Sorry for the wait!

I know, I know.....its about time right? Well, I apologize but I have been so busy popping teeth and learning new things, not to mention that I don't know how to operate a computer or type, spell, or read......... but don't think about that as it ruins the illusion of me sitting behind a computer typing away with my fat little sausage fingers. My dad says he apologizes as well and has no excuse, just laziness I guess. It has been six or seven months since I last wrote and a LOT of things have been happening since then, so forgive me if I forget a few of them. Lets start with what a big boy I am. I am finally one years old! I am sooooo happy but it was weird on the morning of my birthday as I woke with mom and dad hovering over me with tears in their eyes and the biggest smiles on their faces. Usually dad sings to me, but that morning they broke out into a wonderful duet. I love you a bunch mom and dad but bursting out into song 5 seconds after I open my eyes is a little overwhelming, but I loved it anyways. They kept saying how fast the year went and what a whirlwind it has been....a good whirlwind that is.

I am 23.5 lbs now, which is not too bad considering the growth chart for my first six months predicted me to be roughly 60 lbs by now. I am also in the 60th percentile for weight and 30th for height. I guess I really am starting to take after my dad like everyone keeps telling me. I started slowing down a bit in my weight gain which seems to coincide with when I stopped breast feeding, which was at ten months. I tell you what, Homo milk has got nothin' on mom's home brew. Mom and dad are surprised that I am not bigger because of the way that I eat. They keep having to repeat that my food does not have any legs and that it is not going anywhere, but its a new and amazing experience for me. I am not a picky eater and have even been found eating pickles, steak, and lemons, all supervised of course. My favorite foods are banana's, spaghetti, cheese, grilled cheese sandwiches, and ice cream.

I finally started to crawl at nine months, and it wasn't until 10 months that I could roll from my tummy to my back. Go figure. Now I can even stand up on my own in the middle of the living room without having to hold on to anything. I take a few steps to mom or dad but I am a little scared to go too far. I walk like the dickens when I use my walker, and fly around the house running into the first thing that gets into my way. I get around so quickly by crawling that I don't think I'll ever need to walk. Oh yeah, I can even go up the stairs now! I am not so good at going down them though as I found out on my first birthday. I went for a little tumble but didn't cry that long. Dad was so sad for leaving the gate open and I could see in his face how upset he was. I'm tough dad, don't worry, but please don't leave it open again as I'll probably do the same thing. Even so, I have recently started to go down the stairs feet first while mom and dad pay close attention to me.

This summer was so much fun. Mom and dad bought this little house thingy with wheels that they pull behind dad's truck. We get to park it, usually near trees, and then live out of it for a few days, and there are usually family and friends nearby. I even have my own big boy bed in there. We light fires and cook marshmellows and just relax. Mom and dad really seemed to like doing that and so did I. We got to go on this type of trip probably 6 or 7 times and went to places like Taber, Nana and Poppa's yard, Loon Lake, and Rexford. I even got to do a lot of swimming in some cold lakes but I loved it. I cant wait until next summer. We also went on this crazy road that went way up on top of a mountain and then down the other side. We stopped along the way and I got to see goats for the first time ever! Just after that we even seen some big black bears too, but they were locked in a fence so dad thinks that doesn't count for my first bear sighting. At the end of the summer we went to a big city and in the middle of this city was a whole bunch of animals for us to see. I think its called a zoo. There were lions, and tiger, and elephants, and monkeys, and hippos........there were all of these animals that I have never heard of or seen before. The best part for me and dad though was the part that had these cool animals that dad wanted me to see called elk, deer, moose, and sheep. Mom didn't seem too excited with that section but me and dad sure loved it.

In October we got a new addition to our family. He is a cute little puppy named Boone. He is a German short-haired pointer/Lab cross. I didn't really pay much attention to him at first because he nibbled at me, licked my face, and knocked me over all the time. And who's kidding who, I thought that he would steal some of my thunder. He is much better now and I even like to play with him a lot more. When he is sleeping I will lay on his bed with him or crawl on top of him and lay there for a little bit. He is still very hyper but he is just a baby like me.

The weirdest thing happened to me and my cousins Keira and Eli this year. One day we all met up in Sparwood for a visit. However, at this visit our moms and dads dressed us up in these crazy outfits; Eli as Woody from Toy Story, Keira as a ladybug, and me as a monkey! We then got carted around to all of these different houses and people kept putting candy in these bags we had! They just kept giving us more and more and more! Mom and dad said that I am too young for most of that stuff so I imagine that they threw the other stuff away. That sure was fun though and apparently we get to do that once a year! I cant wait.

Finally, as I said earlier, I finally turned 1 year old! Mom planned this big party for me and even decorated with little animals and balloons and stuff (thanks mom....you did a good job). So many of my family and friends came and we all had a great time. There were so many presents for me that dad says he has to go rent a storage space to put some of it in. My family and friends are so generous and I appreciate them so much. Thank you everyone. Mom and dad must have taught everyone that song I talked about because all of the party started to sing it to me. And then out came this cool little cake that looked like a giraffe. Mom plunked a piece down in front of me and let me go crazy. It was so good.

Well this was a long time coming and again I am sorry for the wait but we are so busy doing so many different things that we sometimes forget, or just dont have the time to update. Dad and I will try to be a bit better with the postings. Happy holidays and happy new year to everyone.

PS...About this Santa character. I finally got to meet him (awake that is) and I am not that big of a fan, as you can see in this picture. Dad thinks that it is not such a bad thing to be afraid of an unshaven and overweight recluse in a red jumpsuit who openly invites kids to sit on his lap....although mom and dad both say that this is one exception and that I will eventually learn to love him. We'll see about that.

Here are a few videos of me to look at. One shows me and dad having lots of fun a few months back and the other shows how good of a walker I am becoming. Enjoy.

Well its time for a little blog but this may be a short one. I am currently just over five months old now and am upwards of 18-19 lbs! Maybe that is why mom and dad call me a chunky monkey. I am sleeping a bit better through the night, although I still get up twice in the night like clockwork. I am even starting to fall asleep on my own, after only a few days of "training" by mom and dad. Its ok this way but I would rather snuggle with mom or dad to fall asleep , but apparently they have other plans. Within the last two weeks mom and dad have been giving me big boy food as they call it, but it is more like a bland mush to me. Thats ok. I'll take anything I can get into my tummy. I am giggling a lot more now. It seems that those crazy sounds everybody is making is actually kind of amusing! I still smile alot and am getting strong too. When I lay on my belly I can hold my head up for a long time. I haven't rolled over yet and mom thinks this is because my belly is too big. I'll get there soon enough. They have also started putting me in this crazy seat like contraption that is very bouncy. I just push off with my fat little legs and I go up and down and up and down. Jumping is actually quite fun. I was with dad one day and jumped for 45 min........dad seemed tired just watching me. I still love my baths and get to splash, splash, splash all over the tub, although I seem to get this urge every now and then to poop when I am in there (sorry Grandma). This usually makes mom scream which then scares even more poop out of me. So mom, just stay calm and I'll only poop half as much! I get to spend time with my friends a couple days a week now and we do things like go for walks or go swimming. I also got to go in a thing called a swing last weekend that goes back and forth over and over again. Hopefully I get one of my own soon.

Last weekend I seen lots of family at a celebration for my uncle Allen. Mom says he went to a better place. I only met him once or twice but could tell that he was a really good man....I'll miss him. My auntie Joanie seemed sad so I got to snuggle with her to try to make her feel better. She held me tight and actually made me feel better...she has the magic touch. I hope she is doing good and that we can visit her again soon.

Other than that not too much is going on. I am actually on a trip to a big city with a really big bridge called San Franciso. I even got to fly in a plane way up in the sky with mom and Auntie Jill. We are visiting my cousins and Auntie Heather and uncle Sam. I sure miss my dad though and I hope that he misses me too......(more than you can imagine buddy, love you -Dad.) I gotta run now and apolagize for the short update but I promise to send another one after my trip. Its hard blogging while on vacation! I miss you all and cant wait to show you how big I am and how high I can jump.

Love you, Avery Joseph

PS....Happy Birthday Grandma!

Here are a couple of videos to hold you over, sorry about the quality!

It's Been A While........

Well its been a while since my last blog but I cant type and my mom and dad have been very busy. Things have been going great this year. I am getting very big and even though I am just over 3 months old I am fitting into some 6 month outfits. I am probably 16lbs (give or take half a pound) and am getting long, even though mom says that I have the same body type as dad.....tall body with short little legs. I have been sleeping a bit better, sometimes, and will either sleep through the night or be up 4 times......who knows! I really like to suck on my fist. I figure because I dont know what my thumb is I will just stick my whole hand in my mouth, so my thumb must be in there somewhere. I sure like to smile a lot but haven't quite giggled yet as it is more of a grunt than a giggle. I kick a lot as well but cant roll over. I sit in my bumble chair and dad says that I look like a bobble head because my head gently flops from side to side.

One of the most exciting things lately in my new cousin Keira. She is over a month old now and still hasnt reached my birth weight. We dont really play too much together but she did have a little nap on me a few weeks ago. I finally met my Auntie Lynn and Uncle Mike who came all the way from a place called Ontario. They flew all the way to Calgary and boy their arms must be tired.........I know, I am only 3 months and that joke is even old for me. They then came to Sparwood with great grandma and grandpa and we had a mini reunion. We had a lot of fun and are sad that we could only visit our family for a few days.

I have been going to a baby group with mom and have met lots of nice friends. We get together weekly to either watch movies, go for a walk, or just hang out. Now that the weather is getting better mom and dad say that we will go for lots of walks....now I just need to convince them to get a puppy as well. I cant wait to go camping this summer. Apparently we get to hang out in the forest, make a circle of chairs around a flaming pit, and cook long pieces of meat on sticks. It sounds wierd to me but mom and dad are raving about it and are convinced that I will love it. I guess I will just have to trust their judgement on this one. Also, we are going to a place called America or USA on March 20th. Mom says that the shopping is excellent there, but whenever she says this out loud and dad is around he gives a big sigh and lowers his head, jokingly of course. I think dad likes it because of a game called Keno and cheap beer. Whatever works I guess.

This is only a quick update but I figured that I will add some video's and pics for all to see. Take care everyone and I will harass mom and dad more often to update this thing.

Here is a video of my fake cry that I just recently started....

Christmas and such.....

Well its been a while since my last update so I figured I should let you patient fans know a little bit more about what I've been up to. Yesterday marked my sixth week since I made that long and painful journey that mom STILL talks about. Mom and dad say that they cant believe it has been a month and a half already. I havent been weighed in a while but dad calls me a "booner", which I think is some kind of hunting reference that I'm sure I'll understand better when I'm older. If I had to guess, I think I would be about 11 pounds or so. I have already grown out of some of my first outfits and mom seems quite upset about that. I dont think she wants me to grow up.

Different things are starting to happen to me now. Like sometimes when mom or dad talks silly to me, my cheeks rise up high on both sides of my face, and mom and dad get so excited. I think they call it a smile! And when I lay on my tummy, I can even lift my head up nice and high for a few seconds....my neck is getting so strong. Also, I am starting to see a bit better and follow mom and dad around the room with my eyes. A couple of days ago I slept for 4.5 hours during the night and mom was so proud of me. I must have slept through my alarm or something. Speaking of mom, dad keeps calling her a yummy mommy. He is right about that, her milk is very yummy and I sure do eat a lot of it! Finally, my baths are getting better too. I used to hate them but it kind of feels nice now. I just dont like being cold when I get out of the water, and I usually show this by screaming and peeing on the towel......every time!

Since last blog a lot has being going. One day about 30 giggling girls came over to the house, all of them carrying packages. They all held me and kissed me......wow! Mom got to open all the packages and they all contained clothes and toys for ME! I cant believe how nice this group of ladies was. What a treat. Then only a week or so later, there was a bunch more packages stuck under that tree dad put up. Autie Erin and uncle Warren and the boys came over, as well as GG, Nana, Papa, and the freshly tanned uncle Ryan. They ate snacks all day and then a giant bird of some sort that night. Dad cut it all up with a big knife but said he was nervous because he didn't want to ruin Christmas by hacking that bird up. We then opened up the packages but this time everybody got some to open. They all smiled and said thank you to each other. They looked like they had fun that day. I'm just wondering how all the packages got there though because I dont remember seeing that group of 30 giggling girls come back again.......hmmmmm.....I'm sure I'll figure it out one day.

We then went on our first big trip......well....big for me I guess. We went all the way to another province. We went to Sparwood BC to see Grandma and Grandpa, auntie Jenny and uncle Jason, auntie Wendy and uncle Chris and Eli, Great Grandma and Great Grandpa, and the Humes. Grandma and Grandpa also had a tree in their house, and it too had a whole bunch of packages underneath it, and again......no giggling ladies to be found anywhere. Everybody got to open more of these packages just like back home and again, I got a bunch more stuff....mom says that I am spoiled. The next few days was a lot of eating, laughing, and story telling. I sure had fun there and imagine that I will be back soon, especially because Grandma threatened mom and dad saying that there will be consequences if we do not come back soon.

But before we could leave, it happened again. Another large group of giggling ladies came over to Grandma's house and all carried a package with them. The thing was, it was a different group of ladies! I am getting confused now. Once again, all of the packages were for me....clothes, toys, and so on. I am so lucky and grateful to these random groups of ladies that show up bearing gifts!

Once back in Lethbridge, mom and dad invited a few people over to the house one night. They had some food and drinks and near the end of the night, they counted down, cheered, kissed and hugged each other. It sure was a celebration. Apparently it is a whole new year now. The way I figure it that makes me at least a year old, but mom and dad still say I'm only six weeks. Hopefully my math skills improve a little bit.

That is it for now, sorry it took so long but we have been VERY busy doing all sorts of stuff. I will try to keep up on things a little bit better. Take care everyone.

Love Avery

3 Weeks Old

Well I am finally three weeks old and time has gone by so fast. I am starting to sleep a bit better, although some nights are definitely much better than others. I am a good eater too, but that means I feed sometimes once an hour, so mom gets a little tired as you can imagine. I went for a doctors appointment last Thursday the 11th and the doctor said that I am doing pretty good. I am a bit jaundice still but it is slowly going away. He told me that I was 9lbs 4oz which was 50th percentile in my age class, and that I was 75th percentile in my height, but mom cant remember how tall I was. Daddy is confused about how I am so tall considering he is not that tall, and made a comment to mom about the mail man, but I dont get what he meant by that. Mom went to see the doctor today (Dec 15th) and I was 9lbs 10oz........wow. I guess all of that feeding is paying off. No wonder I'm not pooping much, its all going to my cheeks and thighs! And as far a bathing and getting my diaper changed, I am not a happy camper at all. I just don't like being exposed.

Tomorrow I get to meet this Santa character mom and dad have been raving about. Also, mom and dad put a tree in our living room and put all of these fancy little lights on it. And it is a real tree too! It smells and everything. I dont what it is all about but I sure love to sit and stare at it. Dad says we can spend lots of time together as well because he has 16 days off in a row; and it all has something to do with Santa and the tree.

I finally got to meet Papa last weekend and will meet uncle Ryan on Thursday. I didn't recognize Papa at first because he shaved his moustache.....well, I guess I never really knew what he looked like in the first place. I think between Grandpa, Papa, uncle Ryan, uncle Warren, and dad, I will most likely be a hunter when I get older. Dad even said he is going to buy a gun for me soon so that he will have 13 years to sight it in just right, but mom thinks that this is just an excuse for another gun.

I went to my first movie as well last week, Four Christmases. I slept pretty much through the entire thing but it was pretty cool still. I dont really have much else to say at this point, so I will leave you with a video dad took of me getting my 'medicine', really vitamin D supplements. It is soooooooo tasty as you will see. Hope this keeps everybody up to date.

Love Avery

My first blog

Well, mom and dad are not too good at this and are just learning how to set this blog thing up. I dont think that this will ever get to the level of my cousin Eli's but we'll sure try. Grandma was already bugging my dad to create a blog so that everyone can be kept in the loop about what is happening in my life. Here are a few pics of my first couple weeks of life, including our first picture together as a family....such a cone head I have!

I am finally getting on a bit of a schedule, and I stress a bit. I am eating lots and gaining weight, finally. Mom and dad were worried because I had lost 11oz in my first two days, but am now back up to my birth weight. Mom is doing good as well considering I was 8lbs 12oz at birth....ouch! I have met most of my family but still need to meet some aunts, uncles, and cousins......including uncle Ryan who is in Thailand and Papa who is in Saskatchewan.

Last weekend Dad finally got to go hunting after waiting patiently for me to come. He shot a little 5x5 deer that he calls the "Avery buck". He wasn't able to go to Saskatchewan hunting with the guys but says that he is more than ok with that and wouldn't change missing the trip for the world.

I guess that is all for now. Hopefully we can stay on top of this and start uploading more pictures and videos. I will add one video just for the sake of doing so. It is of me and dad sitting on the couch together when I was only 4 days old. I was fussy and wouldn't stop crying and dad thought he would test the camera on me. Enjoy.