My little cruiser and trooper

Ava began her 6th month (and celebrated her first Thanksgiving) on a cruise to the Bahama's!  She was the youngest cruiser (by one day) and the star of the ship!  She smiled at just about everyone she met and loved people watching:)  She's developing into quite the social butterfly.  

We took lots of long naps, dipped her in the ocean (and pool) for the first time, and ate lots of good food.  We brought my mom so Ava got lots of bonding time with her Granny.  We're so thankful to have had a week of relaxation together. 

That wonderful week started off very stressful, though.  I spent weeks before the cruise stressing about every little thing (what to pack, having enough formula for Ava, Ava being sick, etc. etc) and 2 hours before the ship sailed my fears came true.  I got a call from Ava's doctor asking if I could come in to the office to see him.  Ava had blood and urine taken the previous Friday because of her weight loss weeks before.  Friday's visit was "supposed" to be the final clearance that everything was ok and I left the visit confident.  Well, her doctor told me it looked like she had a UTI and he wanted to get her looked at.  MELTDOWN!  He knew about the cruise weeks before and when I "reminded" him where we were, he reassured me that he could call in an Rx for antibiotics for the week so she could start treatment.  THANKFULLY, the ship's medical clinic had the medicine, along with a very helpful doctor.  We had the medicine in hand an hour before the ship sailed.  So now my sweet girl has to have an ultrasound and catheter to figure out the cause of the UTI.  I'm looking forward to having all these doctors visits behind us. 

On a more positive note, the holidays are here!  Hopefully we'll be getting the Christmas tree tomorrow.  I can't wait to see Ava's reaction to it!  I'm going to soak the next few weeks up...

Funny Ava

Today I pulled out the bouncer that attaches to the door frame.  I've been so paranoid about using it but decided to give it a try and Ava loved it!  She looked like a little ballerina twirling around.  

In other news, Ava loves the white tags on her play mat.  Surrounded by toys, she almost always manages to find those tags and try her hardest to read the fine print:) 

A very important date

Last week's episode of Modern Family was one of the funniest to date.  I loved Lily's acting debut, but  my favorite part was Gloria and Jay's plot (or would it be a sub-plot?).  She was excited about celebrating one of their "anniversaries."  I can't remember which one it was (the first kiss or first date) but it definitely hit home.  I'm not as sappy as Gloria when it comes to anniversaries, but there are 2 special "Jason and Cherise" days that I remember each year (besides our wedding anniversary).  November 11, 2005 was mine and Jason's first date.  5 years ago seems so long and yet so short.  I remember the typical first date butterflies and awkward moments.  I remember how he asked me out (just a few doors down from where I am right now) and how I tried to find the perfect outfit.  Maybe one day things will be too hectic and November 11 will just pass as any other (Veteran's) day with no thought about it's personal history, but while I still have time to be sappy, sappy I will be! 

Curious about other important dates?  April 16, 2005, November 11, 2005, December 29, 2006, September 20, 2009 and May 21, 2010 are all the dates that I have to celebrate with my little family each year in some way or another.  It goes from meeting the man of my dreams on April 16 all the way to meeting the joy of our life together on May 21. 

So now I have a date with my sweet husband to look forward to at Houston's tomorrow night (minus the first date butterflies and awkward moments:) ). 

Here we go...

I've decided to start a blog.  I've been contemplating it for a while, and finally gave in.  The thought crossed my mind, "Who cares what I have to write on a blog?"  Then I realized that I care!  If no one else reads it besides me then that's ok with me.  This will be something I can look back on to remember first hand what my life was like late 2010 and beyond. 

And now as I write this I wonder, "What do I even have to write about?"  When me and Jason talk about our day after he gets home from work,  he usually has plenty to tell me about the ups and downs of teaching 5th grade.  I, on the other hand, usually tell him how long and how often Ava napped and whether or not she was fussy.  As the mom of a 5 month old, those are my main concerns every day!  I promise not to make this a daily play by play of Ava's routine!  I'm hopeful that this blog will motivate me to record the little memories we make each day.