Goodbye and Thanks

So...today's the day.

My last day of residency.

It's been a bitter sweet day at work. I've been taking pictures of everyone in clinic- staff, faculty, and residents. Lots of hugs...and lots of teary goodbyes. I've met some amazing people and had some amazing opportinities during the past two years.

So, thank YOU so much! To my friends and family who have supported me during the past several years- I am forever grateful. I wouldn't be where I am today without your support.

And to Patrick. There isn't a doubt in my mind that I would be lost it if weren't for you. You have taken care of me and looked out for my well being...and my sanity! :) You are the reason I can be strong. Thank you for loving and supporting me.

Ode to our House

We've loved many things about living here in Gainesville. But our house is probably one of the things I'll miss the most. I feel a little childish talking about leaving the way I do...like it's a great friend that I'll never see again. I've cried about leaving this house. I've lived in lots of different places, but none that have been this special to me.

Everything about it is perfect...I love it's openness, love that it's one story (especially when getting up with a newborn!), I love that it faces west so we get that fabulous natural morning light in the back of the house and that pretty, warm colored light in the evening in the front, it's got great (almost!) floor to ceiling windows (again....all that natural light!), love the neutral paint colors with the exception of the two orange colored accent walls, the yard is amazing...the best in the neighborhood, the back yard makes you feel like you're relaxing at a resort, loved having a fountain in the back yard to listen to over glasses of wine and jazz music at night, love that the patio if right off the kitchen with no steps which meant Ava had the freedom to walk in and out and enjoy the outdoors as she pleased, it also made it possible to enjoy our great backyard...even from the kitchen! LOVE the weather- hot as hell in the summer, but the most perfect winters you could imagine- a totally great combo, and I love that it's on the smaller side...just perfect for the three of us.

And I also love this house because it's where Ava was born. It's where she had her first 2 years of life. She spent her first night here...in her brown and pink room. It's where she woke up every two hours...cause she just couldn't stand to be away from her mama any longer ;) , it's where she learned her letters by writing on the bathtub wall with (washable!) crayons, it's where she learned to crawl, learned to walk, learned to eat and talk. It's where her love for Elmo and The Little Mermaid started. It's where she had long afternoon naps and slept 10 hours a night. It's where she had her first babysitter. It's where she learned to watch birds, it's where she learned to entertain herself by exploring around the backyard for an hour at a time. It's where she had her first Christmas Tree...even though it was 70 degrees outside, it's where she first dyed Easter Eggs and had an Easter Egg hunt. It's where she first learned to dance and "raise the roof!"

It's where Ava grew up. She became a little girl in this house. Sadly, she'll never remember this place...but I'll remember it for her. She'll hear lots of stories about our time here and how it was the most wonderful two years. While living here, we realized that it's the only place that made Patrick and I even consider not returning home and keeping our fabulous life here.

Two nights ago, I put Ava to bed for the last time in her perfect little pink and brown room. After I placed her in her crib, I was playing with her hair and talking about our house. We talked about how great the house has been and what a great room she has. I asked her is she loves her room, and she said, "yeah." We kept talking about how it's been a great house but that she was gonna go to her new house the next day...I started to tear and cry a little, and Ava looked up at me and said,"Mommy, cry." She was so sweet and I explained that I was crying cause I was sad. Her innocence and naiveity about leaving was perfect. She may not have memories from this place, but I'll never let her forget our time here.

We have much to be thankful for, and one of those things is this fantastic house. I only hope that I'll find a house one day that can compare. It'll be very hard.

So, we raise a glass for a toast to this house...To our little Gainesville home- we love you and will never forget the amazing memories that were made here.

Here are some pictures of our house it you wanna see! They're the pictures we took when we put the house on the market.

Ava 22 months and everything else!

Oh my gosh...where the heck do I start!!?? These past 2 months have been a CRAZY and WACKY roller coaster, and life has been BUSY x 10!! About a month ago, my residents and I took our pedo boards, and I'm SO glad to be done with that! A week later, we all went to Hawaii to present our research at the AAPD meeting (that was awesome!!) Two days after I got back from Hawaii, we (the family) left to go to Alpharetta for long weekend to take care of some things. I spent a little time at the office sorting out some things for when I start, but the main reason for heading home was to find a pre-school for Ava! Can you believe it?! Pre-school!!! I'll be working 3 days a week when we get back home, and she'll be going to school 2 of those days and then spending the 3rd day with her Michee! The school we picked is close to my work (and Bobbi's house)! Since Bobbi is a teacher and gets out of work around 2:30, she'll usually be picking Ava up from school around 3 and having Bobbi time until I'm done with work! It actually works out great because Ava will nap at school from around 12:30 to 2:30, and then she'll wake up and have snack. So, she'll basically be at school and be VERY busy for the morning, have lunch, nap, then play with Bobbi until I'm done with work! It's perfect! Then her Michee day on Friday! It's gonna be so great to be home close to family...we're really excited! We've been talking to Ava about moving, and when we ask her where her new house is gonna be, she says, "lake." Then we ask her, what else is at the lake? She says, "boat." Too freakin' cute!!

So, as you can probably imagine, Ava has changed a lot in the last 2 months! She is truly amazing with the things she's learning, saying, doing, and understanding! I know moms always say that kind of stuff, but her mind is so unbelievable right now....it's hard to explain it without you being able to see her in action! She is seriously repeating everything we say. And I mean everything. The good, the bad, and the ugly. :) Some of my favorite words/phrases right now are: "new diapee" (new diaper), "otay" (okay), "Oh. My. Gosh." (with both hands on either cheek and a pause between each word!), "buff hay" (brush hair), "Doo doo" (Dora), "waca-moona" (guacamole), "I don't know" (along with a shoulder shrug!), "buff teet" (brush teeth), "pees" (please), "run to mommy" (one of her new favortie games- we sit on the ground, she runs full speed into us as we catch and hug her!), "nummy tummy" (yummy in my tummy), "Uncle Pat", and "Aunt Booda" (Aunt Booj). I could go on and on...since, of course, pretty much everything that comes out of her mouth is super cute. ;)

So, Michee sent her some "fancy pants" (real underwear) about a month ago since Ava has been quite interested in the potty. Here she is checking them out! She also found her belly button! :)
Shortly after those pics were taken, we had to change pants cause they were wet... oh well, they were cute for a few minutes! :)

Ava now has her own little potty that she likes to sit on. Sometimes, she'll even read a book while she's sitting. She's only actually peed in the potty twice...but that was just good, lucky timing. Mostly, she just likes to sit on the potty...fully clothed! :) But not for this picture. :)
I got Ava some sunglasses, cause she's always talking about "sun eyes." Can you even STAND it?!? Such a little diva!
Some cute stories:
I was in Ava's room the other day, and I opened her drawer to pick something for her to wear, and she came and looked over my shoulder and said, "Hmmmm." I laughed and repeated her....realizing that she had probably heard me say that a hundred times while I was trying to decide on clothes!

Ava was playing with a Dora doll and wanted her to walk up stairs, so she got some nesting stacking blocks (you know, the kind that get smaller and smaller and you can stack them inside the next) and arranged them next to each other like a stair case. Then Dora had "stairs" to walk up and down on! So freakin' smart!

She did the same thing with Elmo...she turned her Elmo chair over and used the back of it as a slide for her Elmo doll...."Elmo slide."

One of the cutest...Sarah, Ava, and I were shopping and looking at shoes deciding which ones were cute. Ava started to pull one shoe, then the other shoe off the shelf and show it to us and say, "Cuuuute" (sounded like k-yooot, with an emphasized "ooot")! She did this about 25 times! :) She's such a mimic-er!

When Sarah takes Ava in the car, she'll use her rear view mirror to see Ava...and one time she also opened the mirror in the visor. So, oneday I was in the car with Ava, she wanted to "see Mommy." So, I moved the rear view...then she said "dat too" and pointed to the visor mirror. When I got them both situated and she could see me in both mirrors, she smiled and got so excited and said, "TWO Mommies." Cutest ever!!

I was trying to get a cute shot of her sitting on my lap, but she's so freakin' busy and all over the place, this is the best I could get! On the move, and in the middle of talking!
Here's Ava in a super cute bathing suit that one of her cousin's got her last year. She finally grew into it! Check out those loooong legs! When did that happen?!?!
She LOVES to play with the hose and will do this for hours!! Notice her new "Doo doo shoes" (Dora shoes) that her Aunt Sarah got her!
Ava's getting so much better (actually really good!) at letting us fix her hair (thanks to Sarah who practiced and desensitized her)!! Her bangs are getting so long now that they hang in her eyes...and now she'll ask for a bow..."bow eyes, bow eyes!" Here's a teeny tiny pony tail I was able to get in there! She loved this mermaid dress (which is actually a nightgown!), and never wants to take it off!!

We went to the pool and brought lunch with us. Ava's so good at hanging out ....after we swim for a while, she's tired and wants to be "wrapped up." Then she'll just sit there for like 30 minutes eating a snack and watching the other kids! She wanted to call Michee...so, here she is talking on the phone like she's 13 years old!

"Hi Mimi. Pooo. Purpur noo noo." (Hi Michee. Pool. Purple noodle)!She still being super lovey lately...probably even more so. I'm definitely loving it and don't ever want the day to come that this ends! At night before bed, she'll now fold her hands and close her eyes to say prayers and says, "Amen" at the end. Then, almost right away, she starts spouting out her song requests...."Puff" (Puff the Magic Dragon), "ABC" and "Row Row." She loves them all and would let you sing to her forever.

I'm loving time with Ava right now, and I so excited that very soon I get to spend 4 days out of every week with her!! Can't wait! 18 more days!!

Here's some pictures of the past two months with Ava...21 and 22 months! Enjoy!

M.I.A.

So, I know I've totally been M.I.A. for a few weeks...but life is a little crazy right now. It's starting to feel a little more back to normal now...but then we're out of here in 3 weeks! So...back to crazy-ville for a while.

Anyway, here's a few pics to get you by. ;) I'll update with the good stuff soon!

Thanks to Aunt Sarah ("Rah-rah"), Ava lets us do bows now. In fact, her bangs hang in her eyes, and now she'll ask for a bow...."bow hey (hair) eyes, bow hey eyes!" The aftermath of a very messy sip from a big girl cup!Aunt Sarah made her home made popsicles out of apple juice and called them applesicles...now, Ava thinks ALL popsicles are "applsicles." Here she is lovin' a green one!There's so much new info, and I'm almost TWO months behind. Eeeek! Ava's doing and saying a billion things, so I'll try to update with good info soon!!