Hello, Summer!

We celebrated our first weekend in summer with a BBQ on our deck while watching Frozen. The weather has been gorgeous lately, and we want to take full advantage of it! We whipped out our Oh Joy for Target goodies, and enjoyed pork chops, corn, asparagus, and pineapple. We're looking forward to many more evenings like this!

Ava - 2 Months!

Of course Big Sister wanted in on the photo session

Can't believe 2 months has past now. She's so much more aware of people and loves to stare and interact. She had her first set of vaccines and took them like a champ! Good girl! Here are some stats:

• 11 lb 4 oz, 22.5 inches
• Started smiling at 5.5 weeks
• Sleeps from 9:30pm  - 7 or 8 am. While she fights sleep during the day unless she's carried, I can't complain about her night sleeping! Thank you, Ava! 
• She hates her car seat. Hates is not even a strong enough word! Leah will often hold Ava's hand or try to sing to her to get her to stop crying. 
• She enjoys her baths and will actually protest when we take her out. 

Ava: You have started to cry less and smile a lot more this past month and we've been eating up all those big smiles and giggles. Leah is obsessed with you and can't wait until you're big enough to play with her. We've discovered that you like to be held upright rather than cradled, because you want to see the world. It's amazing to see how curious you are already, which probably means you'll be getting into everything when you're older. We're looking forward to another month, but my one request is: Will you please let daddy hold you for a little bit too??? Thanks. :) Happy 2 Months! xoxo

Leah: 2.5 Years!

I stopped doing monthly updates on Leah, but since she turned 2.5 this month, I thought I'd give a brief one. 

• She has turned into quite the extrovert. A year ago, she was more on the shy and timid side. Now she will pretty much talk to anyone and initiate a conversation, and at times she can be the aggressive one.
• Her vocabulary truly amazes me. We continue to hear new words everyday, and often have to ask her where she learned it from. She speaks to us in complete sentences and wants to be included in the conversation. She will often say "Hey guys! What are you talking about?" if Matt and I are talking to each other.
• She continues to be aware of other people's feelings and emotions. If her friend is sad, she'll want to give a hug. If I have a serious face because I had to discipline her, she will ask me if I'm happy or tell me to be happy now because she's listening to me.
• She's in the "Why" phase. She's curious about everything, and constantly asks "What's that? and "Why?" 
• She's a little fashionista. She has 3 dresses that she's calls her "princess dresses" and only wants to wear those. I no longer buy clothes for her unless she approves. She makes comments like "Mommy, I like your shoes. They're beautiful," or "Daddy, wear the orange shirt. I like it." I also happen to wear a shirt 2 days in a row, and on the second day she said "Mommy, you wear that shirt? You wore it ALL day long." Oops. 
• Her favorite thing right now is the movie Frozen. It was the first movie she watched in the theater, and I finally gave in and bought the DVD. I can't count how many times we've watched it, and she can recite the lines and songs in the movie. She also runs down the sidewalk with her arms behind her yelling "Let it go! Let it go!"
• A little over a month ago, she was officially potty trained! We used the 3 day method, and she got the concept down within a day. It was actually not as stressful as I thought it would be, but I think it was because we waited until she was a little bit older.

Leah: There have been so many changes for you in the past couple months, but you are handling them like a champ. I know mommy can't always play with you like we used to, and I know that you're not too thrilled about that, but I want you to know that mommy loves you so much. I'm so proud of how independent you can be and how loving you are towards your little sister. I will strive to be a more patient and understanding mama, and I look forward to getting to spend a little more one-on-one time with you soon! xoxo, Mommy

Ava's Newborn Session

Here are some photos from Ava's newborn session! We're in love with them, especially the ones with the two girls together. Ava was a handful trying to keep asleep. I think I nursed her like 4 times in a 3 hour span. :) The photos turned out great, and I'm so happy we have this moment in time captured so beautifully.

Amber from Sugar Free Photography was amazing. Everything was done in her studio in Orange County. She pretty much takes the baby and works her magic, and we were able to relax (besides the nursing). Her studio has a separate room filled with toys, books, snacks, coffee, and tea, and there's a window to watch her work. She even has a nursing room! Amber supplies all the props and even has outfits for siblings and moms! We had such an awesome experience. Thanks Amber!

* photos by Sugar Free Photography

I'm Alive... Sorta!

At 1 Month

I can't believe Ava is already 6 weeks! Time is flying by and really slow all at the same time. You always hear that siblings are usually completely different, and boy is that true! Leah was a sleepy newborn, she pretty much ate and slept with some awake time here and there. Ava wants to soak in the world! She fights to stay awake, and her eyes are constantly wide-eyed and scanning her surroundings. While I'm exhausted and slowly navigating this new world of having a toddler and newborn, I'm enjoying figuring out the personality of this tiny human being. She's definitely going to grow up to have a voice of her own!

We Like the Dentist!

We finally had a very pleasant dental appointment for Leah! She cried during the past 2 visits, and I had to sit in the chair while she laid on me during the visits. This time, she was so independent! I did not have to hold her at all, she followed directions, and she greeted everyone with a smile! They took x-rays, checked her teeth, and gave her a cleaning. She told me she wanted to see the dentist more at the end of the visit! Woohoo! I'm so proud of her! 

Ava Madeline Kelly

Sorry for the silence! I've been wanting to share Ava's birth story forever now, but I'm finally finding the time and energy to type it out! Here it is:

During the last few weeks of my pregnancy, I had been waking up in the middle of the night uncomfortable with some back pain. At 38 weeks, on March 26, 2014, I woke up at 2am feeling the same type of pain, and hung out in the living room to try to get comfortable. Around 3am, I noticed my back pain increasing and then going away. I started timing when the pains occurred, and after 45 minutes, I came to the realization that baby was coming. I woke Matt up at around 4:30am to tell him the news, and unlike with Leah, Matt popped up and got ready to go! I called my parents at 5am to drive up to take care of Leah. I was hoping I could wait until they got here to go to the hospital, but at 5:30am, the contractions were getting really strong, and we woke Leah up. She was such a trooper, and was in a good mood. Since she didn't really understand the urgency of needing to leave the house, she insisted on eating her breakfast first, which I couldn't deny her. :) So I patiently waited for her to finish her waffle before we left the house.

Last picture of Leah as an only child

As we were driving, Matt and I looked at each other and finally decided on the name! We arrived at the hospital at around 5:45am, and I was 3 cm when I was checked in Triage. My parents got to the hospital around 6:15am, and I was actually so sad to see Leah go. I teared up a little bit when she left the room. This was my last moment with her as my baby. I was moved to Labor and Delivery, and they asked me if I wanted to get the epidural now or wait. With Leah, I waited until I was 5cm dilated, but the contractions the second time around were way more intense, and I asked for it now. I felt like a million bucks after the epidural, and now it was just a waiting game. The epidural did slow down my labor a little bit, but once my water broke at around 9am at 4cm, it picked back up. At 11:30am, the nurse came to check on me, and I told her I was feeling the urge to push, so she said she would tell the midwife to check on my status. The OB resident walked in around 11:45am and said I wasn't quite ready to deliver yet. Then the midwife came in at noon, and lo and behold it was time! The staff quickly prepared me and the room for delivery, and then I finally heard the word to push! This delivery was different from Leah's, in that they rolled me on to my side. I pushed literally for a second or two, and the midwife told me to stop and to blow! At first I was totally confused what she meant by blow, but then I got the hang of it. At 12:29pm, after about 3-4 pushes and several more blows, out came Ava Madeline Kelly in less than 10 minutes at 7 lbs 11 ounces and 20 inches {a pound bigger than Leah}! It was pretty insane how quickly this all happened. Matt and I were so excited to meet the newest member of our family.

My parents came back to the hospital with Leah at around 1:30pm, and Leah was thrilled to meet her baby sister. She sat with me on the bed, patting Ava and admiring her. It was the sweetest thing to see. She said "Baby not in mommy's tummy anymore. That's funny!" haha! Having my two girls next to me was such a special moment. Welcome to the world Ava! Our family is officially complete!

I'm hoping to share what life has been like the past 3 weeks soon!

*Last 4 photos by Bob Cho