This Little Piggy...

So our little Avery has discovered a new trick. He can touch his toes! He just loves to grab them when we are trying to change his diaper. Actually he loves to grab them any time he can manage to get at them! I can't wait until he is able to bring those little suckers into his mouth.



Avery has been such an unhappy fellow these last few weeks. We think it's a combination of different reasons; he's still fighting a small cold; we continue to believe he is teething and we think he might be hungry. He has been giving us cues that he is interested in starting solids. Avery eyes our food at every meal and opens his mouth wide when we bring food close to it, as if to say "Bring it on!" We were given the okay by his pediatrician, so it seemed fitting to begin to try with some rice cereal.
This morning I suited up our little man in his bib and gave him his first taste of (semi) solid food. Avery wasn't sure what to make of it. He definitely didn't hate it - at one point he grabbed my hand that was holding the spoon and led it into his mouth! I think with all of the spillage Avery managed to consume a few teaspoons in total. I don't think that's too bad for his first attempt. I can't wait to see if he eats even more tomorrow!

Avery's First Thanksgiving

Wow... this might be a long post! Not only did Avery celebrate his first Thanksgiving, he also went apple picking for the first time and turned four months old!

Let's start with his four month milestone. Avery weighed in at a slender 14lbs 3.2oz, a little less than what Pat and I expected. He is now lingering just under the 50th percentile for weight. Avery is still above average for height which is encouraging for Pat's dream of him becoming a professional tennis or soccer player. Avery was so brave with his shots today and barely cried at all. The most exciting part of the visit was that we were given the green light to start feeding our little guy rice cereal. What an amusing messy adventure we are going to have.



We decided to head out to Milton for some apple picking this weekend. The weather was absolutely gorgeous, and even though we got to Chudleighs before it opened, we were lucky to get in. None of us could believe how busy it was! We had so much fun and decided that this must be a yearly tradition for our family.



Each of us left with loads of different varieties of apples - we already experimented using them for some delicious brandied baked apples last night. YUM! I can not wait until next year when Avery will be able to help with the picking, instead of just bossing his father to which ones he wanted.



Thanksgiving was a special treat this year, as we were joined by the largest group yet. Michele and Jerry hosted the event at their beautiful new home. We were accompanied by Nanny, Oopa, Wanda, David, Baba, Peter, Misty & Troy. Misty was a master at getting little Av to sleep when he was way too overstimulated at all the action going on.



Michele and I were exhausted by the end of the evening, but thoroughly enjoyed creating a delightful meal for everyone. I only wish Pat and I snuck a couple of the extra desserts home with us - a triple chocolate salted caramel mousse tart. My mouth is watering just thinking about it!

Playing Hooky

On the heels of yet another atrocious night with little Avery (waking every two hours or so and refusing to go down for any sort of sleep after 4am), I was beyond happy when my husband told me he was taking a vacation day today... or as I like to call it "playing hooky." It's precisely what I needed to help me make it through the day - back up.

We started out our morning by walking to La Crema for some much needed 16oz coffees, although the crisp weather was enough to wake me up as soon as I stepped outside.
Pat, after coming home from a darling new hair cut, took Avery and I out for lunch at one of our favourite restaurants, Freshwood Grill. We can't get enough of their sweet potato fries with chipotle mayonnaise.



The rest of our afternoon has been spent playing and relaxing. Our poor little guy hasn't been the happiest camper lately. Not only do we think he is teething, Avery is fighting off his very first cold. His congestion has lead us to nickname him "little piggy" because he snorts so much.



Hopefully he'll manage to be back to his cheerful self soon - at least before he goes in for his next set of shots in just over a week.

Pennsylvania Please!

Avery and I just got back from our weekend shopping blitz in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. We had such a great, but exhausting, trip. We were joined by Karyn, Misty, Michele and Truman. The two kids behaved themselves (most of the time) and were kept well entertained with everyone's help. Truman was an excellent companion for little Avery - asking him "Why crying Avery?" or even suggesting "Be quiet baby" when the fussing became too much for him. We ate very well - as Avery and I introduced the ladies to Red Robin for the first time. Of course we also had to hit up our favourite - The Cheesecake Factory.



I can not believe all of the great deals we got - Avery is set for the fall/winter season. He's got a great new snowsuit and the cutest little halloween costume. Avery has decided to be a bright orange pumpkin this year!



The only disappointment of the trip is that Avery missed a full weekend of seeing his father - although Pat had a much deserved weekend of rest. He's been working very hard these last couple of weeks. Avery made sure to pick him up a few treats on our trip - using his hard earned allowance to pay for it. Way to go Avery!

A True Torontonian

Today Avery reached a new milestone, essential for anyone living in Toronto - he rode the Red Rocket. We went to visit Daddy at work, deep in the heart of uptown Toronto. Avery was a gentleman, as per usual, smiling at all the wondeful people Pat works with (especially the ladies).











Pat, Avery and I went for lunch at the Firkin just down the street (Avery begged us to order him the bangers & mash) and then for a short walk to a quaint park nearby. What a nice afternoon it was.

I must say the ride home on the subway wasn't as pleasant. Avery got hungry at about Spadina (luckily I had packed a bottle in case of emergency) and was extra fussy because he was quite tired. He's just now settling down for a nap.

Avery has been giggling up a storm the last couple of days. I melt every time I hear it. I have been desperately trying to catch it on film, but by the time I grab my camera, he's stopped. Usually it just comes out of nowhere, but believe me, I've done some embarrassing things to try to coax it out of him!

Three Months Young

Avery turned three months earlier this week, but he is convinced he's at least four months! He is happiest when he is standing or sitting on his own, and I am sad to say he is already a bonafide couch potato! One thing is for sure, he is definitely the man in charge these days.



I already feel myself reminiscing about the earlier months when he would sleep for most of the day and I could get quite a bit done around the house. Now it seems like sleep is a daily battle. Don't get me wrong - we are still fortunate enough to have a child who sleeps through the night. It's just getting him to that point that poses a problem. We think Avery must be afraid that he's going to miss something exciting while he's asleep, so he tries to avoid it. This is where innovation on our part comes in handy. There is a whole myriad of techniques we have tried - keeping the few successful methods in our arsenal for getting this kid off to dreamland.

However, when he is desperately tired, he can pretty much fall asleep anywhere, as was the case yesterday. We were taking a trip to Homesense. He had fallen asleep in the car and didn't make a peep until I parked the car. The little guy was crying so hard, he had tears falling from his eyes (something I've never seen before) and snot coming out of his nose. I knew there was NO way he would let me do any shopping if he had to stay in his stroller. So, I did what any new mother would do - I picked him up and held him the entire time. When I was finished getting what I needed, he still seemed a little upset. So, I decided to take a walk over to Starbucks for a coffee. Somewhere between there and the car, Avery had fallen asleep sitting upright - without resting against me at all. I had no idea he was sleeping until I looked down and saw his eyes were closed. It was the funniest thing. I really wish I had a picture of it.



Avery has become somewhat of a shopping aficionado. He went to Square One last week, is going to Yorkdale tomorrow and in two short weeks he will be taking his first "out of country" trip to Pennsylvania. Boy is he excited - specifically for Red Robin and The Cheesecake Factory. What can I say - the boy loves his food already!

Get into the Groove

Things have really started to calm down here at the O'Brien's. After almost two weeks of keeping our fingers crossed, it seems as though the "all night sleep" is here to stay! Avery, just a week shy of his 3 month milestone is sleeping an average of 10 hours a night, waking up just once, usually around 6am. What a difference it makes to have some sanity back! We have finally managed to create some structure to our days, which has been wonderful.

A full night of rest has helped me to get back to doing some things I have been missing over the last few months, such as cooking and baking. I was lucky enough to be able to make my darling nephew Truman a Cookie Monster cake for his second birthday. He is obsessed with Cookie Monster - something I can relate to, as that was my favourite character when I was younger.



There are a few new additions to our son's personality that have emerged in the last week or so. Little Avery's latest favourite activity is sticking his tongue out. It is the cutest thing ever. He especially loves it when you play the game with him.



He also refuses to be carried in the Bjorn facing inward; Avery must be able to see what's going on around him! Yesterday evening he would not stop fussing until we turned him outwards. Lucky for us, he was alseep by the end of the walk - which had been our plan all along! It's great knowing that when he is alert he is very interested in his surroundings.



The last activity we've introduced into Avery's routine is sitting in the Bumbo. He got to enjoy his first dinner sitting on his own at Nanny and Oppa's kitchen table. I figured he'd enjoy the Bumbo since he just loves it when we prop him up on the couch. This contraption offers him so much more support. It will only be a matter of time before he is sitting up all on his own! Baby steps mommy, baby steps...