Ava at 5 1/2 Months

Well this is Day 2 of blogging. I have so many things I want to post, but I know I need to save some ideas for when I am out of ideas.

Today's post is just going to be about Ava. In another week, she will be 6 months old. Where has time gone? It seems like Jeremy and I just brought her home from the hospital. I remember the day like it was yesterday. Jeremy packed our car with all of our junk from the hospital. We had the trunk, backseat, and front floorboard all stuffed and crammed with flowers, gifts, suitcases from our hospital stay, and baby paraphernalia. Our house is only two miles from the hospital so it may seem weird that he did not make any trips home to put all this stuff away so that we would have room in the car. But Jeremy, being the husband and father that he is, would not leave us in the hospital. There were many days that he did not eat because he did not want to leave me alone in the room.

Our trip home from the hospital was uneventful. Ava slept most of the way. We arrived home and walked her around the house, introducing her to every room and special item in sight. She stared at the lights on the Christmas Tree and then settled down for a nap. Friends from church arrived with lunch and dinner. It was a calm, peaceful day. My family arrived that night. My mom, dad, and brother came from Texas to spend the week with us and to help me with the transition. It was a beautiful time.

Now, almost 6 months later, I am wondering if I appreciated all the time that I have spent with her. Have I been a good enough mother to her? How does she view me? Is there anything I need to improve on? It is crazy how becoming a parent has changed my perspective on EVERYTHING! I question almost every decision we make. I appreciate my mom and dad so much more.

I said that this post would be about Ava and I have spent the whole time talking about parenting. :) Here are some things that she can now do:

• Rake her fingers and hands across objects (She looks at the object, reaches for it, and rakes her hands across it. If the object is small enough, she will grasp it. If she is raking her hand across fabric, she will do it several times to listen to the sound it makes.)
• Yell at Mommy (this is not my favorite)
• Switch objects from one hand to the other hand
• Roll from back to belly and belly to back (I have to be careful about turning my back because she is so quick. She can roll all the way across her room in less than a minute. When she feels up to it, of course!)
• Tripod (We are working on sitting up)
• Semi-crawl (When she is placed on her stomach, she can move her legs in a crawling motion. In some cases, she can actually propel herself forward using just her legs. She has not, however, learned that she can use her arms and hands to help this process along.)
• Sleeps 10-12 hours every night
• Takes two 2 hour naps during the day
• Takes one catnap in the late afternoon

God has really blessed us with a healthy, good-natured baby. We count our blessings over and over again. :)