YUM, YUM, YUM!

I'm a big girl...I like to feed myself!

Dad, you are doing a great job feeding me!

Ava has gotten so big these days. It is so exciting to see her eating solid foods...which she loves. Adam is also doing a great job feeding her. It is amazing for me to see Ava go from barely eating 1 ounce of formula to eating 1 to 1 1/2 jars of food and 4 to 6 ounces of formula each meal!

Working Out and Sitting Up!

Mommy and Ava in matching pink sweatsuits!!

Working out at Gymboree

Sitting up by myself

Dad are you seeing what I can do???

Ava really enjoys going to Gymboree! This week Ava and Mommy went to class dressed the same! Mommy likes that part the best of having a little girl...matching each other! Ava's newest accomplishment is that she can sit all by herself! It is so fun, because she can now play with more of her toys. She is also mobile now because she can roll from her back to her stomach around the room to get to where she wants to go!

Swinging!

I love Fall! It was so nice this afternoon once the sun started going down, it felt wonderful outside. Ava really enjoyed being outside in her swing!

Fashionista!

In our overalls! Tomboy but with a bow!

In our fancy dress and hat...ready for church

One of the fun parts of having a little girl is getting to play dress up! Ava looks precious whether she is dressed more relaxed in her overalls or fancey in her cute hate and dress. I love having a little girl.

Trying to feed ourselves

Today I tried to help Ava learn how to feed herself. She ate much better while I was feeding her, when she had her hands in her food! I then tried to get her to feed herself... but Miss Priss did not like having her hands messy!

Family Beach pics

This is my favorite family pic

Mommy, Daddy and Ava

Doing the "walk down the beach" pic

This is one of my favorites

All nine of us!

Cooler Family

While we were at the beach we took some family beach pictures. It was quite a windy day but some of the pictures turned out really great. I am glad that we redid them because I was wanting to get some new family pictures.

What is Ava doing these days...Well she is now up past 14 pound, she is now eating Level 2 foods and she is now learning how to sit up by herself. Also yesterday she showed off turning from her back to her stomach. She had done it before, but just once. Then yesterday she decided she wanted to do it most of the days. I think it is funny, if I put Ava on her back she flips to her stomach and if she is on her stomach she flips to her back. I guess like most women she is never satisfied, ha ha!!

Meeting Brooklyn Grace Griffin!

Ashleigh Noelle, Brooklyn Grace, Ava Elizabeth

Ava is rockin' her leggins in honor of Dirty Dancing and Fame!

Today Ava and Mommy met Brooklyn Grace Griffin! Brooklyn is Mommy's friend Becky's daughter. She was born while we were at the beach last week. Becky and mommy have been great friends since 2001 when they were interns together at First Baptist Woodstock. After Becky graduated from Liberty and Mommy from SEBTS they moved to Woodstock, GA together and were roommates for 2 1/2 years until Becky married her wonderful husband David. Becky came up to the hospital when Mommy was on bedrest and hung out with her and kept her company. Becky and Mommy have been through singleness, weddings, marriage and now mommyhood together! Brooklyn Grace is precious and it was so fun for Ava to go meet her new friend.

Reading Books!

Ava loves to read books! She especially likes to read her little Bible. She is doing Bible study already! She loves the book because it has bright pictures and animals that are furry and fluffy to touch.

Lots of Firsts!!

Mommy and Ava

Daddy and Ava

Mommy, Ava and Grammy

Ava and McClellen

Hudson and Brad having fun in the ocean

Hudson loved the ocean

Ava was not thrilled with her first touch of the ocean

At the beach Ava practiced sitting by herself

Ava loved her little pool

Ava and Doc

Courtney, Ivey, Lauren and Campbell: Mommy's friends

from birth sharing in Ava's first Furman game!

Hudson, McClellen and Ava with Grammy at the Furman game

All the kids at the game: Ava, Hudson, McClellen, Campbell and Ivey!

Ava at the Furman football game tailgate with her My Little Pony.

Mommy used to play with My Little Ponies with Courtney and Lauren

when they were little girls!

Adam and Abbey on the faris wheel at the Upstate Fair!!

Ava has had quite an adventure the last few weeks. Our first stop was in Greenville. While Grammy and Doc babysat Ava, mommy and daddy enjoyed the Upstate Fair at the Pickens County Speedway. Secondly, it was time for Furman Football!! Ava enjoyed her first tailgate and football game with her friends Ivey and Campbell and cousins McClellen and Hudson. Ava especially hard for family friend Jordan Sorrells who is the Furman Quarterback! Mommy bought My Little Ponies for all of the girls. The reason is that when Mommy, Courtney (Ivey's mommy) and Lauren (Campbell's mommy), were little girls they used to play My Little Ponies together during the football games instead of watching the football games. Then the last and most fun thing Ava did was spend a week at the beach with Mommy, Daddy, Grammy, Doc, Brad, Carri, Hudson and McClellen. There were fun times at the beach, playing in the sand, feeling the waves on her little feet, splashing in her little pool, walks with mommy and daddy and play time with Hudson and McClellen. It was such a blessing to be able to spend such a special time with an incredible family.

The week at the beach I (Abbey) was very emotional for me. I cried on the way shopping, answering a simple question and I even cried as I read the history of the family who's house we stayed in. The reason I was so emotional was that I was just overwhelmed with the blessings and grace that God has given me this year! I never would have thought just a few years ago that I could have gone through and not only survived but thrived through through the trials and tribulations. I am so grateful to my family for being there for me and Adam as we went through the journey of infertility and the first very scary months of Ava's life! That fact rang true to me when the realization of all that Adam and I went through, happened to my family too. Even though I was the one in pain from not having a child and I was the one who was "bleeding out" and fearing that I would loose my first born, my family where having to deal with saddness and pain right along with me. I am so grateful for parents, big brother and an amazing sister in law (minus the in law part), that have prayed with me, cried with me and even let me be mad and cuss this last year. My tongue and my brain do not have the ability to express the words that can tell them how much I love them and are thankful for them. All I can do is say thank you and that I love you!!!

Missing Pops

Pops and Me!

This morning when I was dusting the house, my eye was drawn to one of my wedding pictures that is on my hall wall. As I was looking at the picture my eyes dropped down and there is was, George Medcalf, better know to his family and especially his grandchildren as Pops. One of the biggest heartbreaks that I have had with getting married later and having Ava later in life is that my sweet Pops never got to meet my precious daughter. I was Pops' only granddaughter so I always felt a little more doted and loved on by him. I know that he is in Heaven now with our Lord and Saviour...but today I had to cry a little bit because my heart ached for my Pops.

Dinner on the Lake

Abbey and Adam

Kelly and Jason

Kristin Owens and Kristen O'Kelley

Kevin and Clint

On Saturday night some our friends and Adam and I went out on a group date. It was so nice to be out with friends and have grown up conversation. We rode on Andy's boat up to Red Top Mountain and went to the "surf and turf" buffet at a camp ground at Red Top. The whole experience of riding in the boat and hanging out with friends was great....but the food was sort of like Ryan's Steakhouse!! Ava is excited because Miss Kristin Owens and Miss Kelly Evans are growing more friends for her in their bellies. Kelly already knows she is having a little girl, Brooklyn Hope Evans and Kristin likes to find out if she is having a boy or a girl when she gives birth. Ava is very excited about meeting her new friends this winter!!

Sitting and standing

Ava likes to sit while holding onto her bouncey
seat

She started off leaning on her bouncey seat

Ava is wanting to stand after seeing her friends at

playgroup standing and walking

At playgroup, Ava really liked playing with AJ.

Ava is growing and trying new things everyday. She really likes to stand. So I set her up on her bouncey seat or Bumbo seat and she stands. She will even bend her knews and then pull her self back up to standing. We are also working on sitting and today she sat by herself as she played with her toys on her bouncey seat. At playgroup, Ava really liked playing with AJ Brooks. In fact when we got to playgroup, she immediately reached out for AJ. It was so cute so see that she recognized her little friend!