Don't Blink

I have a second to blog? Really? It's a miracle! These past few weeks have been a complete blur... all the preparation and anticipation for the holidays and just like that, it's over. But what a fun time we had with our new little bundle celebrating her first Christmas and all it's festivities! 

Many a night was spent like this... her favorite thing to do was stare at her Christmas tree!

The annual Park Family Christmas Lunch at Los Hermanos.

28 years ago, I came home from the hospital as a newborn on Christmas eve, in this Christmas stocking...

I found it only fitting to put her in it as well! What a wonderful birthday AND Christmas present :)

My birthday was well spent with her in tow.

Park Family Christmas Party

New Christmas Eve jammies!

And...

Santa came!

Christmas Day was a crazy, fun packed day with family... and the little miss was indeed spoiled :)

(They are all hers)

Her face says exactly how I too was feeling by the end of the day! We both just wanted our beds :)

I've said it once, and I'll say it again, the holidays are just so much more fun with a little one! We are already looking forward to next Christmas when she's toddling around pulling ornaments off the tree!

An Ava Update...

Today was the dreaded 2 month checkup complete with 3 shots and an oral vaccination.  Boooo for shots. Mean, mean shots. She screamed the whole time and I cried right along with her. 

So glad it's over! 

I cannot believe how fast this sweetheart is growing! If you blink, you'll miss something! She changes every day!

 *Turned 2 months old on Christmas Day

*Currently weighs 9lbs 7oz (little chunkster) and is 22 inches long

*Was still in newborn diapers until today (Dec. 28th) at which point Momma put her in her first size ONE... sniff sniff

*Still in newborn clothes, although they are getting a little snug

*Eats like a champ

*Sleeps like a champ

*Slept through the night for the first time at 7 weeks old, and although not every night is consistently slept through, 5-6 hour stretches aren't too bad. 

*Always pees when her diaper is taken off (thought only baby boys did that?)

*LOVES her Baby Einstein Play Gym and kicks her legs in pure joy and excitement when the lights flash

*Loves to smile at anyone that talks to her

*Has found her hands, and loves to suck on them

*Has also found her voice and makes the most precious cooing sounds 

We continue to fall more and more in love with her every day! She is our greatest joy and blessing and brings us more happiness than we could have ever imagined :)

One Month

If you ever want time to fly by in a ridiculously, crazy fast way, have a baby.
This last month has been the craziest, hardest, most fun and rewarding month for both Jace and I!  Our little peanut has been the biggest blessing, bringing us closer together than we've ever been :)

An Ava Update:

*The little miss is now 5 and 1/2 weeks old and weighs a whopping 7lbs 14oz.

*She is SUCH a good baby... pretty much only cries when she's hungry. 

*She LOVES to be swaddled.  If she is unconsolable for whatever reason (doesn't happen often) all we have to do is wrap her up tight like a little papoose and she calms right down.
*Her sleepy gas smiles melt me... I cannot wait for the day when she actually smiles at ME! Hopefully it's soon :)
*She loves to make eye contact with us, and loves the sound of her daddy's voice.

*We gave breast feeding an honest to goodness try for the first 3 weeks, but my body doesn't produce a good milk supply (most depressing thing in all the world) so she is mostly formula fed these days.  Occasionally she will get some good momma's milk... but it's a rare occasion.

*She will go 3 and a 1/2 to 4 hours in between feedings and sometimes 4 and a 1/2 to 5 hours at night... allowing momma to get some good sleep :)

*Speaking of sleep, she's really good at it.  It's her favorite thing to do.

*She LOVES bath time... and her "happy" chair.

*And loves to cuddle with daddy.

*She has a super pathetic, "life is so hard" faker than fake cry that just makes us laugh.  I'm afraid we've got a bit of a drama queen on our hands :)

*She has brought so much joy into our lives and our home and we love her with all of our hearts!  We feel so blessed and grateful to have such a perfect, sweet baby girl!

We recently had our wonderful friend Marc (the one who took my maternity photos) take a few pictures of our now family of THREE!  My perfect, angel baby who NEVER fusses, like EVER, was of course the most fussy she's ever been while trying to take these photos.  Thank goodness we got a few (okay, actually just ONE) where she wasn't screaming... little stink.

Never mind her open mouth, and the little glimpse of paci you can see in my hand... I had just ripped it out of her mouth seconds before :) But hey, it worked!

I never thought my heart could hold so much love for these two. 

There are no words to describe how much I love my new little family.

They are my world :)