Random Dane Pictures

Me and my baby . . . People say Dane looks a lot like me. You be the judge:Tummy time . . . He's more into his toys now:

Naked time . . . Dane seems to have really sensitive skin and gets diaper rash easily. A little time in the buff seems to help.

Sitting up, sort of . . . I think he looks like a little puppy. :)

Angry baby! Sometimes, he gets frustrated because he can't get where he wants to go. Then he "yells":

Identity Crisis

Ava has done pretty well adjusting to her role as big sister. However, sometimes she gets a little confused as to who exactly she wants to be. Would she rather be a little mommy. . .. . . or the baby?
And here's a couple more Ava pictures. Entranced by the Teletubbies . . .
. . . and attempting to hide her carrots.

"Owie, face!"

Ava is now big enough to climb up the ladder on the swingset and go down the slide. However, the swingset in our backyard is very old and not exactly up to safety standards. The slide is really steep, and while it's probably great fun for a 5- or 6-year-old, it's a bit treacherous for a 2-year-old. I tried to hold on to her as she slid down so she wouldn't hurt herself. The one time she was too quick for me and slid down the slide by herself, she went a little too fast and tumbled head-over-heels-over-head. No serious injuries, just a few scrapes on her face that look worse than they are. But it sure scared the you-know-what out of Mommy!

Mommy may have been scared silly, but Ava wasn't! After her incident, she went straight back up the ladder and back down the slide (assisted this time, of course). Then we went back out and played more on the slide this morning.

Four Months Old

Dane turned four months old yesterday, and had his well-check at the pediatrician's office today. He now weighs 15 lbs 13 oz and is 25 1/2 inches long -- that's 70th percentile for both weight and length. At two months, he was 5oth for length and 80th for weight, so the little guy is really stretching out! He's very healthy and right on track with his development. He has rolled over both front to back and back to front, he's just not doing it consistently yet. He keeps getting his arm in the way and can't quite get himself flipped over. He can also sit up pretty well with support, and he's smiling, laughing, cooing and babbling like crazy. And watch out for those little hands -- he grabs on tight to anything within his reach. Here's a few photos so you can see how he's growing!

Dane likes to sit in the high chair when Ava and I are eating dinner. That is, when Ava's not insisting that her baby doll sit in the chair.

Ava thought it was funny when Dane grabbed on to her hand.Fresh from a bath. Yeah, he looks happy now, but you should have heard him scream when the water was running! The nice thing is that all the crying wears him out, and he sleeps REALLY well after his baths!Love those dimples!

For fun, here's four-month-old Ava. She was around 14 lbs at this age:

In other news, Ava's still doing ok with the big girl bed. The thing is, I don't think she's getting as much sleep now. As soon as she wakes up, there's just too many interesting things to do in her room. Who wants to stay in bed? Here's what I found when I went to get her after her nap yesterday -- a toddler on top of the changing table. I think the table will have to move out of her room ASAP!

She had even gotten out a clean diaper because she was wet. Looks like potty-training time may be rapidly approaching. Not sure Mommy's quite ready for it yet, though. :)

"Ooooo bed!"

That's Ava-speak for "new bed." Ava switched to her big girl bed on Monday. We had an extra twin bed, so we just put the mattress and box springs on the floor in her room so she could get on and off by herself. She's been doing very well, so far (knock on wood). Actually, she seems to really like it.
Big beds are fun to jump on!

Daddy reading bedtime stories to Ava.
This is what I find most mornings when I go into Ava's room. She likes to cuddle with and "read" to her babies. Sometimes she'll stay in bed with her dolls for quite a while after I open her door.

Dane got a new bed, too! He moved into the crib as soon as Ava moved out. It was high time -- I'm pretty sure he's over the weight limit on the bassinet by now.

Dane likes his new bed, too -- lots of room to attempt the amazing feat of rolling over. He gets onto his side easily, but has only actually flipped himself over a handful of times.

Flowergirl Ava

We were so busy, we didn't get any good snapshots of Ava in her flowergirl dress at the wedding last Saturday. So we dressed up again today and went to Grandma's house to take pictures with the pretty pink flowers.

Exersaucin'

Dane tried out the Exersaucer for the first time last night. It was lots of fun!Dane is also starting to sit up with support, and really enjoys tummy time.