This past weekend we made a quick trip to Des Moines, IA to visit cousin Jack!  We also got to see Grammie Johnson’s look alike,  Great Aunt Patti!  Ava had a great time and found Jack’s toys a lot of fun.  We think she is getting a little bored with her current toys, but Christmas is right around the corner.  We were hoping Jack would teach Ava how to be mobile on her own. Sure enough, she wanted to do what Jack did. However, she still isn’t taking the risk of doing things on her own. Mom and dad are seriously becoming hunchbacks!

Thanks Bob, Josie, and Patti for lunch…it was great to see you all again! We appreciate your hospitality! You have a wonderful place…

Here are some new videos of Ava’s many adventures over the past month!

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A typical day of getting entertained by mom and dad!

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Aunt Autumn came to visit over Thanksgiving!

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I like doggies!  Maybe Dad and I can persuade Mom to get one!!

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I can be easily entertained by a bunch of things!

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I love to walk around (with the help of mom and dad of course)!

We hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. The Johnsons spent the holidays at home with the Petersen clan. Crystal’s sister Autumn made it back from L.A. And, she was mighty excited to spend sometime with her niece. It was a nice and quiet holiday; however, we always wonder how it goes so fast! We are now trying to get back to reality. Here are some snapshots of Miss Ava’s Thanksgiving weekend.

Thanksgiving=Football. Ava knows her touchdowns!

Turkey Tired

This is how mom and dad feel. Sad the holiday is over!

Lumberjack Ava

My auntie Autumn. Love her to pieces!

Sometimes the Johnson household isn’t too exciting. But, Ava always finds ways to create fun, laughter, and joy.

Mom, have you seen this message!

Ava likes digging through mom's purse!

Staring Contest with Slim Shady

 **Special Note: No, Crystal has not caved in and the Johnsons did not get a pet. It’s her parent’s outdoors cat.

A new hair do after taking a nap (yes, we took a nap!)

What, you don't think this is a good look for me? Man, I thought I was on to something...

 

Wow…where did the last nine months go? It’s hard to believe in 3 very short months, our daughter is going to be 1 year old. She has definitely filled our home with joy and a love that we didn’t know existed.

Recently, we had Ava’s 9 month pictures taken. However, due to copyright laws, we can’t post them…so Poppi Petersen got out his camera for us. Man, do we love when Poppy takes pictures! They haven’t been photoshopped yet, but there are some that are real keepers. There were too many to put in a posting, so please visit the Ava at 9 Months page on the right.

Here’s an update:

  • We still have no teeth
  • We do not crawl, and we don’t like to try
  • If mom and dad help, we LOVE to walk
  • Peek-a-boo and Patty-Cake are the best games to play (also LOVES getting chased around the house!)
  • We are still wishing for a little more hair…mom is just dying to put bows in Ava’s hair (and we hate everything on our head—hats, bows, headbands, hoods, etc. We rip them off immediately, so mom might not get bows.)
  • We can’t stand peas and absolutely LOVE peaches (she is Crystal’s daughter after all!)
  • Is a chatterbox…communication is a biggie in the Johnson household!
  • Loves doing “Touchdown” during Husker football games (guess who taught her that one?)
  • Is starting to wave bye-bye and loves to clap
  • Did we mention that she loves to investigate everything and always has to be a part of the party?

Well, not much has happened this week. Ava has been mostly in recovery mode from our wild last week adventure. She feels so much better…and momma and dada are very happy the steroids have left her body. While she is such a sweet girl and the happiest baby on the planet…steroids made her a crazy lady! We did not have a good Halloween. We were very grumpy! Here are some of her recovery activities…

Crazy Lady

Crazy lady heading back to daycare...

Halloween Outfit

Much better, going to celebrate Halloween

Halloween Day

Halloween Day...not a happy camper!

Mowing

Mowing with Daddy!

Pudding

Tried a sample of pudding...

Pudding 2

...and liking it!

We are not on table foods yet, but mommy let her try some pudding… and my did we like that! And, don’t mind the bow. Momma was trying to have some fun…the girl needs to grow some hair!

Halloween

Cute as a bug!

Halloween 2

Our little snuggle bug!

Halloween 3

Our exploring ladybug!

Halloween 4

Perched Pretty

The Case of Our Little Chameleon

 

Well, the Johnsons went through a scary week. And, we are not talking about Halloween festivites. On Monday evening, Ava had developed some hives. As thorough parents, we were racking our heads trying to think of how she got these hives. Was it from a weed outside (she took Halloween costume pictures outside)? No, she was covered head to toe. Was it a food? No, she ate all of the same things she had been eating. Was is an outfit that didn’t get washed? Possibly.

That night was not pretty for momma. Ava was so restless, she wouldn’t stay still. The only way she would sleep was if mom was holding her on her chest. Great. Mom and Ava slept sitting up on the couch from 3am to 6am. We are back to our newborn days! The next morning, she seemed to be doing pretty well. The rash was there, but not spreading. It was just blotchy, and Ava was in good spirits. So, we sent her to daycare with specific instructions. It wasn’t even an hour later and daycare called. We had produced a slight fever, and the rash was rapidly developing. So, off momma went to get Ava and head to the doctor.

The doctor said it was a classic case of the hives. Though we couldn’t pinpoint it at that time, we think she is allergic to Penicillin, which is found in Amoxicillin (she was on it for a nasty cold she couldn’t get rid of.) So, we got placed on a new cold medication and some Benadryl. Off we went home to try and recover. (And, for all you mommies out there…I know the pharmacist already freaked out on me for giving my child Benadryl. Children under the age of 2 aren’t suppose to have it. But, she was on a special dosage.)

Here is what we looked like with hives, but wait, the story continues…

Mommy, something is on me that itches...

Hives 2

This isn't a good look, is it?

So, that night, as in typical fashion, we had a hard time staying asleep. This time, we were up at 3am. We had a fever, and mom freaked out. It was like the hives took over Ava’s entire body. We were definitely worse. However, we got back to sleep. Mom thought at one point about heading to the ER. Mom immediately in the morning started calling friends for advice (they have been through this before)…does this get worse before it gets better was the big question. Benadryl wasn’t doing a thing!! The fever wasn’t breaking, she was incrediblity hot to the touch, and the list goes on and on. So, we called the doctor again. Ava was in rare form, and mommy felt terrible!

Off to the doctor we went (for the 4th time in 2 weeks)! The doctor had no idea the hives were going to take this kind of direction. Of course, Ava has some really long medical term that can’t be described, as we can’t even pronounce it or repeat all the 26 letters mixed up to compose the word. Basically, she had a severe drug reaction…classic symptoms. So, it is Penicillin that she is allergic to. Case closed. However, the symptoms can get more severe, so we are suppose to keep an eye on her. That isn’t too hard to do these days. But, geez…we didn’t want it to get worse than what it was…

Here is what it escalated to, but these pictures DO NOT do it justice!

Rash1

Mom, I am not happy!

Have you ever seen Ava not in good spirits?

Ava was put on some steroids. We gave her an Aveeno bath to help with relief. Her fever finally broke. We actually got some sleep last night. The steroids defnitely make her act a little crazy though. Ava is the happiest baby on the planet. It was hard to see her in this shape. These last few days definitely tested us all. We are on the uphill swing now…the roids are doing Ava well.

Background story: Ava has been on Amoxicillin once before, and we had no problems. However, the allergy can appear at anytime in life, but usually shows its signs on the 7th day of taking it. True to form, on the 7th day, Ava got all the classic symptoms. Brian and I were not aware of any family allergies. Later we discovered, Grammie Johnson has this allergy, as well as Great Grandma Vosika. There you have it!

Well, it has been a doozy of a couple of days. Ava has had a massive allergic reaction to Penicillin. (More to come on that later). So, mommy and daddy have had their hands full with a little sick one. It’s been a test of strength!

Prior to getting sick, we took Ava to a pumpkin patch. While we know Ava won’t remember it, mommy definitely wanted some fall pictures. There were too many to pick from to post…so we made a page. Please click on the left: Ava at the Pumpkin Patch. Enjoy!

Brian and Crystal headed back this past weekend to where it all started, Augustana College. It was the college’s homecoming. One of the big celebrations was the new, beautiful football stadium that was built on campus. It was the first time in 50 years, where all of the homecoming festivities returned to campus. And, in typical Sioux Falls fashion, the weather was cold. Now, it has been much colder, but our bones weren’t use to the first drop in the temperatures this season.

We all know who Ava looks like….not her mother! However, Ava is completely her mother’s daughter….she hates the cold! We did our best to buddle her up, and only stayed for a small portion of the game. While we are the Augustana Vikings, in “our day” there was such a thing as Augie Doggie. Ava wore her doggie hat. (She HATES things on her head, so it is amazing it stayed on the whole time. She refused to wear her doggie mittens.)

Social butterfly...already making friends!

Social butterfly...already making friends!

Viking People!

Viking People!

Snuggling with mommy!

Snuggling with mommy!

Braving the cold...but still taking it all in!

Braving the cold...but still taking it all in!