Pool day at the Goads.  Come on, Quinn, hurry up and get here!  We wanna play in the pool with you!

Funny picture time!

What?  Do I have something on my face?

Lovin' April

Easter is one of my favorite holidays...truth be told, it's second behind Christmas.  I LOVE spring, Easter egg hunts, pastel colors, coloring Easter eggs, sunrise services, Easter baskets, dressing up, peeps, jelly beans and of course, celebrating of the real meaning of the day. 

I remember when I was little my grandmother used to buy my girl cousins and I the most beautiful Easter dresses and bonnets.  I also remember white patent leather shoes being a big part of the ensemble...priceless!

This Easter we have plans to go up to Lindsay and Pat's new house in Hermosa Beach and I can barely contain my excitement!  I bought Avery an adorable Easter outfit last week and can't wait to put her little tush in it. I am also looking forward to seeing the new Wade digs and spending some quality time with our family.  When Avery gets a little older it is going to be so much fun to make our Easter celebration more kid-centered...and I hope Avery will love Easter as much as I do.

Easter Bunny - mini size

This month had another special aspect to it...my 30th birthday!!  I had an outstanding birthday and everything about it exceeded my expectations.  As you probably know, I am not a big "birthday person" and wasn't sure how I would feel about turning the big 3-0, but it all went off without a hitch and I'm still enjoying the celebrations (I think I could get used to this...).  From lunch with my brokers to a mini surprise celebration with my family to the wonderful weekend getaway with the husband (great job, babe, for planning such an amazing stay-cation!!) I felt like a million bucks.  I even got a whole batch of the most amazing homemade cookies from my co-worker - chocolate chip with an Oreo baked inside (yes, they were as amazing as they sound).  Needless to say, I had a stomach ache all day on Monday...partly due to excess cookie eating and partly due to excessive jelly bean eating.  Ahhh - I can't help myself!

Love my co-workers!

View from our hotel room last weekend - beautiful!

Funny picture time!

No caption needed for this one...  :-)

6 Months for Baby & 58 Years for Grandpa!

Today was Avery's sixth month appointment and I'm proud to report that she weighs in at 15lbs. 11oz. and is in the 88th percentile for height.  That's my girl!!  And, the biggest news of the day...she officially cut her first tooth!  I knew the bottom two were on their way in, but was still pleasantly surprised at their overnight arrival.  If I said it once, I've said it a thousand times...my baby girl is growing up so fast! 

In addition to her growth stats, here are some "likes" and "dislikes" that I thought I'd share...

Likes:

1) Itsy Bitsy Spider.  Whatever it is that we're doing will quickly become secondary the moment I start singing this nursery rhyme. 

2) Her green block.  This block was a set of 4 including yellow, red and blue.  They're a really great material (easy to grab, fun to chew) and each has its own animal, number, and pattern, etc., on every side.  For some reason, Avery is always drawn to the green one.  In fact, she'll move the others out of the way just to get her cute little paws on that one.  (Detailed green block info: rhino, the number 1, a car, paw prints)

3) Touching people's faces.  The scruffier the face, the bigger the nose, the wider the mouth - the better.

4) Sucking on fingers. 

P.S.  Isn't this is the cutest Cookie Monster you have ever seen?!

5) Baby Bjorn.  Magical.  Purely, intensely magical.  Avery and I love this contraption and can spend hours and hours with it.  Since Avery is so intrigued by everything in sight and we both love being outside and out and about this is the perfect thing for us.  And, it allows me to constantly kiss and smell the top of her head - cherry. on. top.

5) Blue Bird Picture.  There is a great picture by Avery's changing table that she is just in love with.  When we scoop her up after every diaper change she immediately perks up and stares at the picture awaiting our narration.  "Papa bird," "mama bird," baby birds," worms," and "nest" are the main components of our narration, but the story varies each time.

6) The Robot.  (Make sure your sound is up before you watch the video below...the noises are part of the experience...)

Dislikes:

1) Sneezes.  Her own are super funny to her, but everyone else's are an awful disruption to whatever it is that she's doing at the time.  And, if you happen to be within a foot of her when you sneeze, prepare for a complete and utter meltdown.  The grandparents, our nanny, Jeff and I, and even poor little Belle  have been the cause (and victim) of the episodes and therefore, have all been coming up with ways to help Avery get over this, but until we do, please consider yourself warned.

2) Being hungry, tired and in the car all at the same time.  I usually time her napping and eating pretty well, but there are those instances every once in a while when things just don't line up.  Recently, I was running errands with Avery and knew I had to get home to feed her and put her down for a nap, but some idiot had to drive recklessly on the freeway and get into an accident (no one was hurt) which caused standstill traffic on the 5.  Needless to say, someone was not a happy camper...and Avery wasn't so thrilled either.

I also want to add a little note to this blog about my dad's 58th birthday celebration on Sunday.  Uncle Brennan and Auntie Michel came down from Huntington Beach and the seven of us headed down to Balboa Park.  Jeff and I were saying at the end of the day that we should go back there more...it's absolutely beautiful and there are so many cool museums we want to visit.  Anyways, as some of you know, my dad is a piano enthusiast and can play really well.  And, he used to play the accordion (and still will if you ask him!), so no one was surprised when he expressed interest in taking in an organ concert at the park.  So, after lunch we ventured down to the Spreckels Organ Pavilion and enjoyed a performance by a very talented musician.  (Side note, the pavilion has over 4 thousand pipes, which is an astounding number and makes for a great concert.)

It was a fun family day celebrating a wonderful man who makes each of our lives that much better just by being in it.

Happy Birthday!!!

Funny video time!  (Again, sound is part of the experience for this video :-)  )

One HAPPY Family

One of the best compliments someone can give parents is telling them that their baby is one of the happiest they've ever seen.  Avery was all smiles today during our walk through a neighborhood open house and her admirer was smitten with her the moment we walked through the front door.  I don't normally hand Avers over to a stranger, but the woman won me over when she uttered the words "your baby is so happy!  She's one of the happiest little babies I have ever seen."  The coos and big toothless grin apparently makes everyone's heart skip a beat!

Something else that makes for a happy and proud mom is when her baby officially starts sitting up all... by... herself!

And, better late than never... below is our 5 month photo (taken 10 days after the actual 5 month birthday.  Doh!). 

Jeff is going to cringe seeing this photo!  He always tells me to slow down, focus, take the time to do it right, etc, etc., and if I had followed his advice you would see that the sign says more than "I'm."  ;-)



Funny picture time!

I don't want to play ballerina anymore, mom.

Put the tutu on the cat; I'm going to bed.

What a Weekend!

To begin this post I would like to thank all past, present and future Presidents for the day off from work. A three day weekend is glorious! On that note, I would appreciate all days off from work that we reflect, thank and/or honor something or someone (i.e. MLK, Columbus Day).  I'll start my letter to Obama after this post.

A three day weekend meant a lot of wonderful friend and family time. Saturday started off with a dress-up session for me and Avers.

My mom's good friend, Cathy Cunningham, bought Avery the cute headband and amazing tutu! The dress-up session should really be called a fashion show, because we took those accessories right off the runway and into the real world!

Next up was a trip to Barnes & Noble.  I still had a gift card from Christmas that I was looking forward to using on some non-baby related books.  We ended up with four between Jeff and I.  Who knew Greg Graffin was not only a professor at UCLA, but an author as well?!  Not me!  Anyways, since Avery's bedtime is 6:30 p.m. I can get back into one of my favorite pastimes...reading!  First up is A Walk in the Woods, a NY Times Bestseller.  After B&N we went to Verizon to get cases for our new iPhones (yay smart phone!).  Even though Avery can't read yet and doesn't quite appreciate Words with Friends, she enjoyed herself on the trip and flashed us a few smiles...

We had our good friends, the Vanderveens, over for pizza Saturday night and despite Avery accidentally confiscating Will's elephant, it was a great night.  Will, John and Erin's 18 month old son, loves to bro-rock people instead of the traditional wave, high-five, hand shake or blowing of kisses.  He loves it so much that even Belle got a few bro-rocks thrown her way!

Belle in all her glory.  Love that cat!

Sunday morning was spent in UTC helping put together Jeff's new office (yay Jeff!) with GranCin and Grandpa Wayne.  In between hammering some nails and eyeballing the level of pictures, Avery took a nice nap in GramCin's arms and got in some good play time on the floor.

Note: Two elephants!

Sunday afternoon through Monday morning were spent at Grandma and Grandpa Manzi's house for a long overdue visit (and sleepover) with them and special guests Uncle Bren and Auntie Michel!

Grandpa Time!

A neighborhood stroll before dinner!

Kisses for Auntie Michel!

A great top-off to the visit was Avery rolling over all by herself!!  Such a monumental milestone for our baby girl!  We got it on video, so check out my mom's facebook page if you want your heart to smile.  :-)  Also on video is Avery doing one of the things she loves most...squats!

The rest of Monday was a quiet family day just the three of us.  We relaxed, rolled over some more (well, just Avery really) and went on a nice long walk.  Perfect end to a perfect weekend!

Funny picture time!

In the words of my Grandpa Manzi, "Chunk a Cheek"

Well on her way...

to sitting up...

rolling over...

and having good chats with Mom and Dad!

Jeff and I make a point to relish each day throughout all her stages, because she is growing up so fast and, stating the obvious here, will never be a baby again.  It boggles my mind to think that just over 4.5 months ago she was a tiny little peanut we brought home from the hospital...

and now she's a little girl pondering the meaning of life!

Funny picture time!

Not sure how I feel about this whole "bath thing."