Look at her grow - Ava's 6 month check-up

Only 6 weeks late... check out Ava's check-up!

"Just a-waitin on the doctor... and a-holdin on to my foot... Does anyone know what this thing is on my head?"
Big Sis came too, because she needed her flu mist!  I have to point out that Ava is wearing the dress Leah wore to her 9 month check up... she is definitely growing at a faster rate than Leah did at this age.  She's already skipped right over a whole box of hand-me-downs!
Growing....  26 1/4 inches! (55th percentile)
And growing....  ALMOST 18 lbs!!!  (75th percentile)
She is a big brained baby too, just like the rest of her family ;-) 
Head, 17 1/4 inches (75th percentile)
Once again... extra head weight causes a little shift in the height/weight ratio. Ha!

She weighed as much at 6 months as Leah weighed at 12-18 months!  At first she ate constantly... but she doesn't eat any differently than Leah did at this age. It did take her about a month longer to drop down to 4 feedings a day. Breakfast, lunch, dinner and bedtime. She has about 4-5 ounces of milk at a time... plus some solid foods now 2-3 times a day. Purees only... puffs and baby crackers still make her gag.

She was laughing and smiling and babbling CONSTANTLY at this age... except for when she was screaming and grunting. But rest assured she is always making noise of some kind. She was reaching for everything, grasping at batting at everything... sweeping objects away from her. Sitting in her high chair at home... and she jumps if you stand her or hold her in the air... she tries to jump right out of your arms! Right around this age she began throwing fits if you walk away from her.  She is completely intrigues by Beans and she LOVES LOVES LOVES to watch Leah run around!  

She was sitting up for about 30 seconds at a time by 6 months of age... but boy you should see her now! ALOT has changed in 6 short weeks!  More to come!

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Look at her grow - Ava's 4 month check up

Ready for all the action to begin!


Showing off the new rolling skills... That's an awfully small table to show off on!


Just-a-waitin...


Checkin her stats...
Height: 24 1/4 inches (50th percentile)
Head: 16 1/2 inches (75th percentile)


Weight: 15 lbs 2.5 oz (75th percentile)


What's that you say? 3 shots?


It was tough. But we both made it through.


She is doing all the 4-month-old stuff... Playing constantly, interested in everything, putting everything in her mouth, laughing at us, studying us, reaching for and grasping things.

Ava is super strong. She was holding her head up from day one, and also had a death grip. Now she bears weight on her legs like a kid who is pulling up. Lots of muscles! :)

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Look at her grow - Leah's 4 year old check-up

This year, on February 9, Leah turned 4... One day I will post pictures of her birthday festivities... But for now here are the growth stats. She continues to be our "petite" family member according to the charts. But lately she has been growing out of clothes and shoes right and left!
At her check up she had perfect vision, perfect hearing, she met every milestone and no longer has to have her head measured (or mocked for being above average in size.)
This time she also got a fancy paper gown to wear!!! And we had the perfect accessory for it. Aunt Leslie gave Leah this fabulous "vintage" (thrift store) scarf for her birthday and for weeks Leah would not take it off. "It goes perfectly with everything!"

Weight: 33 lbs (45th %ile)
Height: 38 inches (20th %ile)
BP: 92/60
Vision: 20/20
Shots: 3
Drama: maximum allowed... at all times... by any standard







My favorite part of the developmental assessment is always seeing where she maxes out. This year, it is definitions... "Leah, what is a house?" her answer... "It's a house!" Funny girl. She knows a whole lot about a whole lot, but a house is a house is a house. What more can you say???

After her check up, we stopped for a treat...

and then she went to my check-up with me...

It was a landmark day...
2 Dr visits = 2 treats!!


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Look at her grow... 3 year old check up

On our way for a big 3 year old check up... Back in February

The best part of going to to see our doctor...

Giant building blocks in the waiting room...

Fast as fast can be!

"Look at me! I'm THREE!"

She's sweet... and petite!

10th %ile on the Height and Weight charts

10 I said!!! Not 100th percentile like her daddy and I always were growing up. 10th!!!!

27 lbs and 35 inches

Vision is great! She was happy to put a spoon on her eye and read the eye chart full of umbrellas, apples and houses. 20/40 vision is apparently normal at her age? Who knew? Her hearing checked out well too... though a bit selective. :)

She brought her stethoscope to the appointment to show everyone that she can take blood pressure too!

Dr. D said... She feels healthy...

She sounds healthy...

And she has GREAT balance!

She is 3 going on 30. I don't know what to do with her these days! But I am thinking that whatever went around certainly is coming back around... So my mother likes to remind me anyway. ;-)

bow season

This October we celebrated much more than just fall, and harvest time, and pumpkin time, and Halloween. This year was Kevin's first time to shoot a deer with a bow and arrow! (You know... the way His people have always done it.) I will spare you the picture of the dead doe... :(

We are SO glad to be filling up our deep freeze a whole month earlier than usual! We have shared lots of good venison dishes in our house lately.

Kevin hunted last year during bow season for the first time, but didn't ever have a good enough shot to take with confidence. Apparently it is a whole different ball game because you're sitting so much closer to the deer. Bow hunting takes even more patience and more intense concentration than rifle hunting calls for. (Or so I am told... I'm also told I would NEVER cut it in a bow blind. I simply can not be this still or this quiet... ... ... ...how does he know???? You don't know til you try! I've just never tried!)

For little Leah Curley, bow season is year round. Its the first thing we do in the morning... "Mommy, I need a bow." Here are some memories of Octobers gone by... same girl, same month, same bow. ;)

2009

2010

2011 - What a poser!?!?!?!?

look at her grow...2 year check-up

Am I a closet germaphobe? Am I a germaphobe in denial? Or is what I'm feeling normal? Someone please tell me!

I've never been neurotic about germs, you can't be if you want to be a good nurse. You just have to be sensible. But since Leah has been of the age to climb on jungle gyms, use public toilets and build with the giant germy building blocks at the doctor's office I have developed what I fear are some neurotic tendencies... characterized by a distinct "cringe" and some obsessive thoughts.

Its when I know that she is inevitably going to touch a disgusting object that is most definitely a microbial amusement park and there is either a) not enough time to give a good attempt at cleaning it OR b) it is a ridiculously large object or space and cleaning what 0.05% of surface area that I could would surely just be a waste of a perfectly good wipe, since the 50 square inches I got to before she did wouldn't have been the area with the BAD germs anyway.

Such is the case with the mountainous pile of giant building blocks in the doctor's office waiting room. Let's not pretend that anyone actually comes out there and cleans them... EVER. And let's also not pretend that the separate waiting room they have for "sick" kids actually matters much since often a child is shedding virus from their snotty little noses long before any symptoms appear. Our pediatrician's office is great, but I'm just not deluding myself.

I would like to just NOT watch her playing too closely so as not to witness any hand to eye, nose or mouth contact while she's building or doing whatever... but that would make me a pretty sorry mom, so I just watch and cringe. You know... maybe the docs have just found a good business model. :)

For the 2-year check up we got a great report. We are exceedingly thankful for the health of this little girl. Baby doll needed a bottle right in the middle of reading the Thomas the Train book that Leah spotted as soon as we got in the exam room. (Another cringe moment... how do you clean off a 30 page book without seeming like a nut case?)

Height: 32 3/4 inches (40th)

Weight: 22 lbs 8.5 oz (20th)

Head: Full of big brains that soak up scads of stuff every second!

Baby Doll needed a diaper change after her bottle and then she and Leah both got shots... (oh...the...drama...) and then little round bandaids on their thighs. The instant the bandaids were in place, Leah dried her tears and said "Look at my bandaid! I feel much better mommy." The nurse was cracking up.

She meets all of her 2 year old milestones except for jumping with 2 feet... still haven't gotten that. (So weird! But it still entertains us so its alright for now.) She is particulary good at:

• wanting own way
• asserting self by saying "no" (though we passed simple no's a long time ago, now she wants the opposite of WHATEVER you are doing, no matter what it is)
• going back to baby behavior (loves to be held, rocked and hushed like a baby... and I don't mind this game one bit!)
• likes to imitate others
• claims everything is "mine"
• may have an imiginary playmate (or 3 now living in her belly button that play, watch tv shows, cook and eat in there)
• constantly in motion, runs, climbs and walks on tip-toes
• may have trouble settling down at bedtime.... this was like a switch that flipped and all of the sudden she says "one more song please mommy" about a hundred times each night.

PS - apparently I did not learn how to spell germaphobe in microbiology, and the spell checker on blogger only gave me these 3 corrective options... camphor, homophobia and gumbo. Really?

look at her grow... 18 month check-up

I can't help myself. I have to keep posting her stats because they keep making me laugh!

Last week was Leah's half-birthday! So she went to the doc for a check-up, a few immunizations and a fingerstick to check her hemoglobin. (She's ONE and A HALF! I can't believe it!!)

Leah now begins screaming the minute Dr. D walks in the room. So that's special for him especially during the cardiopulmonary part of the exam... where he uses a stethoscope to listen to what are already brain-rattling screams without any amplification.


This is so weird to me because I kind of enjoy going to the doctor. Not in a hypochondriac sort of way, because I don't like going when I'm actually sick, but I'm comfortable with people who wear scrubs, I like the smell of a sterile environment, and I like to have my reflexes checked.


Beans LOVEs going to her doctor too! To her, the vet's office is like doggie heaven. So many people to jump on, smells to sniff, new things to wag about, and treats to be had! I guess Beans gets that from me, and Leah gets her hatred and anxiety about the doctor from her daddy. :)

Here she is before the screaming commences... She's already been weighed and measured though, and she had this look of pure fear when I sat her on the scale this time... like she thought I might actually leave her on the scale and never come back!Grannie let us borrow her favorite "wheels on the bus" book, which makes most things much better.

Weight: 20 lbs 3 oz (with her diaper on, but still.... FINALLY 20 lbs!! And she is legal to sit forward in the car seat... we don't have to feel guilty anymore since we already made this change about 5 months ago) This is the 10th %ile.

Height: 31 inches - the 45th %ile (I could tell that although she can still wear many of her 9 and 12 month clothes, her dresses were getting mini-er and mini-er)

Head: Top quarter! Yes, she still has a big head, but I have a new theory... its the shape. They just happen to measure her at the roundest part of her head, and other children, though the volume of the head may be the same, they might have a slightly-less-perfectly-round-shaped-head than our Little Curley Q. The charts are skewed!

Teeth: SO MANY at least 13 that I can verify, but maybe up to 16! Careful putting your fingers in there trying to count though...

Here she is trying to enjoy her new tongue depressor after Dr. D tortured her by looking in her nose, mouth and ears. "You didn't tell me I had to get a shot today!"

She was still a little mad at me for taking her to that place... but the Barbie sticker helped for a minute... until she wanted it OFF RIGHT NOW!!

She was pretty happy once she got to her Grannie and GranStan's for a visit. She was exceedingly happy with them, but wouldn't give me the time of day. (She might get grudge-holding from one of her parents too.) She ran from me when I wanted to take a picture of her snazzy hat... but stopped and posed for GranStan when he asked her too.

The developmental sheet they give me always makes me feel so calm. Like every single mother of a 1.5 year old in the whole wide world has experienced similar things. It will also paint a pretty good picture of what goes on in our house every day:

• enjoys imitating parents
• wants to name EVERYTHING
• repeats familiar and unfamiliar sounds and gestures (aka EVERYTHING)
• may begin to show frustration when not understood
• may resist bedtime
• prefers predictable pattern of bedtime events (prefers all things to be predictable)
• may respond with "no" constantly :)
• likes to show some independence (not just SOME... )

The last couple of months have been the best and the worst of times. Literally. I've never experienced such joy as I have helping her learn new things, listening to her repeat new words, giggling until we both cry and watching her grow from a baby to a little girl. I've also never experienced such a battle of wills over the control of every situation in our house. (Not even when I married Kevin was there such a battle!) Dr. D warned me that so many parents get worn down by this, and compromise too much with their toddlers. And I reminded him where she gets her strong will. (smile) His last words... "Good luck with that."

look at her grow... 1 year check-up

No-Neck No-More! She turned ONE and grew a NECK all in the same week! You can just barely see it... but its better than nothing! You can see here that her chin doesn't appear to be attached to her chest anymore! This just might be the last one of these updates... I have to stop somewhere. There is a point where a girl doesn't appreciate having her height and weight posted all over the Internet. We'll see...

Height: 28.5 in (25th %ile)

Weight: 18.5 lb (25th %ile)

Noggin: Still disproportionately topping the charts

Teeth: 6 (with about 4-6 more trying to push through)

Will: STRONG, very very STRONG

Laugh: contagious

Daddy got to come to the check-up! What a pair. They are hilarious to watch. No one can make her laugh more than Daddy. No one makes him smile more. "Look lady... I know I'm cute but don't you have enough pictures of me already?"The answer is NO!! There will never be enough!!

She seems to be fitting nicely into her one-year-old stage. Though I fear she may be on the fast track to the terrible twos! Here are a FEW of her newest things:

• Usually follows a definite daily pattern (and can RESIST change a bit... unless its a really FUN change!)


• Usually examines objects before putting in mouth (You can take away the putting in mouth part of that. But EXAMINE is her middle name. Actually her newest nickname is Inspector... DO doo do doo DO, Inspector Curley)


• Utters a few words (sometimes utters, sometimes hollers... whatever)


• Loves rhythms and rhymes (the girl HAS rhythm)


• Loves to make parents laugh (we have the biggest giggle fits together... I usually end up in happy tears)


• Shows more negativism, such as resisting naps, throwing occasional tantrums (She's advanced in this developmental category for sure!)


• Continues to prefer people to toys (thousands of wasted dollars I'm sure)


• Crawls rapidly (not to mention silently...she's like a phantom when she gets tired of walking and goes back to speed-crawling)


• May begin to walk without assistance (She now prefers walking to crawling!!)

It just keeps getting better!