Busy busy busy

So, I have been so busy with the stake production lately, I have all but given up on blogging. This will be a simple blog, since I do still have some costume work to do today on my day off. However, I just thought I would post these new pictures taken of Avery because she looks so adorable in them! Avery loves her little outfit Grandma made her. She will be 9 months in one week. I can't believe it! Right now she is about to get teeth # E & F. She has # O & P already. Dental jargon--she will be getting her two front teeth for Christmas after all. Her other tricks include: scooting around a little and pulling herself up to a standing position using my hands. She can say: dada(dad is happy she finally learned that one!), yaya, baba, and mama(her first sound) and she says some "s" sounds a lot, too. Avery is such a happy little baby. This photo shoot was so fun. I'm sure everyone at the park was laughing hysterically at me as they walked by because I was jumping, dancing, and singing to get Avery's attention and to keep her from eating the grass and leaves she was sitting on! We got her to smile a lot using an Elmo book her Aunt Sandy gave her. She loves it when we talk like Elmo and move him so she thinks he is talking to her. It is so cute--Thanks Aunt Sandy!
Lately, Avery has become very aware of the cats. She loves to watch them and touch them, when she can. Moglie has learned to run for it whenever Avery starts to reach for him. But Jasmine is so sweet and a lot of times will let Avery touch her--even though Avery bats at her and pulls her fur out. Jaz is so cute and doesn't really mind it.
Well, I have had so much fun doing this stake play! I have gotten to dance my little heart out and let loose! Although the politics of the play are a bit annoying, I am so glad to have been able to be a part of this musical production.Thank you to my wonderful husband for helping out so much and letting me enjoy this new experience! I love you, my deer! Opening night for Curtain Up is this Thursday!

Almost 7 months

I know I haven't blogged in forever...so I figured it was time to do so. Avery is at such a fun age now. She is curious as a cat, very happy & giggly, playing with things all the time, and so responsive to the world around her.

Avery has been starting new foods. She is a great eater, I must admit. We have tried: prunes(as seen above), rice cereal, oatmeal cereal, bananas, applesauce, & peaches. I'm not sure which is her favorite, since she eats whatever is given to her without any resistance. Hopefully this remains the same after I begin vegetables!

Lately I have been enjoying having my husband back! While he was taking his class, I felt like I was a single mom--not fun. But now we have been able to go to the beach a lot, hang out with friends, etc. I love my little family so much.

One thing that's new with me is I'm going to be in our stake play. We'll see where I am cast... It is a Broadway medley entitled "Curtain Up." It will be nice to be involved with something new where I can meet new people and perform..lol. I'm not sure how well I can act or dance, but I am sure going to try.

Today at church, I was in awe of how beautiful Avery is. A friend of ours held her for most of sunday school, and I was in mommy heaven just watching our little baby. She was just smiling and playing, loving life. I seriously think she couldn't be any cuter. I could be just a little biased though. :-)

Already 4 months old

Look at this Daddy Daughter shot. Priceless.

Brian and Sharie look so much alike in this picture!

Baby Avery watching the swim meet
About 2 seconds later she got a little bored.

Zander swimming in his race! What a stud.

Jozie dives in! Look at that form. Impressive.
Eden was soooooo fast. She killed the competition.

Kids are so amazing to me. How they can jump in that freezing cold water on a cloudy day and smile about it astounds me. They must be part fish. I was remembering the last swim meet we went to of the kids--it was last summer and I was feeling terrible. I was maybe 6 or 7 weeks pregnant with Avery and I hadn't told Brian's family we were expecting. Where does the time go?

Avery's latest is kicking sprees accompanied by lots of talking. And she loves her infant seat. She is kicking so hard against that thing; Brian and I worry she is going to bruise her heels! She especially loves to look at herself in mirrors. One of these days we'll post a video of her on here--when Brian figures out how to post just a clip of film on the blog instead of all the video camera's memory.

Gaining Speech & Loosing Hair

Sunday night I was in the mood to sing. What can I say, I love to sing! In fact, becoming a professional singer has been a dream of mine for as long as I can remember. I used to be embarrassed to admit this. I remember when I was about nine, my mom told some people that I wanted to be a rock n' roll star when I grew up. The people she told chuckled a little at my quixotic ambitions, and I about died of humiliation. Anyways, I'm getting side tracked. So, I decided to put on a concert for Avery Sunday night. I sang to her for probably about 30-45 minutes. And she watched and smiled intently. :-D Needless to say, she loved the little concert. Then, about ten minutes after I had finished singing, Avery started talking loud and long. It was so cute. And she hasn't stopped talking since!! She has discovered her beautiful voice and I'd say, she is going to be a talented little singer one day!

And now to the the losing of the hair...Avery and I are both losing our hair! A lot from me and a little from her. Who knew pregnancy caused baldness? Not me. Apparently I was the last to know. Everyone assures me this is normal and that I wont go totally bald. We shall see. As if pregnancy doesn't leave you with enough physical defacement. This just adds insult to injury.

On a Baby High

Our little baby enjoying the spotlight in her bumbo chair
Avery is discovering she likes to eat things
Her favorite thing to eat is her hands...delicious!
So photogenic
We went on our first family hike! We trekked up to Inspiration Point and could see downtown L.A. and the coastline all in one shot--very cool. Brian carried Avery in the Baby Bjorn and got a good work out in! Here is Avery and me in our hoodies staying warm. I love this picture!
Look, mom, I'm WAY up here!


So, I figured it was about time for a new blog about motherhood and all its glory. Today I came home from church and was just having the time of my life holding, kissing, and talking to my darling baby girl. She had been SO good at church and then when we got home, tons of smiles and even a little giggle! She is so content and happy to be alive. I had to stop and just think to myself: "Wow, I am in Heaven!" Motherhood is truly the greatest calling on Earth. I never knew being a mom (with the world's best husband at my side) would be this wonderful. Avery smiles at me and I just melt. All my troubles go away when she brightens my day with her sweet smiling face.

I should mention that life as a mom is not all peaches and cream. There are days that go by where I think about how easy life used to be before I had a baby. When I had time to do whatever, whenever. When I could just hop in the car and go to the mall for hours.(this used to be one of my favorite pastimes) And there are plenty of days I wish I had a nanny to help me out and give me a break. But today I can't imagine life being any better. Brian and I are so incredibly blessed to have all that we do. I keep thinking to myself: What did I do to deserve this sweet, sweet beautiful baby? Perhaps, it's my reward for enduring a rough pregnancy. And at church, people are constantly telling us how good she is and how lucky we are. AND, I am almost afraid to type the words for fear I'll jinx it--but I'll just mention that Avery sleeps through the night--usually 8 hours and has a predictable feed, wake, sleep schedule! I give a lot of credit to Babywise for Avery's cheerful disposition and predictable schedule.

Believe it or not, I was thinking... if this is how incredible babies make you feel, then I want to have at least ten kids. It sounds absurd now that I'm typing it out right now, but I was seriously contemplating ten kids less than an hour ago. Although, since Avery is so good, I'm sure my next kid will be a terror as luck would have it. And then, I would probably be so exhausted that I would say: 2 kids--that's plenty! I guess we shall see how it all plays out! But seriously, babies are so special. There is nothing better than holding your child close and kissing them over and over. :-D

Sprinkles Cupcakes

A bite out of Heaven! Who knew food could be so ethereal. If you haven't tried Sprinkles cupcakes, you have got to drop everything and go get yourself one. They have a store at Fashion Island in Newport, or you could make them yourself by purchasing a Sprinkles cupcake mix from their store or at Williams-Sonoma. My neighbor brought me a couple cupcakes yesterday and they were AMAZING! I never knew a cupcake could be THAT good. I have only tried the dark chocolate with chocolate frosting. Has anyone else tried the other flavors? Which kind is your favorite?

Grandma and Grandpa Norton come to visit

Happy Anniversary!

Happy 2 Year Anniversary! I can't believe how time flies. It seems like it was only yesterday that we were married in the San Diego Temple. I made this little cake for Brian and me on our anniversary--gotta love funfetti. It's been the best 2 years of my life by a long shot, and I look forward to many more amazing years to come in the future. I love you DEER!

First Beach Trip

Yes, we took our little dear one to the beach for the first time!

Avery is getting so big! When I first viewed these pictures I was shocked to see just how much she is changing. For some reason seeing her on film made me realize this. She looks like a completely different baby almost--compared to her newborn pictures.

Look at that chubby belly! So cute.

Mommy's angel. As you can see, she has lost her caramel coloring. Now we see she has Brian and my pale skin--sorry my little one. No more Carribbean tan.

The camera loves her!

Avery loves to stand. I think she likes to be right next to your face to see you better. The last couple of weeks she has been getting so strong. She'll be walking in no time! So crazy.

Avery is starting to love going outside, as well. It is so cool to see her become so much more aware of her surroundings.

Also, just in case you read my last blog, I just wanted to assure everyone that things are getting so much better now. I am starting to be more cognizant of Avery's needs--deciphering what each cry means i.e. the tired cry from the hungry cry. And Avery is much less fussy now when it comes to naptime. YAY! She is back to her angel self. I think she just had a rough couple of weeks and I wanted to gripe about it in that last blog. Babies are the BEST!

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Lately I have been lamenting about the arduous life of a mother to friends and family. Avery hasn't been her angel self the last week and a half, much to our chagrin. Now I am getting a taste of what my parents went through with me. (They tell me I was a difficult baby--wouldn't sleep unless rocked or bounced A LOT, fussy unless entertained indefinitely, etc.) Sorry, Mom and Dad! But some days Avery has her moments of peaceful cuteness that I just can't get enough of.

Today is a Dr. Jekyll day--full of smiles and coos; yesterday: Mr. Hyde. It is such an extreme. Yesterday crying all day with minimal naptime. Today, no crying(hardly) and easy naptime--knock on wood. I know the lack of sleep was probably the reason for all the crying. But it's her own fault. I tried everything to get her to nap and sometimes even the shoe-in sleep methods didn't work. Like, for instance, a few days ago Avery hadn't slept all day and was incredibly fussy. So I decided to take her for a ride in the stroller. One of those shoe-in methods I mentioned. She never stays awake for a stroller ride, NEVER! But about 20 min. into the walk to the park, she woke up. At first she liked the change of scenery, looking at the sunlight and all the trees enjoying herself. Then about 15 min. later she decided to fuss and root. I was still at the park without any kind of a nursing cover. So I had to (literally) run home (which I am way out of shape FYI), and she cried the whole rest of the way home. Poor baby. I think she was going through a growth spurt and that's why she threw a wrench in my seemingly perfect schedule--she would wake out of her naps early because of hunger. Or so I think...it would be so nice if she could just tell us why the cry.

The last day or so have been much better as far as routine feedings. Now I'm just trying to establish her routine naptimes again. The book I follow--On becomming Babywise--says to not use sleep props like: swings, vibrating chairs, loud fans, etc. to get your baby to sleep. It says they need to learn to fall asleep or back asleep on their own without props. BUT it is so hard to resist these methods because they work wonders. If Avery wakes early out of a nap, I am finding it harder and harder to resist these methods because if I don't use them, she wont go back to sleep and then her whole schedule gets thrown off. When she sticks to her schedule it is baby and mommy heaven..ahhhh, sweet bliss. When she resists the schedule, we both get cranky.

My mom told me not to get too comfortable with any schedule because babies are constantly growing and changing. I know I can't keep her on the same schedule forever, and my book addresses how to change the schedule when baby requires less sleep for example..but no baby follows a book exactly.

I guess what I am wondering is: when do babies start taking just 2 or 3 naps a day? Avery seems like she wants to sleep less which is normal, but she doesn't want to sleep enough. She wants to be awake more but the more I let her stay awake and not go down for her naps, the crankier she becomes as the day goes on. Babies sure are tricky. And if you've made it this far through my little diatribe, thanks for reading :)

On a happier note, I woke up to find an Easter basket downstairs for our family!! A big surprise for Avery and me. Thanks Dear! Happy Easter, everyone!

Attention Overload

Whoa! It has been a different scene around here lately. I am learning life is getting a lot more demanding when your baby gets bored of just lying there. Before, I could just set Avery down in one of her seats and grab a bite to eat or do the dishes, for example. Looking around the room or out a window would be sufficient entertainment for our little dear. Not the case anymore! Avery needs much more to keep her happy these days. And it's even more difficult for me because Brian is gone from about 4:30 A.M. until about 7:30 P.M. And then when he gets home he wants to relax--understandably so! Brian has a new job he started a couple of weeks ago (for those of you who didn't already know). He works for a company called Shaw Environmental. Brian primarily locates, removes, and eradicates environmental threats ie anthrax, or currently: granade, rocket, and bomb ordinates. Risky business, I know. Not to worry though, he says they take every precaution and he doesn't even consider it dangerous at all. The biggest worry for him is poison oak and rattlesnakes.

So back to my attention overload... I am adjusting to Avery's new stage of life. She'll be 2 months old in a matter of days! So crazy. She changes so much every day. Her hair just keeps getting longer, too! I can almost put her hair in a "spout" ponytail. She likes getting plenty of exercise as well: standing up (with our support, obviously), constantly lifting up her head, and even little scooting motions when she's on her tummy. I think she is getting anxious to be mobile. Also, can I just say--babies sure can poop a ton! Brian and I joke about wrapping her up in saran wrap to always be sure to avoid diaper leaks--a frequent occurrence here. Maybe I don't know how to properly secure a diaper. Brian thinks I don't put them on tight enough. But I swear if I put them on tighter, her circulation will be compromised! My mom said I should get bigger diapers, but I am convinced that is not the case--we have the size one diapers from huggies and they are good up to 14 lbs, I think. No, I'm convinced it's just the volume of waste that's the problem. No diaper could keep in some of her blow out episodes. Maybe I should affix 2 diapers to our baby.

My new life as a MOM :D

So, I thought I would talk about my thoughts of motherhood so far. Brian can post a blog of his own describing his thoughts--which differ a little from my own. I've decided being a mother is the best job EVER! Sleepless nights, limited free time, dirty diapers all day long, crying spells, and depleted funds--let the party begin! In sooth, it is definitely not "the easy life;" however, all of the many, many chores of motherhood are all a small price to pay for our precious baby. It just doesn't make sense though, I KNOW! Before I was a mother, I was dreading those costs I mentioned above. I thought having a newborn would be cool--mostly because that's what everyone says-- but I thought I would be annoyed that I had to get up in the night, disappointed about my limited free time, etc. I truly thought I would feel more overwhelmed with it all. You may be wondering why I decided to get pregnant in the first place. To be honest, I did have a little bit of a bleak outlook on life as a mother. I just didn't get it. How could mom's enjoy their jobs with screaming babies, rebellious teenagers, and stubborn toddlers? It just did not make logical sense to me. My mom would try to tell me how awesome it is to have kids of your own. She would say that kids aren't annoying when they do those teeth clenching behaviors you experience in sacrament meeting--when they are your own. And I would incredulously ask her: how could that be true? To be completely honest (maybe a little too honest for a blog post), I didn't really like kids before I had Avery. Now is the time you can really be upset with me. Why would I have a baby and not even like kids? My Aunt Robyn, my mom's sister, had a little something to do with it. She had a similar opinion of kids when she was my age. Just like me she didn't like kids all that much. Call us crazy. When my mom was a child, she was always the one who would relish her time playing with little kids/babies, and my aunt never really saw why that was so fun for her. She didn't get it either. But now my Aunt Robyn has 7 children! She said that once she started having kids of her own, she was finally able to see how amazingly cool children really are. And now I, too, view children in a different light. I don't think I'll have 7, but I do want more than just a couple more. Some of you seasoned mothers reading this blog of mine may be thinking I'm a little naive about it all, and you may be right. I mean, I have only been a mother for about 6 weeks now. I don't really know what it will be like in the future, but I am excited for it, nonetheless.
Avery's awake time is so much fun these days! Well, unless she is crying and that's not too fun. She is more excited to see her mom and dad now and has even begun smiling a tiny bit. We just need to try to capture it on film! She usually will smile a little when I come in her room in the morning to feed her. The above and below pictures are a good representation of her typical awake time expressions.