family photos

remember this post where i said we were gonna try to do some family pics with a tripod? well no. we never did it and just decided to get some done while we were in utah for thanksgiving.  our cute photographer chelsy was doing mini christmas sessions and it sounded perfect.  i tip my hat to her...we love them!

here are a few of my favorites that we got back, except for the one we used for our christmas card (that will likely be a new year's card...or valentine's day?)

 we hung this one up.

 this sums up our obsession with the smallest of the pickup family-of-three.

a cute christmas action shot

 i know one day i will look back and think how small our family was.

avery and i just got to utah for christmas yesterday!  andrew will join us on wednesday. we are excited for some days to spend together in the winter wonderland that is alpine..

all photos by chelsy ann photography.

T E N

today avie is 10 months!! here are some cold hard facts about my favorite not-so-little baby girl.

-we pierced her ears this month

-she now has 5 teeth

-she pulls off her headbands :(

-she is learning tricks: high five, starting to wave, and copying funny noises

-is starting to understand and anticipate during games (crawling chasing is my fav, peekaboo, etc.)

-is getting hair on top...in a mohawk

-her eyes are a greenish gray and change with the light

-weighs 17-18 pounds

-is starting to prefer me at her most fragile times

-doesn't like being held as much anymore...mom and dad are okay still.

-has some stranger danger issues

-is leaking through size 3 diapers! it's not a weight issue but who knows. i always size up way early.

-still takes 2 naps, usually about 1.5 hours each

-usually sleeps from 7:30 pm to 7:30 am (we go through bad spells but this is pretty typical--i love it!)

-this month she went to san luis obispo, ca (to visit larken & brynne), houston (girls trip), and utah (pickup thanksgiving)

-she loves necklaces/bracelets/watches, her mini mouse toy, keys, any kind of food, bottles, sesame street, feeding herself in her highchair, older kids, grabbing glasses

-only nurses in the mornings and nights and usually has 3 or 4 bottles

-will watch sesame street while buckled in her carseat for 40 minutes in the morning to settle down for a nap (i had to train her to watch tv, but now she likes it. terrible? maybe.)

-she crawls so fast! but uses one foot, one knee -- it is so funny!

-she becomes a steadier stander every day, but is nervous about doing it on her own.

-eats everything and is not picky. thai food, mexican, fish... you name it.

-we are just starting to get her to drink from a sippy/straw cup

-make sounds (ma ma ma ma, da da da, yi yi yi yi!) but don't know what anything means

-a champ at holding her own bottle, and sometimes uses one hand, one foot. haha

-is loud and opinionated with lots of personality!

-is starting to get sassy....when something doesn't go her way, she will just look me straight in the eyes, then open her mouth and YELL!

-like to fall asleep on her own, in her crib-- not being held

-she is not a snuggler, she pushes everyone away! sometimes we can get kisses out of her.

-loves to be sung to, and sometimes will lay while i sing to her before a nap. 

-she is so much fun. she is becoming such a fun little playmate and companion to take with everywhere.

-she laughs and laughs and laughs. when she's tired, she gets even more giggly. especially with her dad. it is so so cute.

i'm so excited for our first christmas with her!!

thanksgiving 2012

nana's in provo

on wednesday, andrew got to work from home-- it was nice because he hung out with us for a lot of the day.  we got breakfast at chick fil a (they should probably sponsor me based on how much i advertise), went to the bank, got gas, and returned two vacuums, all before avie's morning nap.  we had a fun day and andrew kept saying, "i like being home with you and avie." isn't that cute!  

we spent thanksgiving with the pickups in provo...we flew out on thursday afternoon and even though it gets harder to fly with her the older she gets, avery was so good on the plane. we made quite the journey: dallas to austin to vegas to salt lake.  (thanks, southwest!)

true to the superficial spirit of thanksgiving, avery ate and ate and ate that day. they say that eating/sucking helps a baby's ears during takeoff and landing, so i was giving her lots of bottles and snacks.  (and 3 flights x takeoff and landing = 6 meals in 7 hours!)  i wasn't sure how i felt about spending the actual holiday traveling--but honestly, i was with my little family and in some ways we had less distraction of cell phones and computers and tv, so we spent a lot of time together. it really was fun.  the flight attendants took avery into the cockpit and then she even fell asleep on the plane...after some vigorous tag-team bouncing by andrew and me.

andrew's brothers picked us up and we went straight to provo (his parents own a second home there--"nana's") where we walked in to thanksgiving dinner just being set on the table. it was perfect timing.  we spent it with andrew's family: doug, nancy, travis, brian & noemi & leo, and noemi's brother's family: samuel, isabelle, daniel, and emma.  it was very nice! avery had her 10th meal of the day--the traditional thanksgiving buffet--and went to bed.  we stayed up and hung out with the fam.  

brian and leonardo

we had barely seen brian this summer and hadn't seen noemi since their wedding 2 years ago, and now they have a perfect little baby boy! and he is also the closest cousin to avery.  it was so fun to get to spend a few days with them before they head back to spain. 

now at the risk of this becoming wayyy too long, i'm gonna go with some bullet points of what we did:

-ate lunch at wingers! with harmans and goecks and got to meet hudson!, tier's baby. i forgot how nice a 2 month old is. just so cute and sweet and little and slept in my arms.

-got donuts (coveted by my brother in law living in spain) and ate too many maples

-chased avery all over nana's, where she learned to climb up stairs and loved playing with all the new toys

-went to the new outlets at traverse mountain

-saw my parents, grandma, little sister, older brother (more accurately, they saw avery)

-took quick family pics at beck's christmas tree farm in alpine, we have to go back at christmastime 

-saw some of my favorites of andrew's family: the bills with their boys, his aunt and uncle, and the pickups, with sammi and brady! we hadn't seen them in a coon's age.

-saw dan & christy, who moved to california, and got to meet their baby, bailey! it was so fun to get our little girls together who are only about 3 months apart.  

-went to the byu basketball game. it was really a fun game to be at, really close. ran into one of my fav aunt and uncles. andrew was all excited that we could see jabari parker from where we were sitting. everyone was in "chicago to provo" shirts trying to recruit him.  andrew says this is the recruiting equivalent to "trying too hard" in the dating world. ha ha. 

-went to church but we didn't sing christmas hymns yet?? every year i keep waiting for it to start. next week?

-took a walk with andrew and did a few foot races. ha

-loved that avery took two great 2 hr. naps most days...why doesn't she do that at home? but just so happy that she slept good while traveling. 

-got to see my best cousin cameron

-andrew went golfing with his dad and brothers while the girls + babies went to cafe rio... 

-avery's cheeks and nose turned bright red with the cold, dry air. i had to slather her with vaseline multiple times a day..

-2 major avery blow-outs...this hasn't happened for months but i guess the traveling hasn't done her tum any favors.

-had an extreme lack of exercise + extreme intake of millions of calories...good/bad. andrew made me vow to cook healthy until we leave for christmas. okay.

-packed up and said goodbyes...and stayed with my parents in alpine so they could take us to the airport early early...3:45 am wake up!

-nancy, andrew, avery and i all flew home together and avie did really well flying again.  flew home: salt lake to vegas to oklahoma city to dallas.  (thanks, southwest.)

-got a quick lunch at urban eatz on the way home...good way to welcome ourselves back to dallas.

so we had a really fun time and packed a lot into a couple of days.  we are glad to be home, even though there are smashed cheerios under ave's highchair that have been there for almost a week.. once i get things cleaned up, we'll be really glad to be home.

i feel like i almost forgot to stop and think about all that we have to be thankful for, which is terrible.  i have truly felt watched over these past few weeks, and feel the love of our heavenly father.  i know that he has blessed me with the gospel, a good man for a husband and father to my giggly little best friend/baby girl, two wonderful families, good health and safety, friends that feel like family, good opportunities, among everything else...we are very thankful.  and now...to begin the most wonderful time of the year!!

don't go back to spain!! :)

this is an accurate depiction of 3 hours with avery at church. 

pickup men: andrew,  'pappy', brian, travis

happy thanksgiving

public service announcment

ever since having avery...i have been like an honorary vegetarian.

(that is an exaggeration)

but i have not really liked meat as much. and especially chicken.  i could eat it at restaurants but i would usually pick it out of my meals at home--since andrew demands meat at every meal!
it was tasting too chicken-y...don't know how else to describe it.

well a few months ago i read something that just popped into my head the other day and now i can do as the chick fil a cows say:

is this suspenseful enough for you?  haha.  anyway, the secret is to shake baking soda on the chicken after defrosting, before cooking.  i let the chicken sit with the baking soda for a little while (15 min?) and then rinse it off, and prepare as usual. it has made a big difference for me! 

so if anyone out there is having the same issue, don't go vegetarian...just use baking soda :)

and...speaking of chick fil a, a couple of months ago we dressed up as cows for free food. we do love chick fil a and would dress up as cows every time we went if needs be.

the resemblance is uncanny. 

(and if you look closely, you can see my getup in the reflection)

almost 9 months!!

what is it about 9 months? is it that i just have a compulsive need to round up...or is it really like 2 seconds away from being a one year old?

 well anyway i love this age. she is discovering and giggling and learning and eating and crawling and standing and doing everything fun.  i do have to chase her a little more and my comprehension in church is going down, but other than that i don't really have any complaints.

 she surprises me all the time with the things she has learned to do and the new things she teaches herself.

 she is a pretty independent little one but is starting to be a little bit of a momma's girl? (is that a normal phase they go through? i think so...)

 i put up way too many pics but how could i leave any out? haha she still loves playing in the mirror.

                                     she has mastered this grin and we see it all.the.time now

 her hair is even kind of growing on top!

 she got her top two teeth...they are so big and cute.

 she is just full of life and i love this silly side

ha ha

and i think she might have a career in bull riding--i've always wanted to raise a rodeo star ha ha!

pumpkin pumpkin

this trip to the pumpkin patch was brought to you by the letter C.  we have a creepy clown ferris wheel/avery wearing clown sized shoes...ate at chick fil a. we had to climb some fences, and avie cried every time she got near a pumpkin. or a child. or pretty much anything but a cereal puff. camera....and that perfect black crow.

loose cannon

it's seeing a look like this that makes me wonder if avie needs a little sibling....like, yesterday.  i think it will still be a while..but what can i say, i'm a loose cannon. by the way, someone needs to teach avery about playing hard to get.  she practically throws herself on these older men, with lots of dimple-wielding smiles, laughs, and slobber! 

 as a side note... these two. as crazy as they make me, i'm kind of attached :)

way too much data and no personality

andrew says the best thing about keeping avery up late is that when he pulls her out of her carseat, she will lay still asleep on his shoulder.  cute dad.

i mentioned getting on a routine...here's what our day looks like, more or less. it wasn't until avery was 7 months old that i realized i needed some type of schedule to know what to expect out of my day (and from avery, nap-wise). it wasn't exactly intentional, but this is what turned up.  [after i typed this up i realized how long and tedious it is..for some reason i am fascinated by reading these kinds of things about people. but feel free to skim] :)

4:45 - 6:30 am (sometime in this window) avery wakes up, crying but sleepy, i feed her and put her back down. i am usually up for the day.. way too early.
7:30 am aves is up for the day, but i let her talk/play in her crib until she really fusses and starts to cry

8:00 - 9:30 am breakfast (solids), leave her in her highchair playing with a spoon while i try to clean up a little.  play time, etc. sometimes try to con avery into watching tv while i get something done, but it never works.  on good days i go running with my friends and my jogging stroller at 8. but those days have been few and far between lately.

baby food rainbow

9:30 am nurse avery, read a story, sing a song, put in crib

10:00 am - noon morning nap, i sew*/clean/laundry/shower/etc.

12:30 pm let avie "talk" until she really fusses.... then feed her solids, and we play, or run errands or go to lunch/the pool/vt or play with friends.

1:30 pm nurse, read books, sing...
2:00-4:00 pm avie's afternoon nap.  i sew/think about dinner?/do my calling/pay bills/grocery lists/etc.

4:30 pm get avie when she's ready and try to let her play by herself while i do dinner or finish whatever. this seldom works and is usually avery's fussiest time.  i'll sometimes nurse here, or if i'm desperate i'll go on errands (she's happier when we're out of the house...) often i am making a mad dash to the post office right now**.  not a bad time of day for costco either ha.  and while i'm there i better pick up one of those amazing ice cream bars hand dipped in chocolate with extra toasted almonds.
6:00-7:30 pm andrew gets home from work and takes over avery duty so i can get dinner finished. sometimes. other times i connive a way to go out to eat. we give avery solids and then play some more.  sometimes bathtime/take videos/put her in her walker, etc.  a lot of nights one or both of us have FHE, girls night, basketball, football, activity days, elders quorum meetings/visits, go out with friends, errands, etc. so she has a flexible bedtime. but it's usually around 7:30.  sometimes 11:30. haha. nurse.book.sing one more time, then say prayer....then she's down.

8:00-10:00 pm finish things, sew more, watch tv, etc. andrew attends to his fantasy football...work, elders quorum, etc.  our goal is to be in bed at 10, we can watch tv or read or whatever as long as we're in bed.  i think this works about 10% of the time but at least we have a goal.
10:30 pm depending on how early i nursed avery, i'll sometimes get her out of her crib (still asleep) and feed her one more time right here.
1:00 - 3:00 am (frequently) i wake up to a crying baby that i'm still trying to re-train to sleep through the night. i try to just give her a bottle of warm water to put her back to sleep without nursing. this is hit or miss. i actually just try to block this part out of my memory :) i know i have it good compared to some other babies' sleep schedules....but i got spoiled from avery sleeping 8-10 hour stretches by like 6 weeks. oh well.

this is an ideal day that maybe happens once a week.  i'm usually off schedule most days because i'm out, or avery won't take a nap, or wakes up early, or is getting a giant top tooth breaking through the gum, or my house is in shambles and i can't function...etc.

we had to let avery 'cry it out' until she learned to go to sleep for naps and bedtime on her own...sans swaddle, sans bottle, even sans binky (just because she doesn't take one anymore, not because i don't let her).  it stinks to listen to her cry--and i don't mean in the sweet mom way that i feel bad for her (which i do, but i know she's fine) but i mostly mean that it is just tense and stressful. BUT she is getting better. and on the nights that she still cries for 25 minutes, i sometimes just leave andrew and take a break. go on a walk, get the mail, go to the grocery store, etc. when i come home i have a nice husband and a sweet baby who is asleep. amazing! sometimes i feel bad about leaving, but i gotta do it.

one of the most interesting things was before i started all this, avery couldn't care less about books. she would look away, gaze into the mirror, squirm, and pull my hair when i tried to read to her.  now that we do it at least 3 times a day, she has really started to focus on the books. she touches the pages and grabs at them..but she sits and seems more engaged.

i love her.  as much as i love her naps, i really am so glad i get to spend my days with her.

*i am sewing a lot these days.  these orders don't sew themselves! haha.  i've kind of gotten in a groove.  i turn on conference (i'm just going through the archives. i'm working backwards... at 2007 right now. last conference before president hinckley died in fact).  listening to these talks for 1+ hours most days while i sew has actually been a really good thing for me.
**also where the post office comes in, shipping orders before the dreaded 5 pm deadline.