Crazy!!!

 It is absolutely crazy how fast time flies! Ava is 7.5 months old and is crawling (I posted last night that she is trying to crawl, but she is officially crawling today!) This morning Jeremy came home from camp and the first thing he did was pick up his little girl and kiss her. She smiled and cooed at him and nodded her head back and forth (a new thing she has picked up) When he put her back down in her crib, she turned around and pulled herself up on the side of her crib (on her knees) I feel like everything happens at once! We brought her home from the hospital as a cuddly little baby and BAM!! now she is talking, crawling, sitting up, pulling herself up, and "singing," ETC!! It all happened within the past two months. I don't understand how all this can happen so quickly! I thought it would take a little more time before she was able to do all these things. Sigh...

Anyway, I had my camera handy this morning and managed to capture a couple of pictures of her pulling up on the side of her crib:

 Look What I Can Do!!

 Daddy leans down to give her a kiss

Ava holds on tight!

Places I've Been: St. Lucia Edition

Okay. St. Lucia is to die for. I would retire in St. Lucia if I could. It is the most beautiful place I have ever been. St. Lucia was the last port of call on our 2008 cruise. Jeremy and I booked a shore excursion that took us all over the island. We visited the botanical gardens, the Pitons, the Anse La Reye market, and a little Caribbean restaurant covered in vines. We stopped at a banana plantation on our way to the market and bought fresh bananas. They were delicious! I didn't know how different the flavor would be, but it was much sweeter. We will go back to St. Lucia at some point in our lives. Hands down, my favorite island in the Caribbean.

 The Pitons in the distance

At the drive through volcano (sounds funny, but really neat)

Places I've Been: Dominican Republic Edition

In March of 2008, Jeremy and I went on our second cruise. We love cruising so much that it is the only vacation we take (besides Disney World) We will give other things a try, but nothing has ever compared to a really good cruise. In March 2008, we took a 9 night Caribbean cruise that departed from Miami, Florida. Our first port of call was the Dominican Republic.

Jeremy and I chose a shore excursion that would take us to a private resort on Cayo Levantado. We sat on the beach for about 4 hours surrounded by Europeans. No one spoke English! It was a really neat experience!

 On the tender that would take us to Cayo Levantado

 The Cayo Levantado Beach Resort

 Right off the pier; on our way to the beach

 The color of the water faded from midnight blue to light turquoise. Amazing!

We settled under this palm tree. It actually was pretty good shade!

Trying To Crawl

I think Ava will probably be crawling in another week! I can't believe she is that old! She knows how to get up on all fours and she will rock back and forth like she is trying to gain momentum. It is the cutest thing! She pushes herself forward and usually falls on her face. She doesn't cry, she just gets back up and tries again! So sweet!

Two Visits In One Day!

On Wednesday, Ava and I got a visit from a very special friend! Emma is a teenager who used to be a part of the youth group at the Northport Church of Christ, until she moved away and left us!! Emma and her family moved to Tennessee two years ago and we have missed her so much since her departure. 

I got a text late Tuesday evening as I was blogging. It was a number that I did not recognize and so my response was, "who is this?" I got  a text back that said, "This is Emma. I am in Tuscaloosa. Can I come visit?" I was so excited! Emma came over to our house Wednesday morning and stayed for a few hours until her mom came to pick her up.

Pics of our visit with Miss Emma:

After our visit with Emma, we had to scramble to get ready for our visit to camp. My friend, Alisha, and I went to Indian Creek Youth Camp Wednesday night to visit our church group and attend worship. Ava and I also got to see Jeremy all hot and sweaty! He was so happy to see his girls!

We enjoyed both of our visits that day! We can't wait for Daddy to get back home from camp!

Teething...Enough Said

What I Just Finished Reading

Perfect is a short novel by Natasha Friend. It is a piece of Adolescent Realistic Fiction published by Milkweed Editions, a non-profit organization that seeks to publish literature that will make a positive impact on youth. I found it in the $3 bin at 2nd and Charles in Hoover. I had never heard of the title, the author, or the publisher, but it seemed interesting. I started reading it last night before I went to sleep and finished it this afternoon (172 pages)

I cried the whole way through it. It is the story of a pre-teen girl, Isabelle, who is bulimic. It tells the story from her perspective, one binge and purge at a time. I really was not sure if I would like it or not, but I wanted to give it a try. I am glad I did. It was not disgusting at all. It was actually heartwarming and funny. I really liked the main character. If she were a real person, I probably would have been her friend in school. This book tries to teach the lesson that a person's appearance is just a facade. There is always so much more to a person than looks.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who works with adolescent girls and teenage girls. There was no sex, bad language (at all), or drugs. There is a brief mention of alcohol and the main character calls her sister "Ape Face" which I do not advocate. Other than those two things, it was a smooth read.

Publix Baby Food Coupon Trip

I was running very low on baby food and formula today, so I had to make a trip to Publix. I had to pay full price for the Enfamil Infant formula :( It made me a little sad to pay full price for formula that I am accustomed to getting at about 40% off. But, I had to have it. That is just how it works sometimes. I was able to save quite a bit on baby food, though:

 Publix had Beech-Nut Stage 2, 4 oz. jars on sale for Buy 10 for $4 (savings of $1.50) I also had a manufacturer coupon for $2 off of 20 jars. I bought 20 jars and paid $0. Huh? That doesn't add up! Yeah, I know. The computer scanned it incorrectly and so I got all this for FREE! I didn't expect that. I thought that the cashier would just re-scan my items. She didn't. She just handed me my money and said, "That's the Publix promise." Well, I promise to go back to Publix!

I have never tried the Sprout brand, but it is organic and has some very unique flavors that I want Ava to try. Sprout pouches were on sale this week as well. 6 pouches for $5. That seemed good enough, but I also had two coupons for Buy 3 Get 1 Free. I bought 8 pouches and only paid $5. I was pleased with that (that makes it a unit price of $0.63, a savings of $0.37 each)

Storytime Tuesday: Jumanji and File Folder Game

Today was my turn to teach storytime. I was excited because I had been thinking that I wanted to make file folder games for my next storytime. I decided last week that the book, Jumanji, by Chris Van Allsburg, would be the perfect book to go along with a file folder game. 

I bought the file folders at Wal-Mart for $10 (these were more expensive than the plain manila ones because they were made of a heavier card stock that had been laminated, they were colored, and they were patterned) I used paint swatches to make the actual board game on the inside (free) and had Jeremy print off a picture to go on the front. This project could have been easier if I had just printed off a white paper board game to glue on the inside, but my home printer is not working. Plus, I like the punch that the paint swatches provide. The game pieces were purchased from Wal-Mart as well (colored buttons) On the back, I stapled a sandwich bag containing the number cards and the game pieces.

Here are some photos of today's storytime:

 Chris Van Allsburg is my favorite children's author. He always writes mystical books with a neat ending. His illustrations are also pretty amazing!

 All the girls got together for a quick photo before storytime started.

 Storytime was actually during Ava's nap time today. She had been pretty tired when we were at home, but she was so good during the story! I felt bad that she missed her morning nap, but I had to teach today. She got a nap when we got home, though!

 Sidney Ellis and Molly Jane pose for the camera. They are definitely Barger kids!! Hmm...wonder where Sidney Ellis got the idea for that peace sign? (She is her daddy's child!) :)

 The front of the file folder game

 The back

 The inside

 Carla and Luke play Jumanji

 Aubrey plays solo

 All the girls play while Molly shows me that she has 2 of the "1" card.

Silly face!

First Movements

 Jeremy is away at Indian Creek Youth Camp this week and I am with Ava. It is neat to be here at home with her and know that I am responsible for EVERYTHING this week! It has given me a fresh sense of responsibility. Although I miss my husband terribly, I am really enjoying this one-on-one bonding time with my daughter. She amazes me so much every day! I love to watch her "talk" to her toys. She yells at them and then brings her voice down to a whisper. I always stop what I am doing to just watch her. She is so precious. It is so hard for me to get anything accomplished because I want to memorize everything that she does. I know that I will never have this day with her again.

The purpose of this post is to reminisce about my life a year ago. I was in my 19th week of  pregnancy with Ava and the appointment to find out the gender of our baby was a week away. I just KNEW that we were having a boy! I would have been happy either way, but something in my heart told me that we were destined to have a little boy first. I had dreams about holding a little boy in the delivery room and everyone at church told me that they thought we were having a boy. We were all wrong!!

I decided to go to camp last summer because my pregnancy was progressing so well. Jeremy really did not want me to go, but I promised him that I would rest when I needed it and drink plenty of water. He was only going to be across the camp, so I figured it would be fine (and it was) It was during that week of camp that I felt Ava kick for the first time. I will never forget that moment. I was a counselor in the Golden Pine girls cabin along with two other women. We had settled the girls down at about 11 pm and had all fallen asleep. At 3 am, I woke up because I felt three small kicks on the lower left side of my abdomen. I looked at my alarm because I wanted to memorize the time that I felt her first movements. It was the neatest feeling. I knew that Jeremy would not answer his phone at 3 am, but I sent a text to let him know.

The next morning, I woke up and went to breakfast. I didn't tell anyone because I wanted Jeremy to be the first person to know. I told him over breakfast and he grinned from ear to ear. I didn't feel her move again until a few days later, but from that point on it was consistent (and it was almost always on the left side - her favorite!) This particular week of camp will always be special because of that memory. 

It's Just a Saturday Night

Last night, Jeremy, Ava, and I went to the Summit in Birmingham, to have dinner with my Great Aunt Jane, and Great Uncle Bob. Jane and Bob were on their way back to Texas from Washington D.C. for Jane's annual DAR (Daughter's of the American Revolution) National Conference. She was a representative for Texas and got to walk on stage to accept about 15-16 awards (she could not remember the exact number) While in DC, she and Bob met several relatives in Virginia (Jane has done extensive research on our family's genealogy) and visited the University of Virginia Library to do more research.


We met up with them at Sweet Bones Alabama in the Summit shopping center. This was their first time to meet Ava, so we were all pretty excited! Jane held Ava most of the evening and talked to her about everything that she came into contact with! It was really cute! Aunt Jane always brings me a special gift, and this year was no exception. I got a cute little frog wind chime to hang on my back patio. During their visit two years ago, she brought me two coins from their visit to Egypt as well as two dates from the Egyptian market (I collect foreign money, so it was a great gift!) Aunt Jane always delivers!!! :)


Here are some photos of our evening:

 Ava really enjoyed Bob and Jane's company!

 Aunt Jane taught Ava how to draw. I should have taken a picture of Ava's scribbles, but I did not think of it at the time. Ava had lots of fun!

 At Sweet Bones Alabama, Jeremy took Ava's crayons and drew a picture of her on the white paper table cloth. Uncle Bob had a pair of scissors in his wallet and so Jane cut this picture out to take home with her.

After our dinner with Jane and Bob, we went to 2nd and Charles in Hoover. 2nd and Charles is a used book store much like McKay  in Tennessee. It is very organized and clean! They have these cute little shopping carts that we used in lieu of Ava's stroller. She loved the altitude! She had a great time looking at all the books!

 Another shot of Ava in the shopping cart

My cute little frog wind chime

New Blog Rule

I decided that I needed to abide by a few rules. I am letting you all know my rules so that you can hold me accountable!

Rules:

1. No blog posts until I have had my personal Bible study for the day.
2. No blog posts until I have had my personal prayer time for the day.

I have been neglecting my Bible study and prayer life for quite some time. Those are two things that I do not need to neglect. I used the excuse that when life got straightened out and "normal" with Ava, I would get back into a routine. It is 7 months later and life has spiraled out of control! It is now or never. 

So, the next time you see a new post, ask me, "Brooke, have you taken care of business today?" I will know exactly what you mean and will be honest in my answer. Please pray for me as I try to improve this part of my life!

Places I've Been: St. John's Edition

When our 2006 cruise docked in Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, Jeremy and I immediately got on a taxi boat and headed an hour away to St. John's. We visited Trunk Bay, which is the most beautiful beach that I have ever seen. It was so peaceful and serene and empty! There were only about twenty people on the beach with us. We snorkeled and swam almost the whole time we were there.

Here are some photos of our visit:

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II-End of an Era

 Peyton and her sister waited in line to get into the 2D version. She came over to say hi and get a picture before returning to her place in line. We hated that we did not get to sit in the same theatre, but decided that when Breaking Dawn Part I comes out in November, we will all buy our tickets together and sit together! Can't wait to wear my Team Edward shirt!

 Alisha and I waited for Caitlin to get off of work before we went into the theatre. We had tickets for the 3D show and had to wait on the bench before entering the theatre. So much fun!!

Caitlin and Alisha pose next to Bellatrix after our movie let out. What a night! I got into bed at 3 this morning! Luckily, Ava slept until 10:37 this morning (a whole 13 1/2 hours!) I was happy about that!

If you are not a fan of the Harry Potter series, you will not appreciate this post. But, in the spirit of the Pate Potpourri, I will give my two cents!

I was first introduced to the Harry Potter series when I was a junior in high school. I was a participant in the UIL (University Interscholastic League) competition each year and was required to read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone for the literature division of the competition. I bought the book in paperback and began reading (Now I must tell you at this point that I am one of those people who judges a book by its cover and will quit reading a book if the first page is not absolutely spectacular!) I was impressed with Mary Grandpre's cover illustrations. It looked exciting enough. But I couldn't get past the first page. It was too British. I don't mean to offend anyone who is British, but there is a certain style and voice in a literary piece that attracts me. I am very particular and Harry Potter just didn't make the cut. Needless to say, I didn't do the competition that year.

Fast forward to my senior year of high school. I was bored one Saturday and picked up the Harry Potter book. I thought I would give it another try. I got comfortable on my couch and began to read. I was spellbound! I could not put it down!! I don't know what difference a year made, but I loved it. I read it in just a few hours and went to Wal-Mart that evening to buy the other two books: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. I read them out of order and then read them in order. I read them over and over again!

When Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire came out, I went the next day to buy it. Too bad it was sold out! I learned my lesson then and have been at every midnight release of the Harry Potter books. I have also been to every midnight release of the Harry Potter movies except Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I (I was three weeks away from my due date with Ava) So this brings you up to speed on my infatuation with the Harry Potter series. Simply put, I have become an adult with Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

Last night as I entered the theatre, I was surprised at the amount of people who did not dress up. But I guess they had all become adults too. The crowd we sat with was amazingly subdued. The movie started with no clapping or shouting that is usually characteristic of a Harry Potter premiere. I heard sniffling, laughing, and stunned silence as the movie progressed. I even teared up on a few parts. It was so hard to watch parts of the movie that reminded me that Harry was an orphan. I know that it is pure fantasy, but I was moved.

I walked out of the theatre and back to my car. On the way home, I talked on the phone to a friend in Texas who had just seen the movie. We both agreed that this last installment was the missing puzzle piece. Until this movie, we had been able to take the puzzle apart and try putting it back together, but there was always a piece missing. It is nice to have the missing piece, but Harry Potter will never be the same. 

Last night's showing was probably the final chapter of my childhood. I am 27 years old, and have been an "adult" for a while now. But last night was it. I guess I can grow up now...