Fussy Little Thing

Having a newborn is never a walk in the park (maybe for some it is... I have yet to meet them THANK GOODNESS) but when your precious newborn is somewhat fussier than normal, it can turn your world upside down. There were times I thought I was just imagining it but when the kids and I stayed with my sister and brother in law for a week, Jake, my brother in law was happily holding Averi and told her "you're a fussy little thing aren't you?" Ok, thank you, it wasn't just me!! Its a tough lesson to learn that your first was in fact a pretty good baby. He wasn't an angel baby, he fussed & had his newborn issues but compared to Averi, Bronson was a SAINT! Every week I would say, oh it'll get easier....and in some ways it did but not in the ways I was anticipating. After Bronson I didn't think there could be any more changing to be done in me. I was so so wrong. I'm sure with every child you have, God alters and refines you in different ways. I've learned not to be so rigid about schedules, not to be so dependent on the kids' naps, my patience has been tested to no end. I've learned you HAVE to laugh when the normal reaction might be to cry and if crying seems more appropriate, it does not make you weak, it makes you real.

Just random thoughts...it really is amazing to me how every baby, every child, every individual is so so so different. Averi, if not completely over-tired loves stimulation. Loves it. We were at at football game a few weeks ago and they shoot a gun at the end of every quarter...every time they shot that gun Averi would giggle. What in the world?! I also must admit she is incredibly stubborn. I though every baby could be conditioned. Not this little muffin. Man, if I had a nickel for every time she's had to cry herself to sleep I'd be a rich woman. I also thought that infants, in general, like to be rocked to sleep. I stand corrected. I also believed (now this is getting embarrassing) that you could get any baby to take a pacifier. You just had to be the one in control, the stubborn one, you could not back down. If you really wanted your baby to take a binki, then it would happen. Ha ha ha ha. Averi is 7 months old and my husband is getting a little annoyed that I'm still trying. Ugh. Maybe the biggest lesson I've learned is humility and to have more of an open mind. Thanks Av (nickname coined by Bronson), I love you for that ;)

And now here we are, over a half a year later since Averi's birth. I can't believe I have a 7 month old and a 3 year old!!!!!! Totally makes sense why I have no sanity left :/ But on a positive note its fun to watch Av hit new milestones. She started saying mama a few days before she turned 6 months, and quickly  learned to say "bubba" aka Bronson, and dada. She has decided it is much more fun to growl and yell than it is to scream...however screaming is still fun. Its even fun to do when she's not mad or unhappy. She has to be the loudest one "talking" when there are people talking around her. I think she just wants to be heard...all the time. We can hear ya Av! I want to remember things about the kids and I can't think of a better way than stealing my dear cousin-in-law Lindsey Christensen's method...hope u don't mind Linds :) here we go.
Things we want to remember about Averi at 7 months:
-weighs 17 lbs 10 oz and is 26" long...
-rolls to where she wants to go but sometimes while on her belly forgets that she can roll and gets really mad & thus ensues the very angry/loud growling
-no one can make her smile or laugh as easily as Bronson does
-her eyes still have a lot of blue in them but the ring around is a brownish-green so we anticipate brown eyes
-her hair is a honey brown and getting lighter and lighter
-she says mama, dada, bubba
-her smile is INCREDIBLE
-was taking a great morning nap until she got her first ear infection
-was sleeping between 9-11 hours at night until the ear infection & now has been getting up twice. boo
-is stubborn about sleep, afternoon naps are hit or miss
-she can pick food up with her fingers and put it in her mouth...50% of the time
-gets in the crawling position in her crib and bashes her face into the wooden bars...
-LOVES food
-does not love it when I leave her sight.
-favorite toy is her brothers hot wheels cars
-has been holding her own bottle for over 2 months :)

Brotherly love

   

he takes good care of her

the hat grandma got her for football games :)

pretty in purple

one of those rare moments where she's sleeping in the car

poor girl had to get 3 shots...but don't those bandaids look so cute on those chubby legs?!

playing with her toys

a favorite face of hers

got her first shiner from her crib bashing

loves our Izzy

Averi's Birth Story

The shower was on a Sunday and that evening I began having what I thought was just Braxton Hicks contractions. They became closer and closer together and by 1am they were very uncomfortable/painful and happening every 2 minutes or so. But I was trying very hard to convince myself they were not contractions. I was definitely NOT ready for her to come.... plus my sister Nikki was determined to be there for Averi's birth having been devastated over missing Bronson's birth by 11 minutes. So I did my best to relax and believe that they would stop...which they did! Whew. So we played that game all week long and I did not let myself believe they were real contractions until after talking with Nikki on the phone she helped to open my eyes and face the facts... I was in labor and she was coming out ASAP.

Last belly pic before the big day

Nikki was at our house by Friday night (February 24th) I went to the hospital Saturday, was admitted by 6:45 in the evening at 5 cm and miss Averi Rose was born Sunday February 26th at 12:36 am. There were a few hiccups along the way. First of all she was head down but facing the wrong way...hence the seriously problematic sciatic nerve pain. My doctor did his best to physically turn her  (ouch) but to no avail. It took much longer for me to dilate because of this issue which didn't bother me but as the night wore on we all became tired and anxious. It was then decided that I would be put on pitocin which I was not too thrilled about, however it seemed to help things move along, so I asked about that blessed epidural and within minutes the anesthesiologist was wheeling his little contraption into the room. I had only  been on an IV for maybe an hour and hadn't had fluids all day long, needless to say I was pretty dehydrated and when the epidural began to kick in my blood pressure dropped drastically. I remember telling the nurse I had a sudden terrible headache and I was incredibly dizzy. Within seconds the Dr & anesthesiologist were back in the room and gave me some sort of blood pressure medicine. The nurse was laughing at me that all I complained about was a headache and that I should've been passed out. She told the staff not to trust my "poker face", haha.  Between 6 & 7 cm Averi decided to turn on her own and all of a sudden I was at 10. When the nurse told me, the nerves escalated. Knowing what was about to happen and trying to mentally accept it was a lot harder for me than the first time around and not having a clue. The nurse and the Dr told me they were ready when I was so I braced myself and let the pushing begin. 6 minutes later my little miss was here....and the whole hospital heard her! This little girl had lungs right from the get-go. She weighed in at 6 lbs 11 oz, 19 inches long and we were all ready to rest....however difficult that might be in a hospital. Its fun looking back and re-living those memories. Having a baby is such an amazing, incredible thing. I don't know how you can deny God's existence after experiencing the miracle of childbirth.

mentally preparing for what was to come.  so much worse when you know what you're up against :/

they laid her on my chest and it was instant waterworks yet again. i just can't control myself when i  have babies i guess.

                                   

getting stitched up... jeremy you just need to take her now...can't focus

                                   

big stretch, big cry from our "big" girl

drowning in that diaper :)

mama and her girl

Averi Rose Scroggins

The next hiccup/miracle occurred almost 6 hours later. I had just used the bathroom and gotten back into bed and was feeding Averi when the hemorrhaging began. My sister Nikki had left about 30 minutes earlier to head to my house and catch a few zzz's. She always manages to miss out on the action! Within a few minutes the entire L&D's nursing staff was in our room trying to stop the bleeding but nothing was working. I will spare you all the details but the methods they used were far from pleasant. I think the scariest moment was looking over at Jeremy and seeing the absolute fear in his sheet white face. That's when I began to panic and become hysterical. I remember thinking how on earth is Jeremy going to take care of 2 kids by himself!? Those thoughts weren't helpful. I just didn't have a clue what was going on, the severity of it and if I honestly could die. Fortunately they were able to eventually stop the bleeding and had ordered blood to have on hand if necessary after my blood work was done. Crazy crazy. Wasn't exactly prepared for that or the overwhelming emotions that took over when Bronson came to see us for the first time. Man, I was a wreck. I felt so grateful and blessed to be holding both of my babies and be there for them. Helps me not to take them for granted when I feel like I'm at the end of my rope (as I often do).

Bronson meeting Averi. There wasn't a dry eye in the room. I am so blessed.

Oh Boy, lets get caught up

WOW... I am a terrible blogger! I warned you though... Still, its pretty bad when you see that everyone who was pregnant in the picture of your last post have all had their babies...and the youngest baby is 2 months old! I guess I have some catching up to do. In a nutshell, I had another baby shower the weekend after my seattle one and it was AMAZING as well :) My good friends in Royal threw it for me and definitely went above and beyond. Thank you so much Sharah, Nicole & Whitney! My favorite part was probably the beautiful wreath Nicole made for miss A...and the cake pops....and the onesie decorating...and the punch with the rubber duckies floating in it, oh and the pink chocolate A's that were on the frosting on the cupcakes...ok lets me honest, the whole thing was just perfect :)

the pretty wreath now hanging in Averi's room

adorable cream cheese frosting cupcakes. spoiled big time

I have been craving these non-stop since the shower. SO GOOD!!!

They put so much time into every last detail. Loved it all!

Little girly duckies! So cute :)