Closing a Chapter...

I have been thinking all morning about doing this blog post. I have always valued reflection. I think it's important to look at the past to see how far we've come. We are on the brink of closing a major chapter in our lives. Ava will not be our only child anymore. For 3 1/2 years, she's been what our world has revolved around, and now she will be sharing us with Baby Alex. I am excited and starting to feel anxious. I have cried off and on all morning thinking about how much I love Ava and how proud of her I am. She wears us out like crazy, but the love we have for her is like nothing I can even describe! How are we going to love another child this much?! I am getting nervous about that, but I know that God will give us the love we need for this new child.

We are closing a chapter and opening a new one soon...here's how this chapter of Ava's life began:

The kitty, lovey that Ava has with her name on it was given to her in the hospital by The Pullen family from our church. She loves this kitty and sleeps with her every night! I can't believe how brand new kitty looks in these pictures! The pink "blankie" was given to her by her "Auntie Lori" and she also sleeps every night with that! Ava was a wonderful newborn. She slept well, and ate well (after the first, stressful week home). She started sleeping 5-7 hours when she was 5 weeks old. It was great! She was such a blessing to our home.

Ava grew to be a BIG baby! People always thought she was older than she was because of her size. She was a chunky baby, and we loved it! She was very healthy and we were so proud to show her off! Here is Ava at 6 months old at Christmas time, with her BCF (best cousin forever), Alana! Look how little Alana looks! She's 2 here.

Once Ava turned a year old we started really seeing her personality! She loved to play, laugh, and smile with people. She was very social with people whether she knew them or not. That really made us laugh. Here she is in Michigan at a year old. She loved to swing then and still would rather swing than play on a playground even now! At one and half, it was Christmas time. She loved her kitty and added Elmo (after we took her passy away!).


Ava was in her first wedding, my best friend, Lindi's when she was almost 2. She was beautiful! She loved wearing the dress, the wings, and walking down the aisle. She did really well walking down, but once she was down the aisle, she was a loose canon. My mom took her during the wedding because I was the matron of honor and couldn't leave.

Ava was a spunky 2 year old! She soon taught us that things should be "her" way, not "our" way. We learned how truly strong-willed she was during her 2nd year.

Here is Ava and Daddy at Christmas. Ava was 2.5 years old. She was in the Christmas program at church that year and stole the show! She was very animated and loved being the center of attention.

Ava and Daddy dug a huge hole in the sand this summer at Hilton Head. It was our first (and probably only) trip with just the 3 of us. I was pregnant and feeling sick, but Ava had a blast. It was fun watching the joy on her face at digging in the sand and playing in the water!

Ava is 3 now and just beautiful (I must say!). She makes me laugh harder than anyone else, and sometimes she makes me want to pull my hair out more than anyone else. She pushes buttons that I never thought I had, but I love this girl so much! Ava is thrilled at becoming a big sister. It will be a new adventure for all of us. All we can do now is pray for strength and guidance during this new chapter we are all about to embark on.

I love you, Ava Grace Morel!