18 month superstar

Today was Ainsley's 18 month check up. As we entered the doctor's office, two families with newborns were anxiously waiting to hear the nurse call their names -- first official appointments since the little ones were born and the families' first set of vaccinations. I read the exhaustion on the mothers' faces and the nervousness on dads'...and I felt for them while also relishing that I had an 18 month old. Phew...The toddler time is certainly eventful and trying, but I am LOVING her increased ability to communicate and express her needs and personality. Don't miss those first months one bit (no offense, Ainsley)!

So here are the 18 month stats:

• Weight: 20 lbs 14 oz and just over the 5th percentile (that's serious progress, people, and added assurance that we re supported in turning her car seat forward)
• Height: 31" and now in the 25th percentile (up significantly)
• Head circumference: 46 cm, not sure the percentile, just know she luckily didn't inherit my huge Dutch melon
• Slight heart murmur detected (no worries or concern; she must take after her grandma van howe)
  

She is vebalizing more and more and is particulary talkative about the people in her life and what they've done together. For example, she giggles and often reminisces of when she and shewey (cousin Zoe) took a (bat) bath, and Tum (Tommy) with his toy snake (sssss) and how he frightened shewey (this part acted out). She talks of Eyaya (cousin Ellie) and does impressions of her older relative shaking her head or playing hide and seek. She adores Michelle (MiMi) and Benjamin (Beene) and often gives us accounts of her day playing in Mimi's basement (been-tah) with a ball (bawah) or singing and dancing (full movement replay). She seems to understand all that we are talking about, and we have to be careful. She knows how to play daddy versus mommy -- though, who am I kidding, she's pretty much had that down since infancy. But it's fun to watch the wheels turn and see her try different approaches for different people to get what she wants.

She loves going out, socializing with others, is fearless and confident -- though she still struggles when I leave her at the gym day care -- (for less than an hour one time a week). But we are working on that...as much a growing opportunity for me as for her, and Scott and our pediatrician are talking me down the ledge to let her learn to adapt.

In short, all is well and couldn't be better. We had a wonderful Christmas season, celebrating early with Barb and the kids, Skyping with Jerry and Kathy, and hanging out with mom, Jim, Farah and Ellie in Rockford for a good chunk of time; my dad made it into Rockford for Christmas as well. We also enjoyed being home as a threesome and playing with all of our new Christmas toys, organizing and storing toys and baby clothes, and trying out various veggie crock pot recipes and Food and Wine stews and soups.

Excited about 2010 and wishing all you bloggers well~

Let It Snow!

Today we awoke to a decent dusting of the white stuff, and Ainsley was enthralled. Running from door to door, window to window, pointing and crying "nyoow" --her word for snow, I decided I'd use the snow as a nice backdrop for our Christmas cards, so I dressed Ainsley and took her outside. Now, I would normally have her in warm mittens, hat and baby parka, but we wanted a good shot for the card, so Scott convinced me that she'd live in the cold for 5 minutes. She went nuts, tasting the snow, playing with snow covered branches, was out of her mind -- it was precious. Naturally, after a few good shots (forthcoming in Christmas cards), I raced her in to warm her up and dry off those busy hands. She was FURIOUS. I have never seen her so frustrated. Scott came running down from his home office because he thought she had hurt herself. She's never been this demonstrably angry with us. She had to get back outside..... I took a few shots of her rampage (include one here), then dressed her more appropriately and we went out again. What fun to experience the holidays with her!

I'm Premier

We had talked through our plan of attack many times. We knew when we would wake up, how we would get ready, who would pack the car, who would feed Ainsley, and when we had to take off to make it to the airport on time. But no one factored in the power of Scott's new phone -- the Droid. On the morning we were to leave for Vegas, Scott decided to set up his new phone. Eager to be fully functional, he was on call with a top-notch rep from a Verizon. I admit, I enabled him by allowing him to hang on line until all of his contacts had fully transferred to the new phone (cue robotic Droid sound).

Needless to say, we left the house an hour before our plane was to board. Hitting every light on the "fast way" to the airport, we careened along the exit ramp to long term parking. We ended up in G16 (for those familiar). At least in the same lot as the tram, it's about as far as you can get from the tram. We literally hauled derriere, only to make it to the landing as the doors closed. At least Ainsley enjoyed the experience as she was wheeled in the umbrella stroller at an MPH most definitely banned by Federal Children Safety Departments....

Finally reaching ticketing, we high-tailed it to the pre=checked luggage area which was..dum, dum, dum...closed. At this point in our adventure, I was at a loss, wondering how we could make it through security with not only the sheer number of our bags and gate checked items (stroller and car seat) but given the volumes of lotion, baby wash, gels, etc.

That's when Scott -- the Solutionator -- stepped in. As we were waved to a long check in line (given the closure of the pre-checked bag station), he stated to the United Rep, "I am premier." This is not true, but he sold it. We were then whisked to the nearest counter, where we were informed that we were too late to check our pre-checked bags. Scott then led us over to the premier security line, where again we were allowed entree, along with our more than 2 bags per person. We took off shoes, compressed strollers, and combined bags faster than 100K businessmen. When asked about just one of our variou carry-ons which contained liquids, Scott said with confidence, "The liquids are for the baby" and then he had me wave to the screener...Miraculously, this worked.

As Scott was finishing replacing his laptop in his bag, I ran over to check our departure gate to find we were leaving from the furthest gate in the C terminal. We continued our sprint over the moving walk way, and I did have a moment of, "I don't think I can do this..." but then remembered that I had made it through 32 hours of labor...so the momma adrenaline kicked in.
In the end, we made it to the gate as folks were boarding and Scott managed to find places for all of our luggage. Moreover, we had fantastic flight attendants who fell in love with Miss Ainsley and introduced her to the captain and many other passengers throughout the flight -- they also kept us in cups (for stacking) and full bottles of water. Our mantra for the trip became, "we are premier."

Happy to have arrived in Vegas, we embraced Scott's parents, told them our tale, and then went on to enjoy a fantastic 4.5 days. We visited the Hoover Dam and saw the new bridge construction taking place to join NV and AZ, strolled along the streets of Boulder City, took in some playgrounds, enjoyed time with family friends, and even got away a couple of nights for a movie, some light gambling, and dinner at Fleur De Lys @ Mandalay Bay. We all had a wonderful time. I just hope we haven't used all of our good travel karma for the rest of our lives...

Jedi Master

We had a great Halloween weekend. Grandma Van Howe (Ga Ga) and Grand Godmother Lori (Lo-ee-Lo) were here for the festivities. The neighborhood was out in full force, thanks to some great planning for a Halloween block party, and Ainsley was in her element -- enjoying other kids, pointing at pumpkins and ghosts, laughing at costumes, and observing and then quickly joining in on begging for candy. We only stopped by a handful of neighbors' houses, to show of Yoda Avers', and her cuteness won Scott and me some yummy candy.

We all enjoyed Lori's company and she was a great help -- man, it's great to have 3 adults to one Ainsley. Lori also left her mark: Ainsley now does a fish face and sounds quite well, is making the "p"/"pa" sound as we start to teach her "please," and loves and does the motions to row, row, row your boat and an abridged version of Patty-Cake -- her favorite part -- "Toss Him In the Pan." We ladies also took in a gourmet lunch at Marion Street Cheese market, where Ainsley enjoyed $12 plate of mac and cheese (with high end Gruyere) -- this kid has it good, and so do we.

Can't believe Thanksgiving is around the corner!

Discipline

Alright, people...it's begun, and I'm struggling. A couple of weeks ago, Ainsley discovered how to gag herself. Initially, I figured she was exploring. Her teeth were bothering her, so why not let her have some esophageal fun. More recently, she been gagging to the point of near reflux and gets the watery eyes. It's disgusting. So yesterday, I had had it. I told her "no" forcefully, told her why it isn't good to gag oneself, it's "owe-wee" and "not nice"...and she laughed at me. My intensity was new to her and she found it amusing, so the gagging increased. Today I tried ignoring her again and she went off into the corner, looked at me, started crying, and pulled another gag. Any suggestions, educators, aunties and uncles, and more seasoned parents?

And then there are the diapering and dressing battles. She's getting smarter and more independent, which are all good things, I realize...but it is hard to know how much pressure to exert and how much exploring and testing to allow.

Among our non-disciplinary updates, she is really enjoying making us laugh with mimicking sounds and expressions, trying to jump, walking backwards, stomping her feet quickly, initiating games and her favorite songs and letting us all know when it is not the song or game she intended us to play, "No!"....

Human development is awesome. I just wished I had paid attention (or less attention) in those meditation classes I took. Need to learn to breathe and take it all in more. It's amazing to see this little person running around (and sometimes running) our house.

Pumpkin Patch

We vowed that if the temp went over 40, we would make a trip to Homer Glen to visit the pumpkin patch, corn maze and such. Well, it barely topped 40; but we layered up and headed out and had a wonderful time. Enjoying the seasons with kids really is great. Ainsley's eyes as big as ever when we pulled up and she saw not only legions of pumpkins but children of varying sizes jumping on a huge air pillow. She also waved at piggies, touched a llama and goat, and was hysterically happy in the corn pit. We went on a hay ride (at my urging) which was fun but bumpier than imagined, and spewed lots of hay and dirt (this city girl forgets about that sort of thing) -- but we made it out. Had Ainsley been older she could have gotten in the cow train that is pulled by a tractor and where farmers weave kids in and out of the corn (so cute!). John Deere wagons were provided to pick out your pumpkins and haul them to the parking lot. This place is great. Enjoy some of these pics. After editing and deleting some 20 pics, we still have 74 from our 2 hour visit. Hah! We are still struggling with uploading our videos -- we will call into Mac support soon -- Snow Leopard has some kinks!!!

Vinyl Fun Times

We have a new post-dinner way to have fun. After we clean Ainsley's face, hands, clothes, high chair and Elmo mat that keeps the floor "clean", we head downstairs to play in the basement and listen to some old-fashioned vinyl records.

Jen and I both forgot how good a nice vinyl album can sound on some great speakers. We started the other night with my copy of Rubber Soul that my godfather gave me. She loved that so we moved to Wilco's masterpiece Yankee Hotel Foxtrot which I bought several years ago. I think a nine year old record qualifies as old, don't you? Her favorite song by far was Heavy Metal Drummer. We also tried some Rolling Stones tonight. I thought she would love the "woo woo" in Sympathy for the Devil since her favorite animal sound right now is the owl, but not so much.

The good news is we are finally actually using the basement for something other than a place for guests to stay. She actually asks to go down there after dinner now! She walks over to the door, points and grunts "bu bu". When I ask if she wants to go in the basement she gets a big grin on her face and runs over to me, wants to be picked up and taken down there right away. A small thing but another joy of bringing up Ainsley.

Chicken Dancer

Just a quick video of Ainsley's new favorite thing to do-the Chicken Dance! I took this myself with my camera phone so it isn't exactly Oscar-worthy but you get the idea.

She loves doing this and has walked around doing it all weekend. Jen said she was even doing it as she was drifting off to sleep last night!

It was tough being away all last week, especially since I was on Disney property for a couple days. We had a great weekend hanging out and catching up. Her words are getting better all the time-she of course has mama down and will mix in dada, gaga (grandma VH) as well as Nana and Papa. She also loves to point at babies and say dee dee. She can really turn up the volume now when she really wants or doesn't want something!

Sweet Spot of Life

Ihe sweet spot of life, the flow, the inhale and exhale of a Higher Power...I'm in it, tapped in, and so thankful. During that 2+ years when we were trying to conceive, I remember reflecting and praying often, thinking that if we weren't going to be parents, I would vow to be more creative, more engaged, and not hinge my life's moves on procreation. My gift is that not only did we have our amazing Ainsley, but I was made stronger by the pregnancy, delivery, excitement and anxiety of parenthood and was able to translate that into a prosperous work life and happy home life. Ainsley has been revealing more about her personality lately, looking me dead in the eyes, communicating with a limited vocabulary, trying out new comedic tricks, being awe struck by others. Her newness and zeal inspire me by the minute, by the hour...

So this is a sentimental post....wishing the very best for all of our friends and family, and giving a "shout out" to our friends who have been waiting, waiting, and waiting to hear news from their adoption agencies and attorneys about when they might be parents...The Avers' wish you the sweet spot of life -- whether that includes little ones or not. I think we do need reminders, catalysts to move forward -- whether they come in small packages like infants or through other wonders or even crises.

Apologies for babble-blogging...just feeling good, drinking a Brazilian latte, and wanting to wrap my virtual arms around our friends and family -- hope you all feel me. And a belated Happy Rosh Hashanah and impending Yom Kippur to our Jewish friends~

Scott is traveling, and I'm nearly useless when it comes to uploading pics -- particularly when I've misplaced our camera-to-computer card...so this older pic of AFA w/pants on head in daddy's arms will have to do for now...we'll get our technology together soon. xoxoxoxox

A new kind of longneck

We are now members of Brookfield Zoo and spent a fun afternoon there on Saturday. The weather was a perfect 80 degrees and since school is back in session the crowds were relatively sparse, which was nice. We saw lots of fun animals and Ainsley is getting good at making animal sounds, although right now the elephant, tiger, lion and snow leopard all make the same sound (kind of a ccrrrruhhh type of thing). Very fun. Here is a quick video of us by the giraffes. Notice that awesome zoom on the camcorder! (Sc0tt)

Okay -- so I'm tagging on to Scott's post. We really did enjoy the zoo, but I had to blog that when we visited the Swamp exhibit (birds, river otters, gators, snakes), we had Ainsley in the umbrella stroller -- which is totally ALLOWED...and I heard this younger couple say (stage whisper), "I didn't think strollers were allowed in here (sigh)." Now, I agree that strollers are a big pain in the tush for just about EVERYONE...but we were truly keeping to our space and being polite...and, BTW, this exhibit permitted strollers. Needless to say...I decided to keep it light and laugh it off...but I had a moment of wanting to get into it...comparing our small stroller and crowd-friendly behavior to the throng of people (adults and older kids) stopped in the middle of a walkway or blocking the exhibit for more than 5 minutes (see, the people who used to stop in the halls at your high school (oblivious) grow up and are still oblivious and have kids who are oblivious)....Anyway, I had to share that we and our stroller were whispered about.... (Jen)

Toddler Awe

Ainsley has always been pretty observant, alert, and ready to engage. Recently, though, her expressions (facial and verbal) of wonder and awe are intense. We met former TCC colleagues Chantell and Lauren and Chantell's family in Millennium Park last Friday. It was Ainsley's first trip to this hot spot; and she soaked it up. From pointing at seagulls, to noticing strange sculptures, to waving to passersby, she was loving it all. We were able to check out the new modern wing at the Art Institute too -- free on Friday nights -- thanks to Chantell and Chris cluing us in. We had a great afternoon, and I swear Ainsley couldn't stop smiling when we got her home. So much excitement.

She also had the opportunity to hang with some of her favorite playmates -- the Connors kids -- Sam, Evelyn and Amelie (Millie) at our house and then at the zoo this week. Ainsley had been to the zoo before but you can really see the change in her recognition of animals as separate beings. She saw the zebra (bra bra), elephants, many birds (caw-caw, and cak-cak), and was smitten with the gorillas. No pics of the zoo as I was trying a new stroller/back pack strategy and didn't want to thwart my success by trying to manage a camera too. Next time, we will bring daddy to help with the photography.

Happy start of school to all you school-aged families! We caught 2 of our kindergarten-aged neighbors making their way down our block with their moms. So sweet! I don't know who was more excited -- the moms or the girls. Ainsley got a kick out of seeing the 5 year old parade. And peace be with you, dear teacher friends and family members! We wish you a safe year with either thoughtful or laissez-faire administrators.

You get me, I'll get you

So little Miss Ainsley and Benjamin spend more and more time together these days. They are only three weeks apart, are about the same size, and dare I say are both pretty cute. I think they are going to get along fine, especially now that they both know that if one of them starts something the other will finish it!

Toddler Time

We've had a great and busy summer. Just last week Ainsley and I spent time with Kim, Skylar and Parker Swanson at the Morton Arboretum, and we really enjoyed it; You go, big salt company -- for anyone who hasn't been (with or without kids), I give it 5 stars on a 4 star scale. When Kim took it upon herself (cause she's a super mom) to grab food for all of us while I watched the three cuties, I have to admit that I started to physically sweat after 10 minutes, wondering what I would do if any of them decided to lose it. To my relief, and what should be no surprise, the three sweeties were perfectly sweet. Though it did again build my respect for all of you out there who manage more than one child at a time and do so with such calm and finesse!

We also had our nieces, Molly and Zoe, and nephew, Tommy over for four days. We made it to Kiddie Land, the Courtyard in Rolling Meadows for some pool time, and hung out with neighbors for a hot and humid (but fun filled) block party. Ainsley was overwhelmed but loved the attention and slept well and long for all of her naps and evening sleep! The kids decided that Ainsley's nicknames would be "sweaty bananas" when they were in silly moods, and "cutie bananas" for most outings.

So today, and for the title of this post, I have to share that Ainsley is increasingly showing us her toddler prowess. Thinking all doors were appropriately closed when I went to grab a diaper, Ainsley managed to sneak into the bathroom and plop our fan remote into the toilet. From just steps away, I heard the Ker-plop and knew some object had hit toilet bottom. The remote is still drying out, and luckily, she didn't get herself in the potty head first (per her typical pool side acrobatics), but I realized we are fully engaging in toddler-hood now. She is trying out her grumpy and frustrated faces; she is saying "nah-nah" for no-no with glee as she looks at me and reminds me what is touchable and what isn't...usually while she touches it; and she's generally REALLY funny. She likes to pull a Marilyn Monroe (g version) by standing over the AC vents and going "whooo hoo" and crouching up and down over the air; and she has been trying to help me wipe up messes with kleenex and other towels around the house. She is growing up!!!

Reflections

Last night, Ainsley and I were both restless and ended up doing a lot of rocking in the middle of the night. With the roar of airplanes overhead and Ainsley's eyelids flickering, I caught our shadows, illuminated by her night light. Cradled in my arms, her legs dangling well past the nook where her feet once barely touched...

A couple of weeks ago, when she didn't know I was watching from behind the door, I spied her giggling, and putting her arms high in the air and twirling. Circling and laughing eventually so hard she started coughing.

After 10 months of amazing care from the Criminger's, we are transitioning Ainsley over to another dear friend's -- Michelle Ahring. At Michelle's, there are two other little ones -- Benjamin (just 3 weeks younger than Ainsley) and Caroline (an 8 month old). While Ainsley is comfortable with Michelle and gets a kick out of the kids, it was a rough first few days...Amazing to see how she observes, engages, and copes. One day she successfully sequestered herself in Benjamin's crib, only content if Michelle and her two other chargers were in the room with her, while she looked on from her safe perch in her crib. Like a goldfish acclimating to its new bowl....

I am overwhelmed by her development, her personality, the way she sees and engages with the world.

I've certainly experienced immeasurable joy in my life; and life experiences should not be compared..it's just that being her mom is the single most amazing experience EVER -- how wonderful that as we work to lovingly shepherd our children, they shepherd us too -- to be more aware, more loving, to self-actualize for our benefit and for theirs. I've truly never been happier - and I'm thankful to Scott, family and dear friends for being part of this parenting journey!

More Party Pics

One year old today!

Hard to believe how fast a year has gone by. This picture completes her set of pictures taken on the 6th of every month. I think it is a good one-we got it on the first try! She is always smiling but not normally when the camera is in her face so we were happy to get this one.

We had a fantastic weekend and a great first birthday party. Ainsley loved her ladybug smash cake that mommy made her (pictures to follow) and having everyone here to celebrate. She is loving her new Leap Frog barnyard animal set that sticks on the fridge. Thanks Auntie Cookie and kids!

A Twist of Lemon

The family is in full glory chez Isle of Palms, SC. One of our stops was Shem Creek Bar and Grill, where Ainsley insisted she play with a lemon accompanying my water. I obliged her, and we got some great shots....Do you remember when your lil' ones first partook of serious citrus?

Summer Time is for Friends and Family

Ainsley has been lucky to be visited by a number of great pals and family members the last 2 weeks: Nallely, Scott, Tracy, Great Aunt Sue and Uncle Dan. And then she saw her Nanna this last week -- Big BONUS. We're finally getting into the summer vibe and looking forward to some time in South Carolina with Grandma Van Howe and the Van Howe family of Davenport-- our first ever family BEACH vacation. Oot Oot. Hope you and yours are doing grand.

Walking Footage and Tricks

Some cool things Ainsley does:

* Walks with purpose
* Knows how to pivot
* Sits on tush and does 360's with her heels
* Says bur for bird
* Says wooh and then blows for a dog woofing
* Says Ahdah for Alex and Gayee for Grace
* Says mommy and da da and means it
* Says baba for bottle
* Says na na for night night
* Says hi
* Says deese for this and points
* Waves to people, pictures and objects
* Gives kisses (open mouthed) and blows kisses
* Puts herself to sleep sometimes (for naps and at night time)
* Laughs often and enjoys chuckling when others chuckle (like she gets the joke)
* Loves to be outside, touch plants, grass, eat mulch and dirt before her parents catch her
* Is currently addicted to cheese and goes mmmm mmmm and points if she sees any (including in/on deli counters and in public)
* Loves her family and friends and shows them with big smiles, pats on the arm or back, kisses and hugs

A 10-year-old cousin

Hard to believe that our sweet little Molly Rose turned ten today. Seems like just yesterday that she was the first baby to be born in to the family and now she is an official pre-teen. She's brought so much joy in to my life it is hard to describe. I look forward to being her "favorite uncle" for a long time. Plus it is really fun to watch her interact with Ainsley.

We had a great time at her birthday party tonight as you can see. The cake was really good and the ice cream was awesome as well. I was the judge at a game of freeze dancing. This isn't as easy as it seems as nobody wants to come out once Hannah Montana or whomever starts to sing.

Happy birthday Molly! Let kid birthday season begin! You-know-who is up next month, followed by Zoe later in July and Tommy in August.