Not-so Sunday Best

This past Sunday I took the kids to church while Matt was playing in a golf tournament.  Avery wore one of her pretty dresses for the first time and when we got home I wanted to get a cute picture before changing her.  She chose not to cooperate.  Believe it or not she was very happy and smiling moments before this picture.  But here it is anyway...a new face of Miss Avery :)

Get Your Picture Fix

Here are a few more pictures from my family's visit.  These are actually from my parents' camera since I am terrible at remembering to take pictures.  I wish I had remembered to get some pics from my inlaws' visit because they took a lot but unfortunately I did not think about it before they left.  It is true what they say, there are not as many pictures of second babies.  I have not taken many of Avery lately and we probably had a hundred of Hayden by this point!

The outdoor pictures were of the Pine/Featherville area here in Idaho.  We took a day trip there one day while my family was in town and it was beautiful.

Some Firsts

Yesterday was Hayden's first day of preschool for this year.  He is continuing at the Mother's Day Out program that he was in last year on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  He had been asking for a while when he could go back to school.  He was really excited and seemed to have a great day.  When I tried to ask him about his day or open his back pack to see what he did he would say "after dad gets home."  I got one picture that morning when I dropped him off:

We started getting some hints of a smile from Avery about a week and a half ago.  This morning she seemed really happy and I was able to capture it briefly on camera.  THis afternoon when I gave her a bath she got really excited to hear the water start running.  It is fun to see her develop a little personality and interact with us and her environment.

We're Still Here!

Sorry for the lack of blog posts lately- we've been a bit busy!  We finally got our house on the market (for rent) and are getting ready for the move to Ohio in about a month.  Currently we are enjoying a visit from Matt's dad and stepmom.  Matt and his dad are outside staining and fixing the fence right now.  Yay!  Avery is still doing great, she is awake more each day and is definitely getting more "vocal" :)  She is using her pacifier more, although not all the time.  Hayden is looking forward to getting back to preschool next week and I can hardly believe summer is almost over!  I enjoyed my first post-baby run a couple of days ago, I just jogged an easy mile but felt great afterwards.  I am looking forward to getting back into running.  Matt won a golf tournament on base this past weekend, just a smaller fun one but he is gearing up for the town and base championships coming up soon.  Matt is also trying to sell his truck; we would appreciate prayers for both that and renting the house before we move!

Here is a picture of Avery to satisfy everyone.  She is growing and finally has some little rolls on her arms and legs.  One of Joyce's co-workers sent this adorable outfit for Avery and I loved that we had this fabulous headband to match.  She was coordinated right down to her binky :)  More pictures to come soon- I promise!  

Tut, Tut, Looks Like Rain

We are enjoying a visit from my parents and brother this week.  Hayden is thoroughly enjoying all of the attention, and Miss Avery is just as content as ever.

Perfectly Precious

We took Avery for a newborn photo session the other day.  It went great and I cannot wait to see all of the photos!  The photographer sent a sneak peek picture that evening so I thought I would share for those of you who have not already seen it.  I love her precious little face and could stare at it all day:)

Things have been going great since we brought Avery home from the hospital.  She sleeps a lot, like a typical newborn, and we hardly hear a peep from her unless she needs a diaper change.  Aside from being tired from late-night feedings, everything is perfect.  Both Matt and I feel like bringing Avery home has been so much less stressful than bringing home Hayden.  I am relieved that it is true what all of our friends and family have told us: it is so much easier and more relaxing the second time around!  It is true so far, anyway.

First, a picture that I forgot to include in my last blog post.  Our last as a family of three:

Last Saturday Matt's mom arrived for her visit.  She spent this past week here and we enjoyed her visit.  It was a pretty low-key week with the new baby in the house, but I am glad she got the time with the kids and, like our family always is, she was a big help to us while she was here.

First day GG met Avery, when Avery was 4 days old:

We finally got a picture of Avery with her eyes open.  This is a pretty typical picture of Hayden snuggling with her; I think he has given her more kisses than Matt and I put together.

 Someone from Matt's squadron dropped this sign off the day after we came home from the hospital.  Since Matt's squadron is the Force Support Squadron there has been some Star Wars references the past couple of years.  The most recent commander's husband made this sign to welcome any new babies to the squadron.  We'll call it interesting- and a nice gesture.

Nancy thoroughly enjoyed the weather while she was here and she and Hayden spent as much time outside as possible.

This morning we finally gave Avery her first "real" bath since her umbilical cord stump recently fell off. Hayden was in the tub too and thought it was great fun.

More time with GG:

Avery and her fuzzy hair after her bath.  Gotta love that newborn cross-eyed look.

Time for a few family pics outside:

Matt went back to work yesterday, but now we are looking forward to a relaxing weekend.  I'll be on my own for the first time on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday before my family arrives on Thursday.  Stay tuned to see how that goes!