The Crossler Family

Andy was shoveling the snow around the cars so Noah went outside and enjoyed playing in the snow. I am a wimp and don't like to get cold, so I don't take the kids outside.

Ava experiencing bacon for the first time. This wasn't really on the list of approved new foods, but all she did was suck off the fat and salt. No harm done!

We got our first real snow of the year, so I took Ava out in Noah's old snow suit to experience it and take pictures. She wasn't terribly impressed! It was just too cold, and the snow was coming down pretty fast.

Noah and Ava played in the tub. Ava is finally stable enough sitting that I don't have to have my hand 2 inches from her. They had a great time together!

Ava is 9 months old. And how this last month has flown by. At her 9 month check up, she weighed 15 lbs and was 25.5 inches long, which puts her in the <3rd percentile. Ava's personality is really starting to shine, she tells us when she is unhappy, which is hardly ever, and has really started to become vocal. She squeals and squeaks at Noah and he does the same back and then her face lights up. "ma-ma" is her first word, and has began to babble a lot more. Ava isn't crawling yet, or making any attempts, which is going to earn her an evaluation with the infant toddler program. When she is laying on the ground, she will scoot around on her back and can get quite far. She still strongly objects to being on her belly, which is making my attempts to help her learn to crawl difficult. We have been given the ok to introduce yogurt, and cottage cheese to her diet. She loves the yogurt, but has some issues with the texture of cottage cheese. It makes her gag every time.

Ava has had another busy month of dr appts. She had a couple weight checks, a video fluoroscopic swallow evaluation (VFSE), and we saw the pulmonologist, along with her 9 month check up. The VFSE showed a delayed swallow reflex, but whether that is because she didn't want to swallow the barium or because there is a true issue remains a question. We had a good visit with the pulmonologist. He decided that she does have mild asthma, which the inhaler does wonders for. He told us not to wean the inhalers for now and we will try another medication starting in May, so see if she does get good control with that. Her 9 month visit was very uneventful. At Ava's ear recheck this month, the dr drew blood and ran an allergy panel...no allergies. So hello soy and milk!! Yay! We see the GI dr later this month so I will update after that.

I finally set up the Rainforest Jumper for Ava to enjoy. She is so little that her legs barely can touch the ground. But she enjoys is anyway. The bird is her favorite! When I was taking the pictures, Noah came over and he wanted to get in front of the camera, which is always shocking, so I got a nice picture of him and Ava. It is his first genuine and sweet picture he has taken in quite a while.