She's Back!
I'm back from a small hiatus. My mom was here for two weeks, last week at my brother's house, this week at mine (which means I've been sleeping on the sofa). So I've barely had time to read any of my usual favorite blogs, let alone update mine. We had a couple birthdays in the family including my sister's 40th, and so Little Miss Ava ventured out for the first time to a couple of restaurants.
Something fun happened in Ava's development last week. She suddenly went from being a "newborn" to being a "baby," meaning she has started focusing and reacting purposefully to things she sees and notices. You can look at her and make her laugh now. She appears to like music and baths because both make her "dance and sing," that is to say, she gets very animated, moves her limbs around in an excited and playful manner, smiles, and vocalizes happily. She will also focus on your face, recognize you and smile (or even giggle if you play your cards right). Talk about a heart-melting experience.
It's clear that she's very frustrated with the little mittens that they put on babies' hands. She tries desperately to pull her arms out of her swaddler, and she protests quite angrily when the mittens go on. In fact, she's already figured out that if she stretches out her fingers, it impedes the process. Her hands are also finding their way to her mouth. These seem like such simple things, but it's fascinating to see what she's figured out since the last time I've seen her. There's always something new.
I love that she likes music.
Only Eight More Days
Only eight more days until season two of Mad Men begins. Season one garnered 16 Emmy nominations, only one less than those received by 30 Rock. That's gotta be some kind of record, right?
At any rate, I'm counting the days until Don Draper is back in my life.
Reining in the Estrogen
Okay, I've regained some semblance of control, and I promise there will be no mention of cute little you-know-who this time around.
Instead, let's get back to what I do best... judging people and bitching.
So the other day, I was at the gas station, filling my trusty little Toyota with overpriced fuel. It was busy at Arco. I was in an inside, tandem-style lane, boxed in between a luxury car driven by a B5 (bleached, botoxed, big-boobed bimbo) ahead of me and a normal guy with an average vehicle waiting behind me. The bimbo and I both finished filling our cars at the same time, returning the hose/nozzle back to the pump almost simultaneously. So imagine my horror when I realized that, even though she picked her belly-button lint while her car was fueling,
now she decided to
start washing her windows. My cold black heart filled instantly with rage. Remember I'm completely locked in, I can't move. I looked back at the guy behind me who shook his head in disbelief, and graciously backed up so that I could get out.
I wanted to kiss him but not as much as I wanted to bash her over-processed face in with a shovel.
Ava's Mommy is a Twin
This photo belongs with my last post, but I just received it today. Besides Ava's mom having two little brothers, she also has an identical twin sister. This weekend was Aunt Jac's first time meeting her little niece (she lives out of state). Can you tell which is the proud mama and which is the doting auntie? Not a challenge, I know, the proud expression on mama's face is a dead giveaway.
Never-Ending Babyfever
This auntie business is a lot more fun than I anticipated, and honestly, my expectations were high. I think part of the intensity is that we haven't had a new baby in my family in nearly 38 years. The infant 37-3/4 years ago was my brother who is now the proud papa of this little girl with whom I am so in love. My sister and I have no children, and my dad died five years before his first grandchild was born. So we're a family who is really starved for babies which I think in part explains the sumptuous feast little Ava represents for us.
On with the photos:
I realized I haven't posted any pictures of my sister-in-law, Becky. Here's the first family portrait, taken in Ava's first few minutes of life.
Three generations: Ava, her mama Becky, and her maternal grandmother Becky (yes, they have the same name). I think Ava looks exactly like her Grandma Becky and her Uncle James (see next).
My sister-in-law Becky has two younger brothers. Here's Ava with her Auntie Gina (my sister) and her Uncle James (Becky's youngest brother).
This is the older of Becky's brothers, Michael, holding his little niece with great tenderness.
Ava and her daddy nose-to-nose. I love this picture. My brother's head is as big as the entire baby.
Ava and her maternal/maternal great-grandmother, Alex (so, Ava's mother's mother's mother, got it?).
Ava Lauren at 10 days old. My mom arrives from out of state in the middle of this month for a 2-week visit. She is going insane with anticipation. I can't say I blame her. I'd lose my mind, too, if I hadn't been able to hold this little bundle of joy.
We Interrupt our Current Programming
We interrupt our babyfever programming to bring you some groupie goodness, which basically means the estrogen is still flowing hard.
For those of you who don't follow the Foo Fighters, this is Taylor Hawkins, also known as one of the best looking drummers to walk planet earth. A friend of my sister's (who I cut out of the picture for her privacy) met him last week at the Tom Petty show in L.A. which my sister had to miss because our niece was busy being born.
Now let's show some decorum and observe a moment of silence over the fact that G missed a chance to meet this fine hunk of rocker manhood. Honestly, it brings a tear to the eye.
I'm back from a small hiatus. My mom was here for two weeks, last week at my brother's house, this week at mine (which means I've been sleeping on the sofa). So I've barely had time to read any of my usual favorite blogs, let alone update mine. We had a couple birthdays in the family including my sister's 40th, and so Little Miss Ava ventured out for the first time to a couple of restaurants. 
Something fun happened in Ava's development last week. She suddenly went from being a "newborn" to being a "baby," meaning she has started focusing and reacting purposefully to things she sees and notices. You can look at her and make her laugh now. She appears to like music and baths because both make her "dance and sing," that is to say, she gets very animated, moves her limbs around in an excited and playful manner, smiles, and vocalizes happily. She will also focus on your face, recognize you and smile (or even giggle if you play your cards right). Talk about a heart-melting experience. 
