Table Manners

Breakfast, lunch, and dinner typically follow a similar pattern in our house. Pray. Eat. Goof off. Eat some more. Goof off some more. Call it quits.

Ava is a phenomenal eater (quality AND quantity), and for the most part, she has excellent manners. In between 'please' and 'thank you,' Ava spends her time stuffing her face, and making Matt and I laugh. Ava comes up with some of the funniest sounds, phrases and body motions, all of which get quite a reaction from anyone sitting at the table. And trust me, I'm not just saying she's funny because I am her mom, and I'm supposed to... Ava is genuinely funny! I believe she may be following her dad's footsteps in the "Class Clown" department.

Once Ava gets us laughing, she laughs even harder and it becomes a very difficult cycle to break. See...

what...

 

I mean?

Another one of Ava's table tricks is one that I don't quite understand. It all started a few weeks ago, when out of no where, Ava decided to eat her lunch with her eyes shut. Now, at the end of almost every meal, Ava shuts her eyes, puckers her lips, breathes very hard out of her nose, and proceeds to tap around the table/plate with both hands, as if to search for any remaining scraps of food. During this search for food, Matt and I lovingly call Ava, "The Blind Child," while quoting one of the greatest movies of all time, A Christmas Story. "It... It 'twas.... Soap Poisoning!"

On a completely unrelated note... Ava has now mastered the art of pushing her new stroller (see previous post). She still does not allow her baby doll to ride in the stroller, but at least Ava no longer picks the stroller up when we walk down the street. This is progress!



6 Years

Today, Matt and I celebrated 6 wonderful years of marriage. I am so thankful and humbled that God saw fit for Matt and I to be husband and wife. He has been such a blessing to me and I pray that I can return at least a portion of that blessing to his life.

Matt surprised me with a date night at The Angus Barn, in Raleigh. It was so nice to get dressed up, and get through an entire meal without picking a sippy cup off the floor, or having to stop a certain 19 month old girl from heaving a fork across the restaurant... Not to mention eating the best filet mignon ever prepared.

Thank you so much, Matt, for being the most amazing husband to me, and the best dad to Ava. I'm so excited to see what God has planned for us in the many, many years to come! Happy Anniversary!

Heatwave Checklist

If you live in the general area, and you have 1) stepped outside lately, or 2) turned on the local weather, you know it is H.O.T!! Sure, you can sit inside in the air conditioning to help beat the heat, but where's the fun in that (especially when you're 19 months old)? This morning, we attended a backyard birthday party for one of Ava's friends. Even though the party was outside, all of the guests stayed cool thanks to fun (and wet) activities planned for the kids. In case you are looking for ways to keep cool during this heat, take note of the following Heatwave Checklist:

1. Wear a bathing suit. Check!

2. Stay hydrated. Check!

3. Rub bubble solution on your belly. Check!

4. Catch the breeze by riding in a swing. Check!

5. Play in/around a pool with water toys. Check!

6. Run through/Play in sprinklers. Check!

Check!

And check!

Hear The Rainbow

Skittles has coined the phrase, "Taste the Rainbow." I am hereby claiming, "Hear the Rainbow." For the past 2 weeks, that is exactly what Matt and I have been doing... Hearing every single color of the rainbow. Ava points at everything, from cars in the street, to crumbs on the floor, and tells us what color(s) she sees.

It is hard to tell from the following picture, but the top of Ava's ice cream cone is covered in M&Ms. I'm sure you can imagine the number of times she listed the color of every M&M before putting them in her mouth.

As if hearing Ava's sweet voice say all of the colors in ROY G BIV isn't cute enough, hearing her say them in her own way is just stinkin' adorable.

Red = Ed

Orange = Uhn-jinge

Yellow = Uhn-no

Green = Geen

Blue = Boo

Purple = Puh-pull

Black = Back

Brown = Bown

White = Ite

You can be certain that after eating all of the colorful coated candies, my mildly OCD child let me know that she was not a fan of the sticky residue on her hand by lifting it to the camera and saying, "Mess."

On another rainbow related note.... Ava has been using the big girl potty and the other night she did a #1 and #2 in the same sitting. Her reward, 2 M&Ms. We asked her what colors she wanted and she enthusiastically chose, "geen, uhn-jinge." What a big girl!

Poo-Pa

Ava and I got a special treat today... My dad (aka, Opa... but currently pronounced, 'Poo-Pa') came for a visit! We went to the library, went out to lunch, played outside, talked over dinner... Ava and I both enjoyed his company during his visit. Actually, Ava enjoyed Poo-Pa's company so much, that the role of Mom was pretty much nonexistent all day long. Ava wanted nothing to do with me, and everything to do with Poo-Pa!

Poo-Pa, up!

Poo-Pa, it! (sit)

Poo-Pa, book!

Poo-Pa, mon! (come one)

Poo-Pa, dink! (drink)

Poo-Pa, dat! (that... Ava wanted my dad to pick her up and carry her to whatever she was pointing to, which ended up being every thing in the house).

Thanks for coming and spending your day with us, Poo-Pa!

P is for Picnic

This evening was spent at Bur-Mil Park, enjoying our annual church picnic. There was great food (and lots of it), games, fellowship and good times had by all.

As soon as the lines formed for the food, I jumped in one of them and put together what I thought was a perfect plate for Ava. She apparently had other thoughts because instead of eating the food off of her plate, she ate all the food off of mine. Including my corn on the cob.

This little cutie is Miss Brooklyn. She is one of the happiest babies I have ever met.... And boy does she know how to work it for a camera! Ava enjoyed getting to play with Brooklyn while the men played frisbee and us ladies got to do what we do best.... talk.

Ava and Brooklyn even got to enjoy a wagon ride together. And again, Brooklyn was turning on the charm for the camera. As soon as she saw me take the camera out, Brooklyn smiled from ear to ear... While Ava just stared at the camera as if to say, "Really? More pictures?"

Matt and I take Ava to Bur-Mil park on a pretty regular basis, but somehow we have missed this particular playground on our previous visits. Ava loves cars and trucks, so this was right up her alley!

We're so thankful that God has blessed us with so many wonderful friends through our church!

If At First You Don't Succeed...

Following Ava's amazing behavior during our trip to Utah (and more specifically, on the airplane), Matt and I decided to take her to Target for a special treat. Lately, Ava has been very into pushing her own stroller around the house when we get back from our morning runs. So, what could be better than to get Ava her very own stroller to push around the block?

This is what happened when we brought the stroller home:

1. Ava put the baby in the stroller.

2. Ava got mad that the baby was getting to ride in the new stroller so Ava threw they baby on the ground, and proceeded to run the baby over with the newly purchased stroller.

3. Ava pushed the newly purchased, empty stroller down the street about 8 inches.

4. Ava got mad that she could not push the stroller in a perfectly straight line, so she picked it up and carried it.

This is what it looks like in motion. If at first you don't succeed, pick up the stroller and carry it.

U is for Utah

Utah. There are so many things I love about this state. Above all the things I love about Utah, I love my grandma (who lives in Utah), and I love that we got to spend some time with her over the past several days.

Tuesday morning started really early for us. 4:00am, to be exact. We got up, got dressed, drove to the airport in Raleigh and rolled through security, literally.

Genius Traveling Tip #1: The Go Go Babyz Travel Mate. If you or someone you know will be traveling with a toddler in the future, I highly recommend this product. Instead of taking a car seat and a stroller through the airport, you can simply attach a handle with wheels to your child's car seat, and you're ready to roll!

Genius Traveling Tip #2: A cosmetic bag, turned snack super hero. I packed this bag with all of Ava's favorite goodies, rolled the bag up, placed it in my backpack and all of Ava's snacks were at my fingertips whenever I needed them.

I cannot even begin to tell you how wonderful Ava was on the airplane! Including layovers, we spent about 7.5 hours either in an airplane or an airport on the way to Utah AND the return trip home. Needless to say, with the long traveling hours, time change, lack of routine.... I was a little nervous that Ava would be the screaming baby on the flight. I am happy to report that she never made a peep. She spent her time watching movies on a portable DVD player (Genius Traveling Tip #3), coloring, playing with toys, napping, and of course, reading her books.

When all of the games and toys in my backpack no longer held Ava's attention, she had plenty of people to keep her entertained.

Once we arrived in Utah, our time was spent bouncing back and forth between my grandma's house, the hotel, and a local park. We did our best to accommodate Ava's nap time, along with meals and time for my grandma to rest. As a result of our choppy schedule, the following pictures are kind of all over the place, so please bear with me.

While growing up in Utah, my brother and I used to go to Layton Park almost every day. We rode bikes, played on the playground, and fed the ducks. 25 years later, my brother, mom and I returned to Layton Park, and this time, I brought my daughter with me.

Ava loved looking at the ducks...

And posing for pictures with the ducks...

And walking over the bridge that goes over the ducks.

One of my favorite things about Layton Park, and Utah in general, is seeing my mountains. They are gorgeous, and no matter where you're eyes look, they're there. Oh how I wish we had mountains like this around here. Sigh.

After spending the morning at the park, we stopped back by the hotel where Ava enjoyed riding up and down in the elevator...

And running up and down the halls. Again. And again. And again.

And now on to the most important part of our trip, visiting with my grandma... Ava's Great Oma, or as Ava said, "Mah-Mo-Ma."

We got to spend a couple of days enjoying lunch and dinner at my grandmother's table.

The high chair that Ava sat in was my grandmother's when she was a baby. If you do the math, this chair is almost 90 years old. Still works like a charm!

Ava loves her Great Oma and I believe it's safe to say the feeling is mutual. I am so happy we got to spend time with my grandma, I just hate that it doesn't happen more often.

Our last night in Utah was spent back at Layton Park for a picnic with my aunt and uncle.

Ava also got to experience one of my all time favorite Utah foods: Raspberry filled, powdered sugar covered doughnuts. Yum. I believe she was a fan!

Ryan taught Ava how to feed the ducks.

And Ava spent some time playing on the playground.

After all of the visiting, playing, and traveling, Ava got in her pajamas and tried to settle down for the night.

Unfortunately, Ava was beyond exhausted and when that happens, she gets SLAP...

HAPPY!

Ava finally calmed down and enjoyed having a slumber party with Oma.

All in all, it was a fast, but very worthwhile trip. I wish more than anything my grandmother lived closer. The distance between us certainly makes me cherish the time we get to spend with her.

Thank you, Lord, for blessing us with safe travel, and a wonderful trip visiting family.

Fun Fourth

The 4th of July is a day set aside to celebrate our Nation's freedom, enjoy time with friends and family, set of fireworks... And in true American tradition... cookout!

After putting on her stars and stripes, Ava gave herself one look in the mirror and said, "Oooh. Pitty!" Just in the past several days, she has become a major fan of dresses.

Ava and I were so thankful to have Matt home with us all day today.

We also celebrated the day with my parents, brother, and his girlfriend, Kayla.

Mimi and Poppy joined our festivities as well. Ava was in heaven! Both sets of grandparents at her house at the same time... what more could a granddaughter want?

Sadly, the sparkler seen below is as close as we got to any fireworks tonight. After seeing a few fireworks at the beach, Ava quickly discovered she is not a fan. Ever since we returned home from the beach, Ava will cover hear ears, get a look of horror on her face, and say, "booms" at any sound that remotely similar to a firework. Airplanes, garbage truck, car doors slamming... Maybe we'll have better luck next year!

Happy 4th of July! I hope you have had a wonderful day celebrating with your friends, family and loved ones.