Fun with Photoshop

I am so excited because I finally had some time to sit and play with photoshop again. I was determined to figure out how to keep Ava's eyes their natural blue color and make the rest of the photo black and white. After trying a few different things and looking through my book I figured it out. It is actually really easy.

In the first picture I kept Ava's eyes and the ball in color. It doesn't look that impressive on the blog, but when it is blown-up her eyes look awesome. Ava really does have the most beautiful blue eyes!

In the second picture I kept Ava's eyes and her dress in color. Again I think it looks much more impressive blown-up or in print, but you can really appreciate the blue of her eyes more when the other color is stripped away.

Howl at the Moon??

I woke up Tuesday morning to a living room full of sleeping girls. Ava is usually a great sleeper, but that night was different. She had a rough time and decided not to sleep. We're not sure if it was her teeth coming in or maybe she wanted to howl at the moon. Whatever it was Lisa ended up sleeping on the floor with her, but Luca stayed in the bedroom with me. It was so cute to see them both crashed out on the floor that I had to take a picture. They were so tired that they were still sleeping there when I left for worked at 7am. Luckily, Ava slept better the next night and everyone ("Lisa") was able to sleep in their own bed.

This is what happens when you go grocery shopping before lunch...

Tired Girl

This morning Ava and I went out to run some errands. We stopped at three places, but Ava only lasted halfway through the second. While shopping at Walmart Ava started sucking her thumb and fell asleep. I was surprised that she was comfortable enough to sleep, but I guess when your that tired it doesn't matter where you are.

Herb & Spice

Ava has tried a variety of food and is doing well, so I decided to introduce herbs and spice. For breakfast this morning I mixed Ava's oatmeal with some pureed apples and a little bit of cinnamon. I think she loved it because she ate it quickly. I'm sure it was more exciting than just plain old oatmeal that she has every other morning.

For lunch I mixed some fresh basil from our garden in with some asparagus. Ava ate it, but made many funny faces. It seemed like she wasn't sure what it was.

Italian Baby

Ava doesn't have Italian blood, but that doesn't mean she can't be an Italian baby...does it?? As most of you know Rich served his mission in Italy and is now a wanna-be Italian, so he has been sharing that desire with Ava. He has been talking, reading, and singing to her in Italian since birth. We also play Italian music for her during the day and recently we have introduced her to some Italian food. On Sunday we let Ava try bread dipped in olive oil and balsamic vinegar. On Monday she tried spaghetti with meatballs. She seemed to like both, so maybe she has some Italian in her after all.

8 Months Old

Ava is now 8 months old and I'm amazed at how fast the time continues to fly. I keep thinking it will slow down, so I can catch my breath, but it doesn't. Ava is growing and changing all the time that I barely can remember her as a tiny baby unable to roll and move around. She is now starting to get into anything and everything she can get her hands on (see naked destruction photo). Ava is getting ready to crawl, but is able to get around easily by rolling and twisting her body. She still loves her Luca more than anything, so we are working on gentle petting since she just wants to grab and pull any part of him she can. Fortunately, Luca is patient and just walks away when he has had enough.

Ava also loves to eat. She eats almost anything we give her and if she doesn't like it she will let us know by spitting it out. Ava's favorite food is still pears and she eats about 24 oz. of formula a day. This week she has switched from four 60z. bottles a day to three 8oz. bottles with 3 meals and some snacks. Ava still doesn't want to feed herself even though she has figured out the pincher skill. She rather pick up cereal puffs and feed them to Luca or play with them. However, if I'm too slow to feed her, she will grab the spoon and shove the bite in her mouth. She is a funny girl and I knows what she wants or doesn't want.

Ava is also pretty vocal. She is starting to grunt and screech to get our attention and tell us what she wants. She makes a variety of sounds and we often have short conversations. Unfortunately I've taught Ava to be loud and crazy. At home it is not that bad, but when we are at church she will often talk and screech with delight in a very loud voice. This past Sunday Rich took her out of sacrament because she wouldn't stop blowing (very loud) raspberries.

Ava's laugh is also loud and can be crazy. Sometimes it is hard to tell the difference between her laugh and her on the verge of crying. She loves it when we nibble her toes and will make a high-pitched screech when we do it. Sometimes in public I wonder if people know she is laughing and happy and not screaming because she is unhappy. I guess that's what I get for being loud and crazy at home.

Naked Destruction

(She has the cutest bootie!)

I took over 150 pictures during Ava's 8 month photo shoot. There were so many photos that I liked, but these are a few of my very favorites.

Hair & Teeth

Luca Bustin'

Ava is following in the footsteps of her dad because when Rich was little he did some mutton bustin'. Unfortunately for you we don't have any pictures of Rich as a cutie riding any sheep.

I'm 32

On Sunday we celebrated my 32nd birthday. The day was suppose to be quiet and relaxing, but it started with a party in Ava's room at 4am. She woke up crying and of course Rich didn't hear her, so I had to comfort her. I was able to get her back to sleep but she woke up again around 6:45am and Rich was getting ready for his meeting so I had to get her again. Normally I wouldn't mind, but I was hoping to have a nice peaceful sleep for my birthday...I guess you never get a break from being a mom.

After this early wake-up call I was tired, but able to enjoy the rest of my day. Rich took charge of Ava and let me have the rest of the day to relax. During one of her naps he even gave me a nice foot massage. For dinner he made me one of my favorites avocado burgers and since my mom made me a cake he promised to make one the following weekend.

Before bed I opened my gifts (I like to wait and savor the moment). I got two 1/2 pound boxes of See's Candy. One box was full of my very favorite, milk chocolate chocolate buttercream. The other box was a variety of the other kinds that I like. I also got a new can opener. I know, I know, that doesn't sound exciting, but it is!! Our old one has been giving me grief for the past 6+ months and making me angry everytime I use it. This new one is the leatherman of can openers with cool extra tools and will save me a lot of grief in the kitchen. Rich also gave me a card game because I love to play games.

All in all it was a good day.

Monterey for the Day

Last Saturday we went to Monterey for the day with my parents. This was Ava's first time to Monterey and we were excited to show her some of our favorite things. Of course at the top of that list is the Monterey Bay Aquarium. This was a good weekend to go because the river otter exhibit was leaving, the new seahorse exhibit was open, and there was another great white shark on display.

When we got there we put Ava in her stroller and headed to the outer bay exhibit first to see the great white shark. We were able to roll Ava right up to the glass and she loved watching all the fish go by. She was mesmerised and definitely shares the love of fish with her dad.

Next we went to the seahorse exhibit. Luckily we brought the baby bjorn because strollers were not wanted inside. It worked out great because I was able to get Ava up close and at eye level to all the seahorses. She enjoyed them, but not as much as the outer bay. I really enjoyed the Sea Dragons and the Pot Belly Seahorses. It was a nice exhibit and we look forward to seeing it again...but hopefully on a weekday with less people.

By this time Ava was hungry, so we fed her and then saw the river otters. The African otters were taking a nap on some logs, but the Asian otters were moving all around. We enjoyed watching them swim quickly threw the water. We also got a laugh out of one of the otters bizarre head swinging behavior.Since Ava got to eat we thought we should feed ourselves too. Of course we headed to Archies Diner up the hill to get garlic fries (our tradition). Rich and I shared a delicious chicken sandwich and a platter of super yummy garlic fries. I was naughty and let Ava have a taste of the fry. I didn't let her eat any, but thought it was okay for her to have a taste. Well, she definitely is our girl because once I took it out she grabbed the fry and shoved it back in her mouth.After lunch it was back to the aquarium to see the rest of the exhibits. It was getting to be Ava's nap time so I wanted to let her see the touch pool before she fell asleep...bad idea. Instead of it being exciting she hated to the cold water and would get upset everytime Rich had her touch something. She did enjoy watching all the other people touch the animals and kelp though...she really is a people watcher.After annoying Ava with the touch pool we put her in the stroller so she could nap and we could see everything else. Rich and my parents enjoyed the exhibits up close while I enjoyed them through the crowds of people with a sleeping baby.

Ava woke up before we left so we went to the splash zone. We saw the smelly penguins and made sure to take our first family photo in the clam (another tradition). Since Ava is still pretty little she didn't care about all the fun activities...maybe next year.

After leaving the aquarium we walked down cannery row to get Ghirardelli Sundays (this is why we shared our lunch). Rich and I shared a delicious brownie sunday and Ava was lucky enough to get a taste. This is something we do now and then when we visit the aquarium, but I think we will have to make it a new tradition.

At this point we were all tired from the lack of sleep, so it was time to head home. Of course we stopped at the Gilroy outlets to check out my favorite store Le Creuset. I didn't plan on buying anything, but to my surprise Rich decided to buy me the 2.5 quart heart pot for my birthday. I have been wanting this pot for a couple years and Rich made my dreams come true...what an awesome husband!

After the outlets we were all definitely done for the day and headed to my parents. Poor Ava usually does well in the car, but by this point in the day she had it and screamed for about 20 minutes...it was so sad. At my parents we let Ava roll around and be free while we enjoyed the checkered board cake my mom made for my birthday...soooo GOOD! Then time to head back to Rancho. Luckily Ava slept all the way home.