Where have I been??

It's been a long time since I've updated this blog.   A lot has happened since March (my last post).  For one, I have a ONE YEAR old (almost 13 month old now).  Ava's growing so fast!  She's walking more and more every few days.  She took her first steps at 11 months, but still isn't exclusively walking- she prefers to hold on to a finger or two.  Today she walked from the kitchen to her room and even though we have a fairly small house, that's a huge feat for her!  She loves her baby dolls, snoopy, books, our 2 backyard chickens, eating, drinking from her sippy cup and bottle (haven't had the heart to wean yet), playing patty cake, hanging upside down from my arms, and countless other things.  Her 7th tooth is finally poking through and her hair is finally starting to get long (still not long enough for a bow, though). 

Jason will be starting the new school year in August teaching 6th math at a new school.  He's excited for the new experience and I'm thrilled for him! 

I'm one size away from my goal weight/size (and Jason's lost 40+ pds)!!  I've been slacking a bit lately, and haven't set a date for my goal, but I'm confident I'll get there.  My last blog post was about starting the couch to 5k running program and it definitely works.  I STRONGLY recommend it to ANYONE.  I started off not being able to run for more than a minute (or not wanting to run for any longer, maybe I could have, maybe not), and my longest run with no walking has been 2 1/2 miles.  I did my first 5k the beginning of June, but didn't do as I had planned.  I was sick the week of and was off my running schedule before that (excuses, excuses), but I was happy to finish!  I've also started teaching a Zumba fitness class at my church (started May 16).  Such a great time that I look forward to each week. 

That about covers a Barthalow family update :) 

I think I can, I think I can

I started the Couch to 5K running plan today.  I'm not exactly starting from the couch, but it felt like it!  This week will be running 60 sec. and walking 90 for a total of 20 min (not including warm-up and cool-down).  Those 60 seconds, however many times I did it (8 or 9), is probably the most I've ever ran.  And today was not a desirable running day (46 degrees and cloudy outside) but I bundled Ava up and off we went.

She has turned into the best walking buddy!  Several months ago when I'd go walking at Shelby Farms I would end up carrying her because she hated being in the stroller so much.  It definitely didn't provide incentive for me to go walking (and the weather wasn't exactly consistently walker friendly either), but now she can go 30 minutes without a peep!   I've always loved walking and I'm so glad I can finally share that with Ava.

Gratitude

Yesterday's sermon at church was about Gratitude.  I love sermon's that are simple enough to stick with you through the week and that get you thinking.  Thanking God for all that I have is definitely not a foreign concept.  I try my best to do that all through the year (not just Thanksgiving!) because I really do have SO many blessings all because of Him.  It's hard not to want more things (a bigger house, newer car, expensive clothes), so I love the times that bring me back to reality and show me all the amazing things in my life.  I have an incredible husband who supports me and loves me like crazy.  He was a God send.  I have the most incredible 10 month baby girl who has been a blessing to both of us (we're afraid to have another one because what are the chances of having TWO perfect babies?! lol).  Those are the two biggest ones... I have so many more though.  "Every blessing You pour out, I'll turn back to praise," (lyrics from Blessed be Your Name) is what I try to do with every blessing.  Realizing that it's nothing we have done or could ever do, but simply because He loves us, is all that matters. 


The most recent blessing I'm thrilled about happened yesterday.  I've been dreaming about having a personal trainer for a while.  Dream is the operative word here because I knew that it wasn't gonna happen ($$$)!.  Yesterday, I attended a Zumbathon (Zumba is another blessing) benefitting the American Heart Association.  $10 to Zumba with 7 instructors for 1 1/2 hours.  Everyone received a ticket (two tickets if you wore red, and I didn't have ONE read shirt appropriate for Zumba in my closet, so no red for me) for several give aways.  I told the girl sitting next to me that I probably wouldn't win anything since I only had one ticket and 98% of the rest of the women had 2.  One of the prizes was 4 30-minute personal training sessions with a trainer from Well Worx.  My number didn't get called and of course I was bummed.  A few drawings later, the instructor prefaced the prize with something like "this is the best one,"... 30 day free membership to Well Worx, 6 1-hour personal training sessions, and 2 1-hour massages.  WOW!  And I won!!  Such a HUGE blessing that I'm extremely grateful for.  I can't wait to started.

I don't expect to receive everything I dream of, but isn't it amazing how God hears our desires (even the non-spiritual ones) and blesses us.  How incredible!  

Baby Steps

Today needs to be documented with a blog post- Ava stood on her own and took ONE step!  I'm not necessarily rejoicing because she's about to be walking... I'm not ready for this!  But it was a very exciting moment!  Her cousin came over briefly and was on the floor holding her up.  I guess Abagael decided to let go and apparently Ava was READY!  Later tonight she was standing in front of her toy box, shaking a little musical toy, standing all by herself.  She's growing so fast but I love every minute of it.  Her little personality is so sweet... I love seeing more and more of it come out everyday.  Tomorrow will be spent trying to capture a standing moment on camera and video.  :)

Spring time is here

Spring is here!  As much as I love layering up during the colder weather, I think I love riding with the windows down even more.  We've had some back and forth weather here in Memphis, but I'm hoping that since we've made it to the end of March, the cold days are behind us. 

We celebrated the first day of Spring (yesterday) by starting seedlings for our garden!  Last week Jason, my father-in-law, brother-in-law and nephew brought in soil and laid out a 12 X 16 space for the garden.  We knew we would have to wait a while to plant (with the back and forth March weather), so seedlings were the way to go.  We started herbs (basil, dill, cilantro, thyme, oregano, rosemary, and chamomile) and vegetables (sweet corn, cucumbers, broccoli, 2 types of lettuce, green beans, zucchini, and carrots) yesterday and will buy some tomato plants when it's time to plant.   We also bought seed potatoes to plant.  I can't wait to see the seedlings sprout in the next several days.  Then this summer, hopefully we'll have some successful and delicious veggies.  Tomato, basil and mozzarella salad, roasted rosemary red potatoes, grilled zucchini... mmmmm.  Let's hope I have a green thumb! 

My sweet nephew working hard

Covering the dirt. 

My seedlings! 

Baby talk and birthdays!

I love the fact that Ava has started really communicating.  Her first "words" were ba ba (not sure if she was actually referring to her bottle or not) and ma ma.  It became clear that she was in fact saying mama when, on more than one occassion, someone other than me was holding her, she leaned forward and said, "mama," desperately trying to get back to me:)  Her new favorite word is da da.  She says it ALL day (usually with one hand in the air waving), with or without daddy actually being here.  Sometimes she'll even whisper it, for no apparent reason.  Today, I realized that no matter what I said or asked her, her reply/answer is daddy.  There is ONE exception to that, though:  nigh-nigh.  When she's tired and I'm taking her for a nap or bedtime, I'll ask her if she's ready for night-night, and her reply is always nigh-nigh.  So sweet!  She loves her daddy and night night.

In other Ava related news (what other kind is there? ;) ):

I've tried holding off planning her first birthday as long as I can.  I told myself early on that I didn't want to plan it too early because I truly want to savor this first year and not rush it.  Well, now she's 9 months and I think it's time!  I've just now really started thinking about it and am getting a lot of inspiration from Birthday Girl Blog and The Sweetest Occasion.  They are both incredible (and draw from each other).  I even made my first inspiration board.  I don't want to break any copy right rules so I won't display it here, but it was fun to make.  I'm bad about trying to keep up with ideas in my head, and don't want to leave anything out for her birthday.  I'll be making my first birthday related purchase tomorrow (2 white scalloped cake stands).  This is definitely needed for her birthday AND my kitchen- can't wait to display her birthday cake and future cakes on them. 

I'll leave you with a few pictures of my growing girl....

Moments before nigh-nigh time, Daddy reading her our favorite night time book. 

The next morning, trying to get on the couch with mama. 

I wonder if this is her version of a fake smile?? :) 

Short and sweet

It's Wednesday night, Ava's asleep, Jason's at worship practice, and I'm sitting on the couch listening to the rain (and a movie on Oxygen).  I've been opening the kitchen windows a lot because of this beautiful weather... such a comforting sound.  And now comes the thunder.... ahhhh.  Ava has a musical lullaby CD I play for her every night and in addition to the lullabies you can hear nature sounds here and there.  I remember one of the first times I played it... sitting in her dark room rocking her and I heard the gentle rain and thunder on the CD.  I was in HEAVEN.  I could have sat there all night rocking her.  I was just thinking tonight, as I was rocking her at bedtime while she took her last bottle, "How much longer am I going to be able to rock her at night?"  My girl is growing too fast! 

Ava Rae at 8 months

I've seen a lot of Mommy bloggers do monthly updates of their babies so I've decided to finally do one!  I'm doing a baby book for Ava, but there's only so much you can write on 2 1/2 lines. :)

So let's start with the basics... sleeping.  Jason and I are VERY blessed in this area.  Ava goes to sleep at 6pm, and sleeps until about 6:30 the next morning (sometimes she sleeps past 7, and rarely will she wake up before 6).  Once we put her in her crib at 4 1/2 months, she has basically been an amazing sleeper.  She takes between 2 and 3 naps a day, but I pretty sure that's about to be ONLY 2.  Her morning and noonish nap go without a hitch everyday, but her afternoon nap (usually between 2 and 3) haven't been as easy.  I've been pretty "strict" on her naps (and by strict I mean trying to be home so she can nap in her crib) just because I know how much she needs them (i.e., red eyes, cranky, yawning, etc....), but the past few days she's actually been ok without that last nap.  I've read a lot that at 6 months babies have longer wake times, but at 8 months that's just now becoming a reality in our house.  Every baby is different! 

Eating... she gets between 4 and 5 bottles a day (one first thing in the morning, after every nap, and at bed time).  Along with the bottles, I'm feeding her other food 3 times a day (and taking that bottle from her half way through to give her something else is NOT easy!).  This week we've discovered that she loves yogurt.  Other new things that she has enjoyed lately have been strawberries, blueberries, diced up turkey, eggs, baked tilapia, and steamed veggies.  She's been turning her nose up to the typical baby food purees, so I'm trying to go with the flow.  As long as she's eating the diced up "table" food, I guess we're ok. 

Ava loves exploring!  Whether it's around the dining room table or my bedroom, she loves new sights.  Taking her to the grocery store almost guarantees a giddy, smiling baby!  Everywhere (and I mean just about EVERYWHERE) we go people comment on her BIG, blue eyes.  She definitely takes everything in with those beautiful eyes. :) 

Pre-crawling, it was hard for me to get basic housework done during the day.  She, as most babies are I'm sure, is very attached to me, so getting up to go to the kitchen wasn't an easy task without her in my arms.  Now that she's completely mobile for 2+ months, I try to include in her the few chores I do while she's awake.  Take laundry... Like I said before, she loves exploring in my bedroom.  So as she's doing that, I can be gathering laundry.  The laundry closet is just outside our bedroom, up one step, so she follows me (even up the step) and what happens next brings that giddiness out again.  She's amazed when I turn the washer or dryer on.  She sits on her bottom and stares for a few seconds, then I close the doors the closet (and try to wave and say "bye bye" everytime) and we move onto the next thing. 

She also loves the dishwasher.  When it's time to put away the clean ones, if she's not already in the kitchen with me, she races over and pulls up on the open door and reaches for whatever she can (usually only gets to touch plates or cups). 

One of MY favorite times of the day has become story time.  I've said in a previous blog that she loves the book, "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you see?"  This week she has started turning the pages while I read!  Now, she's always grabbed for the pages to try to eat them or just hold them, but now she simply grabs the lower corner (always with her left hand, too), and waits a few seconds to turn the next page.  As her mom, I'm SO impressed by this new talent!!  Yesterday, after Brown Bear, I picked up a n ewbook to read, and about halfway through she "got up" from my lap and started digging in her toy chest.  lol... I guess she's a picky reader. 

I'm the most blessed mommy to have Ava as mine!  She's growing WAY TOO fast, and as much as I'd like to rewind and do the past 8 months over (and over) again, I love watching her develop and learn new things. 

My sick little bear

My sweet Ava had her first stomach bug yesterday.  I got her up from a nap at 1 and the poor thing was soaking wet!  I had already had a doctors appointment scheduled for 2:30 for her 2nd flu shot, so we went ahead and got ready for the doctor (not an easy task with a sick little one).  She couldn't hold anything down for about 4 hours yesterday afternoon.  The doctor told me to give her an ounce of pedialyte an hour to keep her hydrated.  I was sure it wouldn't stay down (and the first ounce didn't), but finally at 5:50 I gave her another ounce and she slept until 2:30am.  I got up to give her a little more and just figured she would fall asleep right away since she had been so exhausted (rightly so!), but after that little ounce was gone she cried for more.  After 2 ounces of formula she was back sound asleep until her regular wake time at 6:45am.  Right now it's 10am and she's already 15 minutes into a SECOND nap.  She's still worn out from yesterday, but thank goodness she's keeping down her fluids and breakfast.  I was up probably a dozen times last night looking at the monitor.  When I wasn't awake I was dreaming that she was crying so I would wake up ready to jump out of bed!  Having a sick little one is the WORST!  The look of exhaustion and sadness on her face was the worst sight to see yesterday.  I know we'll have more experiences like this in the future, I just hope they're few and far between. 

Even though she was still so tired this morning, we sat on the floor and read her current FAVORITE book, "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See", and she was as giddy as ever reading it.  She bounces up and down in my lap at each new animal.  I've gotten to where I've memorized it (not a hard thing to do with that book) so I repeat the lines when I'm changing her and at other times, and she just LOVES it!  When we get to the teacher page she usually grabs for the glasses on the page.  She also scratches at the words a lot, I guess trying to get them off the page and into her mouth!  Crazy girl:) 

Planning on taking the rest of the day very slow with her.  No grocery store for me today... maybe I should go see what I have in my kitchen for dinner tonight! 

Snow Day

[I started this post 2 days ago and never finished it.  Our snow day was Friday and today is Sunday, but better late than never!]

Today we had our 3rd snow day of the season!  Of course everyday could very well be a snow day for me since I stay at home, but it's nice to have Jason home with us!  I've always loved productive days, but they're even more substantial (and less) with a crawling, 8 month old (YES, today Ava is 8 months old!!) baby.  Today, I've been able to clean most of the house, run errands (alone) for an hour 1/2, do some laundry, and bake several things for guests we're having over tonight.  Definitely wouldn't have been able to do all that as quickly as I did if Jason weren't home.  He's pretty much been on baby duty most of the day (minus laying her down for 2 naps and feeding her) and to that he told me, "I don't know how you do it."  WELL, I hear all the time that being a mom is the hardest job, and while it's not always easy, I wouldn't trade being at home with her for a 6 figure job.  Being with her all day, everyday, makes everyday fun, tiring, memorable, precious, etc, etc.  I don't know how long this season of my life will remain the way it is, but for now I'm loving EVERY moment (especially the snow days!). 
 

Sleep

Sleep.  It's one of my favorite things.  I can honestly say that as the mother of a 7 month old, I really haven't been very sleep deprived.  Ava's first week at home was of course exhausting, but it didn't bother me the slightest bit.  Sleep was the LAST thing I wanted to do that week.  All I wanted to do was soak up my newborn baby.  I can remember crying one afternoon that first week as I went to bed for a nap because as exhausted as I was, I didn't want to miss one second with her.  Fast forward 7 months and I LOVE my naps! 

Ava is a champion sleeper!  Since about 4 1/2 months, she has gone to bed at 6pm, give or take 15 minutes, and slept all night.  Right now, she's waking up between 4 and 6 for a bottle, then going back to sleep until around 8.  She has her occasional nights where she wakes up crying, but those are no big deal to us since most nights are perfect.  We let her cry it out and she's back asleep with a few minutes. 

Since she has learned to pull up, nap times are a little harder.  When I put her down (the same way I do for every nap time), she pulls herself all the way up, screams, and usually drops her paci on the floor in the process.  I really think she gets stuck in the position she's in (or is she doing it on purpose so mommy will come back in???), holding onto the top of her crib for dear life, so I go back in, find her paci, and lay her back down.  Within 5 minutes she's asleep.  Why she can't just go to sleep in the first place like she used to is beside me, but as long as she goes to sleep, I guess it will do! 



In other random news, I went ahead and decided to start Weight Watchers last week after my post.  I'm doing it online and LOVE it so far.  Down 6 pounds!  I really wish it would be -6 every week, but I know it will slow down.  Happy for a good start though:) 

Time for change

I just read a friend's weight loss blog and it inspired me to blog about MY weight loss (or should I say weight loss goal).  I know every person who has a baby tries to take off the baby weight, and I'm FINALLY ready to get serious about taking off my remaining baby weight PLUS some more. 

About 2 years ago I decided to try to loose some weight so I started on Nutrisystem (and worked out a lot).  I lost 30 pounds in about 5 months and managed to keep most of it off.  I was ecstatic to have been successful in loosing that weight, but I never got to where I really wanted to be.  Then along comes my pregnancy!  I obviously gained all that weight back plus more.   Now 9 months plus 7 months later, I'm ready to loose it all. 

I definitely don't want to do Nutrisystem again.  As much as I loved it 2 years ago, I don't want the prepared foods or the cost associated with it.  I'm still going back and forth as to whether or not I should do Weight Watchers, but I don't really want the cost associated with that either!  I know how I'm supposed to eat, I suppose Weight Watchers would just provide the encouragement I need. 

One thing that I know is going to help is ZUMBA!  I was invited by church friends to Zumba on Tuesday night (a church in the area offers it for free once a week) and fell in love!  I've always liked working out (when I actually do it!), but this is definitely on another level.  I went to another church that offers it for free (donations only) last night and got another great workout.  I'm so happy to have found these classes because, 1) they're in the evening after Ava's in bed so there's no time lost with her, 2) they're FREE (although I'll give a small donation when I can), 3) it gets me out of the house (what stay at home mom doesn't need to get out alone every once in a while), and 4) it's FUN!

So between Zumba and eating better this week, I'm on the right track.  :)