Happy As Can Be!

Just Chillin' Out

Ava sleeping in her swing. This is one of her favorite places during the day.
















Ava fell sleep on Curt's legs last night. This proves that she can pretty much fall asleep almost anywhere.















This is a gift basket that we received yesterday from one of Curt's bosses. It's a wooden toy box with a picture of a dag and it has her name written on it. Inside of the box was a onesie, book, CD, toys, and a stuffed dog. It was a great surprise!

Ava's Appointment

Ava's appointment went really well today. She did some tests on her mouth and face muscles and ironically determined that her tongue muscles are working great! However, her cheek, jaw, and lip muscles aren't quite working up to par. Because these muscles aren't working correctly, it is causing her to take much longer eating and not being able to suck accurately. She showed me some exercises to do with Ava three times a day to strengthen the muscles. Since Ava is still so young, these muscles should be working accurately in about 3 weeks. If I do not see obvious changes in the next three weeks, I can go back to see her graduate student for free. Ava has decided that she hates these exercises and wants to scream the entire time. Luckily, they don't take too long.

Oral Motor Visit

Tomorrow morning, Ava will be going to see an Oral Motor Specialist. This a common visit for babies who have tongue-tied. Ava is doing much better with moving her tongue but the lactation specialist that I see thought it would be a good idea. The doctor that she is seeing is very well-known throughout the US and is currently doing a research study on babies with oral motor problems. Because she is doing this study, her visits are free of charge as well. According to her previous research, babies who have tongue problems eventually develop problems with speech and texture. We decided to go see her because we don't want any of these problems to come up down the road and since it is free, we didn't see a reason not to take the offer. I will let you all know how the appointment goes and what she says about Ava. Other than that, we are all doing great!

Curt's Birthday

Friday was Curt's 31st Birthday! I surprised him by having our friends Jason and Laura come over to the house to babysit Ava while Curt and I went to a movie. Curt has been talking about going to the movies since April but it just wasn't possible now that we have our little bundle of joy! :-) So when he got home from work on Friday, Jason and Laura were already at the house. We all had Subway and then Curt and I left Ava for the first time. We had a great time at the movies watching Incredible Hulk. It seemed really strange to be out of the house without Ava but it was great to go on a date as well.








Ava was a wonderful little girl for her first babysitters. She barely fussed and went straight to bed for them too. We were very happy when we got home to a quiet house and Ava in bed for the night. She then slept until 3:30! :-) Thank you Jason and Laura -- You're the Best!!!












Here is a recent picture of Ava and I. We were just getting ready to go out shopping for a little bit. So far, Ava loves shopping but doesn't really give me her input on anything. I'll have to work with her on that. :-)






This is a picture from Father's Day of our friend Bradley and his son Nathan. Nathan was born 8 days after Ava and they have become very good friends. The dads were very proud to be holding their first child! :-)

Aren't I adorable?

All smiles!



















Time to Sleep. Ava loves to sleep with her hand on her head like an angel. :-)












She's all ready for church! This is a dress that our friends Bradley, Kiva and Nathan got for Ava. She looked so adorable in it and got so many compliments at church.

















Ava is tired but is refusing to go to sleep. She is in a sling carrier that I have and it works like magic. She falls fast asleep within minutes of being in this and will stay asleep for hours if I would let her. It's wonderful for when I want to get things done around the house but she is a little fussy and just wants her mommy.








"I'm getting to be a such a big girl!" She loves to stand on her feet even though she's not really standing on her own.

Play Time!

Just Some Cute Pics

It's Bath Time! Ava loves bath time. :-)


We are headed out to a baby shower for a friend from church. It's Ava's first baby shower! She was very well behaved and slept through almost the whole thing. :-)

Big Yawn!

Nap Time with Daddy! Perfect for Father's Day Weekend!

1 Month Checkup

We have had a very busy week with appointments almost everyday. I have had severe pain when breastfeeding so I went to the doctor on Wednesday to see if something was wrong. Unfortunately, my doctor was out of town so I had to see another doctor in his practice. This new doctor said that nothing was wrong with me so maybe Ava wasn't latching correctly. I started going to a new mother support group on Wednesdays. It is offered through the hospital free of charge and is led by our lamaze coach. That has been a big help with any of my concerns or questions regarding raising a baby. They suggested that I see a lactation consultant to see if they can figure out what was causing all of the pain. So, yesterday Ava and I went to the see the consultant. We figured out a few things. First, Ava is latched correctly! :-) YEAH!! Second, I have a yeast infection which is causing majority of my pain. I got a prescription from my doctor this morning and should be feeling much better by tomorrow. Third, Ava doesn't know how to suck correctly. Because her tongue was tied, she never learned how to suck correctly and now her muscles in her mouth don't work as good as they should. The consultant gave me some oral exercises to do on Ava's mouth to strengthen these muscles and teach her to stick out her tongue. She likes to keep it inside instead. Another option down the road if needed, is to see a oral motor therapist who will determine which muscles aren't working correctly and do more vigorous exercises with her. We are going to try the exercises at home and give her some time to figure it out on her own. If she doesn't figure it out, then we will see the doctor. The bad thing about her not being able to suck is that it takes her forever to eat. It normally takes her at least 1 hour to eat and then when she is finished she is exhausted from all of the work. Poor girl!

Today we had her 1 month checkup with her pediatrician. She weighed 7 lbs. 15 oz. and is 21 1/2 inches long. She is in the 95th percentile in height but in the 12th percentile in weight. I was concerned with the 12th percentile but our doctor was not concerned at all considering what she has already gone through since birth. She is gaining at a good rate now and that is all that matters. She got her 2nd Hepatitis B shot today. She was all smiles at the beginning and then quickly turned to screaming. Luckily, it was short lived and now she barely knows what happened and has a Bugs Bunny band-aid to show for it. :-)

We don't have big plans for the weekend. We plan on celebrating Curt's 1st Father's Day on Sunday! :-) We aren't sure how we will celebrate yet but we'll make it special somehow. We will try to post some pictures soon. I haven't taken many pictures this week since it's been such a busy week. I will make sure I take some and put them up for you to enjoy. :-)

Doctor's Visit

Ava had her ENT doctor's appointment today. It went very well! The doctor was very friendly and gentle with her. He said that her tongue was really tight to the bottom of her mouth and he suggested that it be cut. So, we decided to have him cut her tongue today while we were there. It took about 5 minutes to do the procedure. It was a little difficult for me as I had to help hold her down so that she wouldn't move. Luckily it didn't take long. She barely knew what was happening and only fussed for a few minutes. I think she was more upset that his fingers were in her mouth than her tongue getting cut. :-) She can now stick out her tongue and move she should be able to. I told her that this is the only time that I will be happy that she sticks her tongue out at me. :-)

We bought a new computer over the weekend. I know some of you are going through Ava withdrawal so I hope this helps. :-) Ava loves to sleep! We have been trying to upload a video of her trying to wake up from a nap but it keeps failing. I'll try to take another video and see if that one will work better. Here is a picture of her all ready for bed. She just had her bath and is ready to go to sleep for the night. You can also see her tongue! YEAH!!!