Visiting the show me state

Me, Aviva, Bella, Kelli and Liam!

This past weekend, Aviva  and I went on our first major adventure.

We took a train to St. Louis, where she was able to meet her future best friends Liam and Bella Trachtman. Liam and Bella's mom Kelli was a bridesmaid in my wedding, where she met her future baby daddy Alec, who just so happened to be a fraternity brother of my baby daddy. Funny how that all works out.

Mr. Liam is just two months older than Aviva, and Kelli and I couldn't wait to get the two together. Bella is already a big girl at 2, and she was probably more excited to meet Aviva than Liam, who may be the chillest baby I've ever met. You can see in the picture above that nothing really phases him and those adorable cheeks.

The trip got off to a rocky start, as Aviva's big brother Luther had a bit of a health scare earlier in the week. That's a post in and of itself, but I'm happy to say the furry guy is doing just fine right now. The trip took a lot of planning and organizing, and my stress levels went through the roof, which didn't help matters for anyone.

The longest train ride ever
Aviva and I were supposed to take an Amtrack train at 9:30 on Thursday, but due to Luther's health and a last-minute trip to the vet that morning, we opted to take the train at 1:45 instead. Jeff had to work and so he would be meeting us with the car Friday night.

Aviva was fast asleep at Union Station

Getting to Union Station was easy, but once we got there it was a zoo! We arrived about 20 minutes early and our train was already boarding. We took our seats on the second level, which required some help from a kind gentleman who carried our bag as I maneuvered up a tiny staircase with Aviva in her car seat. We were lucky to get a two-seater all to ourselves, so we could spread out as much as necessary.

On the whole the train ride itself wasn't THAT bad. The problem was that our six-hour trip ended up being about nine hours. We were supposed to arrive at 7:21, which was plenty of time to catch up and get to bed at a reasonable hour. Instead, delays meant that we arrived in St. Louis after 10:30. Keep in mind all I had with me was snacks, and I wasn't able to go to the bathroom because who was going to watch my baby? Since I couldn't go to the bathroom I was trying not to overdue it on the hydration. When we arrived at Kelli's house she was already fast asleep, and Alec was kind enough to pick me up. I was starving but opted to just put Aviva to bed, use the bathroom, and fall into bed myself.

Our luxurious
accommodations

Aviva was really a rock star on the train. She slept in her car seat for a good 3 hours, and though she was a bit fussy there weren't any all-out screams. Our train neighbors were very nice and a few offered to help if I needed anything. We didn't really take anyone up on the help but it was super nice of them to offer. We managed to use the nursing cover pretty well, though I'm guessing a few Amtrak patrons got a boob shot they weren't expecting. And Aviva had some good poops but nothing that ruined her clothes! Without the delays it would've been a great experience, with the delays I've proclaimed that I will never ride Amtrak again...

Meet me in St. Louis
That first night in St. Louis, Aviva was a bit overtired and out of her element, so she didn't have the best night's sleep. But we figured it out! She was also in a Pack N' Play, when she is used to sleeping in a newborn napper. Thankfully the room was nice and dark and she was right next to my bed so there was more crying than normal but she managed to get some shuteye.

In the morning, the babies got to meet! Liam is probably the most easy going baby I've ever met, which made Aviva seem like a big ol' cry baby. Bella was crazy about Aviva, who seemed pretty enamored with her new friend as well. At one point Aviva started a crying avalanche, wherein all of the other gals in the house (Bell and the Nanny's daughter Bentley) went on a crying rampage. Throughout it all Liam just looked at the gals like they were crazy.

Kelli and I took Aviva out for sushi, and thankfully she slept the whole way. Then we braved the outlet mall, where I was able to find a few things to wear to work when I return in a couple of weeks (gulp). Again, she slept for most of the trip, and as soon as her meltdown started we were ready to skidaddle anyway.

Jeff arrived Friday night, and Aviva was already in the groove of her new surroundings. Saturday was the big exciting day, because it was the first time we'd be leaving Aviva with someone other than her grandparents. Lilya, who runs a daycare down the street and used to watch Bella before Liam came along, would be in charge of all three munchkins, and Jeff and I were rather nervous about the whole situation. Aviva still doesn't take a bottle, and she isn't a big fan of people she doesn't know.

Two hot mommas out on the town.

Turns out Aviva is only a fussbucket when mommy and daddy are around, because she had zero problems with Lilya. She took a bottle, took two naps and was described as an "angel." Well, OK! We'll take it. This makes us feel much better about the prospect of heading off to daycare.

Once we were able to check in with Lilya after about an hour and a half of being out, I felt much better the rest of the evening. It was sort of a weird relief to sit back and relax and not have to worry that Aviva would be waking from a nap anytime soon. I could used to this babysitter thing...

When we got home Aviva was still fast asleep, and went to bed without any problems. Sunday morning we headed home and Aviva slept for most of the trip.

*Another new discovery, when Aviva is upset, playing Counting Stars on my phone via YouTube and singing along seems to work wonders. Keep this in mind for future adventures.

Look who's two months old!

Aviva at two months!

Okay, as per usual I'm a little behind. I'm going to stop apologizing for such things and hope that my audience realizes that I'm a new mom and I blog when I can. Even now someone is supposed to be down for a nap and isn't quite asleep just yet, here's hoping she falls asleep on her own (she did).

Now that we've got that out of the way, look who is already two months old (plus a week...)! Last week we took Aviva in for her two month appointment, and before they attacked her with needles we had a laundry list of questions.

For example, is green poop normal? Is it weird that she gets the hiccups on a daily basis, what about all that sneezing? Turns out pretty much every question I had the response was "that's normal." So no need to worry about the fact that my baby snores.

My biggest fear at this visit was what the pediatrician would say about her weight. I was proud to see that Aviva surpassed the 9-pound mark, but that isn't a huge gain from her birth weight of 7 pounds 2 ounces. Nine pounds placed Aviva squarely in the 3rd percentile, but at least she was on the chart!

Her head circumference (I can't remember what it was) put her in the 25th percentile and her length of 22 and 3/4 inches put her in the 50th. She is clearly growing, she just seems to be gaining weigh at a slow pace. My parents told me that I had a similar issue, and the pediatrician simply scheduled another appointment in a month to take a look at her progress. No need to worry yet, just something we'll keep an eye on. Dr. Sterrett repeatedly referred to her as being a "peanut."

After we attacked her with questions, the nurse entered with the dreaded vaccines. I'm happy that we've started the process of her immunizations, but it wasn't fun to hear the screams as she was poked and prodded. I'm a wimp and had to look away as the nurse stabbed her, but Jeff was a trooper and watched the whole thing up close. After it was all done we held her and hugged her and she calmed down rather quickly.

When we got home, both of us were worried about a fever, and were constantly pressing our hands onto her forehead. The only real side effect we noticed from the vaccines was that her legs were a bit sore at the site of the shots, but other than that no troubles.

We'll go back and see Dr. Sterrett in a month to check her weight, and in two months to get the next round of shots.

Walking for a cause

I was determined to wear that stupid
bib thingy even though it was unnecessary. 

I've often said that I prefer dogs to people, because I get along with dogs better. For that reason, when it comes to supporting a cause it usually involves animals.

Our darling dog Luther joined our family over 6 years ago (his anniversary is Nov. 19th) from PAWS Chicago, so every year the whole family signs up for the PAWS 4K walk/8K run.

We enjoy this event because I always like to gear up for a good run, and Jeff and Luther can get involved by walking the 4K. As the years went by, my parents also got into the act and walked the 4K with their dog, Macaroon.

Usually I run this event, but since Aviva was born about a month prior, I had to face the facts that this year I'd be walking. My first run isn't scheduled until July 26th, and I'm not really sure I'll even be ready for that one.

Getting to Montrose Harbor on a Saturday morning for the PAWS event is always difficult, and since we have the pups we can't get on public transportation. That means searching for parking by the beach-something everyone else is also doing. We managed to get out of the house around the time we planned (hey 20 minutes late isn't so bad), and we found a parking spot right in front! Then I realized we forgot our packets...

You see, when you're running the race, the packet and bibs with numbers are vital! Apparently, this isn't the case with the walkers. But I had no idea! So I stayed in the car with Grandma, Grandpa, Aviva and the dogs to secure the spot while Jeff graciously ran home to get the packets. On the plus side, it was sort of rainy and icky out, and we had about an hour to kill. Grandpa and Macaroon braved the drizzle, while Grandma and I played Words With Friends in the car.

Again, had I opened the packets at any point I would've realized how useless and unnecessary they were. Ooopsies! Luckily I get a free pass for all things stupid for I would say the first year or so of Aviva's life, right?

Once we got the packet issue settled, we all enjoyed a nice morning and a nice walk. It was fun to see how the other half lives (re: walkers), but next year I am definitely running the race. There were tons of doggies, strollers, and crazy dog owners (myself included). Many of the dogs were in costume, and there was a lot of butt sniffing and pooping along the route (I wasn't included in that). We ran into a few friends we hadn't seen in a while, enabling us to show off the latest addition to the family.

PAWS was aiming to get into the Guinness Book of World Records by having the most animals in costume in one place, so we participated by forcing Luther to wear his Illini jersey. He wasn't especially happy about that.

Aviva blissfully slept through the entire event, and even stayed asleep as we went out to a tasty brunch immediately following the walk. I would characterize the day as a success, and look forward to next year!