The Night Before Christmas

Avery's very first Christmas Eve was spent...

Waiting on Daddy to get home from hunting (and last minute Christmas shopping)...

Watching him through the window move his john boat into the garage...
Kissing and grabbing his face once he finally got home...
Opening tons and tons of presents from Granddaddy and Grandma Ewing...
Playing with all of her new Christmas toys...
Setting out milk and cookies for Santa Claus...
Spilling the cookies all over the floor...
Making sure Cotton didn't swoop in and eat Santa's cookies...
Reading "The Night Before Christmas" for the very first time...
Eating "The Night Before Christmas" for the very first time...
Being as cute as a little girl can possibly be...
And giving last minute bed time hugs to brother Cotton before he runs off!
Merry Christmas everyone and remember that God sent his son, Jesus, to be born on this very special occasion for you!

7 Months Old

Avery, today you turned 7 months old. Holy cow, you are on your way to being a year old now! What happened? I can remember a year ago on this exact date your daddy and I went to see Dr. Freeman to find out if you were a boy or a girl. He already told us that he was 75% positive you were a boy. We had already told your grandparents that you were most likely a boy and they already bought you a little boy Christmas present.

Little did we know that God had something different planned for us, and that was a little girl! I was so excited when the doctor said, "There's a reason I don't gamble, and it's because I'm bad at it. It's a girl!" Your daddy was soooo sad and almost had a heart attack. I felt bad for him, but was doing cartwheels, no...back tucks, inside!

Here you are, a year later, and a beautiful, healthy 7 month old GIRL! What's going on in your little amazing life? Let's see....

*You weigh 18lbs and 8oz which is a pound and a half more than last month.

*I tried to measure you, and I think you are 27 inches long, give or take a few.

*You are still wearing size 3 diapers and 6-9 months clothes.

*You got your first pair of fitted shoes and wear a size 2, which you will outgrow before you get enough wear out of them!

*You still go to bed at 9:00 p.m., but wake up sometimes around 2:30 a.m. You will go back to sleep after I put your pacifier back in your mouth. You will eat some time around 5:00 a.m. and go back to sleep.

*You take 3 naps a day, most of them last around 30 minutes.

*You love to grab my mouth or nose when you are getting ready for a nap. You even did this to the lady in the church nursery before you dosed off. She let you hold her lip!

*You have eaten green beans, sweet peas, squash, carrots, sweet potatoes, pears, and today you had bananas for the first time. You're not a big fan of pears because I think they are a little tart. You still eat oatmeal in the morning and I am still nursing you.

*You are getting stronger every day and are only content if you get to stand up. You can take steps on your own when we hold your arms, but you are not standing alone yet.

*You can balance on your hands and knees, but haven't crawled from that position yet.

*Pitching fits have become your specialty and you are very good at it, too. I can see your personality coming through when you express your dislike through fits, or flirt and play with people.

*Teething is in its prime and you are constantly gnawing on anything you get your hands on. No teeth have cut yet.

*You recognize people now and your face lights up when you see someone you know.

*You finally have ticklish spots on your rib cage under your arms and your upper thighs. I can get you laugh almost every time I tickle you there.

*Dora the Explorer is by far your favorite TV Show. I'm not kidding either. Every time you watch the show your face lights up and you are very intent and focused on the TV. You will squeal and smile as you watch Dora and Boots on their many adventures.

I love you sweet girl. Merry Christmas little baby!

"Not Me Monday"

First of all, I DID NOT write this "Not Me Monday" post on TUESDAY!

It was NOT ME who drove all the way to Wolf Camera through Christmas Mall traffic to pick up one single picture. Upon my arrival, I DID NOT realize that I never ordered the picture online before traveling to pick it up! I DID NOT ask the store clerk to look for my picture, just in case I really did order it and was losing my mind. It was NOT ME who walked out of the store empty handed.

My daily diet HAS NOT consisted of more chocolate than vegetables since Thanksgiving.

I HAVE NOT traveled to various stores 4 days in a row and still forgot to buy crazy glue for a broken Santa Claus.

I DO NOT let my daughter chew on paper until it dissolves in her mouth and I have to fish it out. I also DO NOT look for thicker, glossy folders/brochures for her to chew on instead because it takes longer to break apart.

I HAVE NOT become the "booger monster" in the house and spend most of my days wiping and cleaning out a certain little runny nose. I NEVER use my sleeve to wipe her nose, nor do I wipe her boogers on my pants. That's sick and 'real' moms DON'T do that!

Michael and I DID NOT attend a tacky Christmas sweater party with nothing to wear in our closet. Michael DID NOT wear a sweater intended for my Papaw's girlfriend, who decided to break up with him, and therefore never received the sweater. I DID NOT buy this hideous sweater from Ross only to return it the next day and get my $20 back. I can't believe that ugly thing was even $20!

It was NOT ME who received a call from Michael asking if I "had another outfit" for Avery. Upon asking "why", I DID NOT hear him reply, "She had a blowout. It's everywhere! It went all over her clothes and I got poop on mine. We need another outfit." I DID NOT tell him to let her sit in just her diaper and find a blanket to wrap her in until I ran to Kmart and bought another outfit.

I DID NOT ask him to let me see this 'poop covered' outfit, and he WAS NOT too embarrassed to show it to me. (Like I don't see poop every day!) He was going to just throw it away, but I DID NOT demand that he clean it because I wanted her to wear that outfit again. It was NOT ME who snuck downstairs at the car lot to find my husband pressure washing her outfit!

This is NOT a picture of Avery wearing that same outfit from above!

Santa Claus

You better watch out...

You better not cry...
You better not pout...
I'm telling you why...
Santa Claus is coming to town...
Santa Claus is coming to town!
Merry Christmas to all...and to all a good night!

Christmas Pictures

Christmas cards have already been mailed from the Ewings this year. I had so much fun attempting to capture the perfect picture for our card. Three of them ended up making the coveted spot on the card this year. Here are a few of my favorite pictures from the "shoot".

Avery is looking at our friend, Rob, who kept her entertained while I took the pictures. Most, well ALL, of the pictures from that night have her looking off to the side at Rob.

This is when she gets silly and playful. She makes bubbles with her lips and smiles. It's so cute. Don't you love her hat? I couldn't resist and finally caved in and bought her one.
After falling over a few times, we decided to bring in the chair. We wanted our children to have a picture together, but this is what happened. I can't stand it when he licks her hand, and you can guess why.
Her favorite pose. She does this all of the time, even when she's standing up. At first we thought it was a sign she was sleepy and ready to lounge around, but it pops up at the weirdest times.
This is one of three pictures that made the card. Wanna know a little secret? I "Photoshopped" the Christmas tree in the background to fill the entire picture. Nice effect, I know.
The official family portrait! It took many, many shots to get at least one decent one with Cotton. Picture two of three on the card.
I like how she's holding both of our faces in this picture.
Because I'm insane about pictures, I wasn't crazy about any single one of the pictures of just Avery we had taken that night. Sooo...I dressed Avery again in the same outfit and drove to the neighborhood across the street for some more, freezing cold, pictures. I like her face in this one...I wonder what she's thinking?
Low and behold....I got the shot I was hoping for! This was the very first picture I took, and the rest after that weren't so great. This one is my favorite of her because I love the aged look in the color. This one definitely made the card.

I thought it would be fun to share some of the photos that didn't make the cut...there were many...but these would never end up on a Christmas card!

Avery was more interested in eating the pine straw than looking at me.

If she wasn't watching the cars drive by, she was eating pine straw.
Cotton did not want to cooperate. He has gotten so heavy I could barely pick him up for the picture. Avery seems to be enjoying herself. See the 'pose' she's about to strike.
This wouldn't have been so bad if Cotton's face didn't look distorted. I think his lip is caught on his teeth. Scary!
Cotton had had enough!
If I think this is bad...what's it going to be like with more children? Merry Christmas!

"Not Me Monday" (Picture Edition)

I have a lot of hard evidence of all of the things that DID NOT happen this week in my life. The proof is in the pictures, see for yourself. (Some of these were taken with my phone, so I apologize for the blurriness).

I DID NOT fill up Avery's stroller with so many Christmas packages that she had to ride on top of the stroller in the mall.

I DID NOT lay Avery down inside the buggy at TJ Max so she could take a nap while I continued shopping.
I DID NOT cover her with a red coat so it would be dark enough for her to sleep. I WAS NOT told by the lady working the dressing rooms that I was not allowed to take in my shopping cart. I DID NOT get a suprised, "Oh, Ok then," from her when I explained, "My baby's in there."
I NEVER 'pick' the polish off of my toenails. They NEVER get so short and ugly I'm embarrassed for people to see them. I'm NOT in desperate need of a pedicure that my rough heels scratch against the sheets at night. I'm NOT too embarrassed to go to the salon and get a pedicure for fear of what those ladies will say about me, in their own language, of course! (No pictures here, sorry to disappoint.)

Avery DID NOT take a nose dive while posing for her Christmas pictures. I DID NOT catch it on camera while rushing in to save her little life. I caught her! It was a Christmas miracle:)
I DID NOT enjoy taking more pictures of Avery's growing weeds, I mean hair, on top of her head.
I DO NOT laugh every time I see this picture of how the sun really picks up her fuzz head.
This WAS NOT my kitchen only two days after the maid came. All of this junk ABSOLUTELY DID NOT end up here because I decided to CLEAN OUT MY CAR! Nope, this stuff COULD NOT HAVE come from my car.
We DID NOT put Avery in a laundry basket filled with socks so she could be near us and safe while we folded laundry.

I DID NOT pose my bottomless baby for a picture of her booty. I DID NOT email her naked, rolly, squooshy booty picture to my family and friends. She WILL NOT hate me one day for this.