ROLL BABY ROLL

October 14th –

Warning: this may be a long story, so read on if you have time.

This week has been a big week at the Diamond household. Tuesday nights are Mommy - daughter nights since David bowls. That night I went to put Avery on her matt so we could play in the floor. She was a little wiggly so when I put her down she immediately rolled over on her tummy. I was shocked!! I was not sure if she did that on her own or if I made her do that. I immediately called David to tell him what happened. I rolled her over thinking if she did it on her own she would do it again. Well she didn't which lead me to believe I made her roll over.

I took her to "fun place" on Wednesday and her teacher asked me if she had been doing anything new at home. I asked her if Avery rolled over at school and she said yes and proceeded to tell me all about it. I managed to hold it together but as soon as I got in the car I cried. I had just missed one of Avery's milestones, what a horrible feeling. I truly felt the tug that working Moms feel. I know I need to work for many reasons, a paycheck, my sanity……but at that moment I really wanted to be a stay at home Mom!!

So that night David and I placed Avery on her matt waiting intently for Avery to roll over for us. I think we spent 30 minutes (which felt like forever) on the floor and Avery didn't even begin to roll over. I wonder if we made her nervous just staring at her, waiting for her to do something.

We repeated the same thing last night except I had the camera ready the whole time in case she did decide to roll over. I guess she was tired of David and me staring at her so she gave in and rolled over for us. We both screamed in delight as Avery looked at us like we were crazy. Needless to say I did not capture it on camera. Oh well, at least we got to see her roll over. I did manage to take a picture after she rolled over and a short video trying to get her to do it again. I’ll post these over the weekend.

DADDY - DAUGHTER NAP TIME

November 1st - Most Saturday's Avery and I are nice enough to let Daddy sleep late. We spend time eating breakfast together and playing. After a while we decide to go wake Daddy up. I always tell Avery to be quiet so we can sneak up on him but she always decides to squeal and wakes him up before I can even get near the bed. She is just so excited to surprise Daddy she can’t keep it in. Some days she and I get back in bed and the three of us talk or David and I just watch Avery try and talk, other mornings I leave her in bed with her Daddy while I start chores. This particular morning I left the two of them alone while I did laundry and cleaned up a little. When I went to check on them this is what I found:

When I first arrived they were holding hands. I immediately ran down to get the camera but by the time I got back upstairs they were no longer holding hands. Aren't they cute!!

COW BABY

October 31st - Avery's first halloween was a huge success. David and I had such a good time dressing her up in her cow costume. The costume seemed to fit her just right except the hood, which kept falling over her eyes. We took her to her Big Great Grandparents house to trick or treat. She had a great time and my Grandparents really enjoyed seeing her all dressed up. Avery makes the perfect cow baby!!

Avery is such a cute cow baby.

The Diamond family on our first halloween.

Avery and her pumpkin.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

October 31st - Happy Halloween!! I am so excited for Halloween this year because I get to dress Avery up. I'm not sure if y'all know but I just LOVE cows, therefore, Avery is going to dress up as a cow this year. I think she is going to be so cute. We plan on taking her to see her Big Great Grandparents and maybe the neighbors. So keep your fingers crossed that she likes her costume and enjoys trick or treating. I'll post pictures of Avery as a cow after we have our night of festivities. I hope every one has a FUN and SAFE Halloween.

ALL BUNDLED UP

October 29th - Here in the great state of Tennessee our mornings are starting to turn cold. We even had a freeze warning a couple of nights this week. Since it is cold when we leave the house in the mornings we bundle Avery up so she does not get sick. Below is a picture of her before leaving the house on her way to "fun place". Doesn't she look as warm as a bug in a rug???

CEREAL

October 25th - 26th: This weekend was big for Avery because we started her on Oatmeal cereal. She must have known it was going to be an exciting time because she woke us up at 6:00 am on Saturday. David put together her booster seat, which she loves, while I mixed up her oatmeal. We actually bought her rice and oatmeal and I let her choose. She picked Oatmeal, which is my favorite too. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. I hear of babies not liking cereal or crying the first time they eat it. Not Avery, she is definitely my girl and we both LOVE to eat. She had a great time eating and even tried to hold the spoon herself. On Sunday we got up and put her in her booster seat and she was all smiles, she knew what was coming. David and I took turns feeding her and we could not do it fast enough. Feeding her is such fun. David enjoyed it so much that he did not want to ask "fun place" to feed her each morning so we are going to do it at night until she starts eating it twice a day. You gotta love a Dad who enjoys taking care of his little girl.

Avery after eating all her oatmeal.

She grabbed the spoon. She will be feeding herself in no time.

She's so adorable.

Avery at the beginning of our feeding adventure. I have a feeling she is going to be a good eater.

Two videos of her eating.

4.5 MONTHS

October 23rd - Today Avery went to the doctor (yes again!!) for her 4 month check-up, even though she is now 4 1/2 months old. She weighed in at 15 pounds 10 ounces and is 25 inches long. Developmentally she is right on track. The doctor said and I quote "She is just perfect" as if we didn't already know that. I am really excited because we were given the go ahead to start giving her cereal and then solids. I can't wait to see how she does with cereal. From what I hear this will be a messy and picturesque moment. The visit wasn't all fun....she received 3 shots in her little chubby legs. I have to say Avery (and Mommy) did much better this time. Avery didn't scream as loud and Mommy only shed a couple of tears. We dosed her up with Tylenol and by the time she reached fun place she was fast asleep. Below are some recent pictures of growing girl.

Look how big she is compared to Daddy!!

Avery playing in the kitchen while Mommy makes breakfast.

This picture shows how long she is because her feet are at the end of the changing table. Soon she will have to hang her feet off the end while we change her.

Look how she holds her head up. I just saw this for the first time today while at the doctors. Everytime I try to give her tummy time she lays her head down as if she is going to sleep.