Beef Eaters Heaven

It's that time of year again. Time to load up in the cars, and head to Raleigh for our annual Kincaid/Gardner/Ussery/Williams dinner at the Angus Barn.

While we waited for our table, Ava found the Treasure Chest full of toys.

After searching long and hard through the treasure chest, Ava found the toy she wanted to take home. Superstar!

Yet again, Anna saved the day and kept Ava entertained and out of trouble before dinner.

We took our annual family photo in front of the beautifully decorated tree.

And then, we ate! Matt and I look forward to this dinner every year. The Angus Barn is an outstanding restaurant... But the Christmas decorations, and family, make it even better.

Ava was thrilled to spend some time with her newest cousin, Charlie.

Mema & Deda (Matt's maternal grandparents) orchestrate this whole event, and, ahem... cover the bill for all 19 people in attendance. THANK YOU Mema & Deda for your generosity, and for allowing us to enjoy this wonderful tradition year after year.

Since we had 19 people at our table, we had a very loooong table. Matt and I sat across from this good looking couple, Brian & Jennifer (Matt's uncle and aunt). Trust me when I say, my cheeks hurt at the end of the night from the laughter at our end of the table. :)

Mimi enjoyed every minute of having all of her grandchildren in the same place, at the same time. I'm sure she especially enjoyed the bonding time she spent with Charlie.

After dinner, The Angus Barn brought a cake to Owen, whose birthday is December 14th...

And Ava, whose birthday was just 2 weeks before this dinner.

Family, fun, great food, Christmas decorations and cake. Can't ask for a better night!

Crazy Hair

Ava's new big girl bed + Ava's new big girl pillow + Ava's new big girl sheet/blanket/quilt (keeping her toasty warm) =

CRAZY HAIR! The combination of the items listed above, leave Ava with sweaty, crazy, and unmanageable hair after every nap and bedtime. You can't see the back of her head from this picture, but just picture a Brillo pad mixed with cotton candy. It takes me a good 6-7 minutes to comb all of the tangles out.

Laundry Baskets Are Bullies Too

Do you remember when I mentioned the bathtub that hit Ava in the face and gave her a black eye? Apparently said bathtub conspired with my laundry basket to give Ava another shiner, and a split eyelid.

What in the world? How is it even possible to split your eye open on the rounded edge of a plastic laundry basket. Quite honestly, I saw Ava fall, and I knew that her face was what hit the laundry basket. I decided to pull the, "If I don't react, Ava will think everything is ok" card. I quickly turned my back to the situation, hoping that Ava would just brush it off. Brush it off she did, she barely made a peep. To my astonishment however, I found blood on her eyelid when I finally turned around. I sure am glad Ava is a tough cookie! And a cute one too! :)

Big Girl Room

With Ava's birthday being 22 days before Christmas, she gets plenty of presents during the month of December. This year, instead of adding to the pile of new toys, Matt and I decided to give Ava her very own big girl room.

When we came home from Ava's birthday party, this is what she found at the end of the hallway. (Let me mention that not only was Ava getting a big girl room, but she was getting a different room in the house completely.)

After busting through the paper wrapped door, this is what she found...

The sheets are covered with birds and birdhouses in pink, orange, green and brown.

The quilt is adorable and perfect for a big girl room.

The back corner of the room is now Ava's, 'play nook.'

The oak cabinet is perfect for storing toys and all of her arts and crafts.

What little girl's room (in December) would be complete without a Christmas tree?

Everything, and I mean everything in this room was repainted for the big reveal. The outdated, brass fixtures went from this...

To this. Ah, much better. Gotta love spray paint.

To say Ava was excited about her new bed would be an understatement!

Ava has never been one to turn down a nap, or bed time. Tonight was no exception... She was more than ready to snuggle up in her new big girl bedroom!

Happy 2nd Birthday, Ava!

2 years ago today, at 2:30pm, Ava Louise Gardner entered the world and changed our lives forever. We spend the entire day celebrating. Here is a recap:

Ava woke up to balloons on her floor, and Me, Matt, Oma and Uncle Ryan singing Happy Birthday.

After a birthday pancake breakfast, we loaded up in the van, and headed to Safari Nation for Ava's birthday party. Ava has been to Safari Nation several times, and she spent the entire car ride telling us everything she planned to do and see during the party.

Safari Nation had a reserved parking spot just for the birthday girl.

As soon as we checked in, Ava was off and running. I honestly did not see her for the first 10 minutes of her party because she would not stay in one spot more than 30 seconds. So instead, I took pictures of all of the beautiful babies that came to celebrate Ava's birthday. They all had the same reaction.... Stare at the large black camera (and the crazy lady behind the camera) in wonder, amusement and fear.

The slightly older kids enjoyed crawling through tunnels.

Walking on balance beams.

Collecting foam balls.

Trying to escape.

Zooming through the air.

And sliding down slides. And let me just mention... Anna (holding Ava in the following picture) was a life saver at this party! Anna never let Ava out of her sight. Plus, Anna carried Ava up every ladder and through every tunnel that Ava needed help with. This was my first trip to Safari Nation where I did not break a sweat. I'm not sure I can say the same for Anna... She played hard, and took the best care of Ava! Thank you!

Who says 2 year old birthday parties are just for kids? The grown ups had a great time too.

After an hour of playing, it was time for some sugar consumption. I tried my best to bring the 'safari' theme into the cupcakes...

There were hippos (even though Ava kept calling them giraffes).

And alligators.

And flamingos.

Ava looked itty bitty sitting in this giant, inflatable chair.

She devoured her alligator cupcake and was ready to play the rest of the day away!

We are so thankful to God for the many family members and friends who not only able to come celebrate Ava's birthday, but who are such an important part of Ava's life.

After 2 hours of playing, we were all in need of some food. We headed over to Ava's favorite restaurant for lunch, Tokyo Express. Ava can put down a plate of shrimp and rice like nobody's business.

After lunch... Presents! Any typical kid would have ripped through these gifts in no time. Our Ava, is anything but typical. It took her an hour to get through all of these presents. She is the type of kid who opens a present, and wants to play with THAT present. I am by no means complaining... I guess I just never thought I would have to use M&Ms to bribe my child to finish opening her presents. 

By far, her favorite gift was a beauty set. More specifically... the hair dryer that was included in the beauty set. The hair dryer has been on so much, I doubt the batteries will last through the end of the week. :)

Ava also enjoyed playing with her new, 'paint with water' book. I used to love those things when I was a kid!

Once Ava was done painting the picture, she moved on to her toes. Thank goodness it is just water.

Happy 2nd Birthday, Shoogie. Dad and I love you more than you will ever know. What a privilege and blessing it is to be your parents!