Better Late than Never

Ava and I picked out some "holiday fabric" before Christmas, so I could make matching skirts.  Christmas came and went and no skirts.  I decided I would then make them for Ava's birthday.  Well that rolled around and still no skirts.  I felt bad and was determined to get them done, so I set a new goal.  I vowed I would finish them for Valentine's Day.  This time I actually succeeded.  I made time to make the skirts and we wore them the Sunday after Valentine's Day.  They are not complicated or fancy, but I thing we look cute together.

Ava decided we needed a jumping picture, so here we go.

Look at the air we got.  Not bad considering I'm wearing heels.

Night Walks

Recently, we have enjoyed what Ava calls "night walks".  Last month Ava discovered one of Rich's head lamps and decided she needed to use it for a night walk on the bike trail.  We thought it sounded like a fun idea, so we did it.

We left our house as the sun was going down.  Ava and Rich each wore a head lamp which I think was her favorite part.  We walked on the trail for a little bit, enjoyed the beautiful sunset, and saw deer.  Before it got too dark we made sure to be off the trail and almost home.  Once at home we warmed up with hot chocolate.

Headed to the trail with head lamps on.

Starting our night walk on the trail.

Ava and Daddy with their head lamps on.

Almost home.

Off on our 2nd night walk.  Mommy and Luca are leading the way.

Ava riding off into the sunset.

It is hard to see, but there are some deer in the field.

Back at home and enjoying some hot chocolate.

Homemade Obstacle Course

This week for FHE (Family Home Evening) I made a small obstacle course.  For the lesson we talked about our bodies being gifts from Heavenly Father and how to show our gratitude by taking care of them.  We talked about eating healthy and exercising (two things I'm working to improve).  After the short lesson it was time for a fun activity.

I thought the obstacle course would be entertaining and would provide some exercise.  I also thought it would be a good way for Ava to work on some of her gross motor skills.  The activity was a big hit.  Ava loved it and has done it throughout the week.

Here are some funny videos of each of us doing the obstacle course.  Rich and I had a hard time with the tunnel which was good for some laughs.

Gratitude

This year I decided to keep a gratitude journal.  I started January 1st and plan to write something I'm grateful for each day.  So far so good.  I keep it short and just write a couple lines.  It ranges anywhere from the things I'm most grateful for, my family, to things like shopping alone.  I just find one or two good things that happened that day and jot them down in my journal.

I decided to do this to help me focus on the good in the world.  Life is not always easy and it doesn't always go the way I want it to, but I always have blessings and good things surrounding me.  I want to be the kind of person that focuses on the good and not the bad.  I think by doing this my attitude is better and when difficult things come I handle them better.  I am able to "Count My Many Blessings" and feel happy.  It is uplifting and that is what I want, what I need.

In the spirit of this I just want to share a little bit of my gratitude for this week.  It has been a lovely week especially with Ava.  She has been so kind, loving, and snugly.  Ava has made me feel loved and appreciated.  We have spent a lot of time playing games, reading, and doing crafts.  She has been so pleasant and cooperative.  It has been really nice.

Ava is also doing a great job getting herself ready.  It has been wonderful watching her grow and learn.  This week she has been picking out clothes and getting dressed by herself.  I look forward to seeing her fashion choices each morning.  She also has been brushing her teeth, washing her face, and combing her hair by herself.  It just amazes me at how grown up she is becoming.  I am so proud of her for trying and doing all these things by herself.

Rich has also made my week wonderful.  He brought home a bouquet of flowers and an orchid for Ava and I.  They were all beautiful and flowers make me happy.  Last night while we sat on the couch and watched a show about ocean treasure hunters Rich rubbed my feet and legs.  It felt good and was nice because I was so tired.  It is nice to be taken care of and pampered.

These are just some highlights from the week.  There are so many more blessings and great moments that I did not mention.  It feels so good to focus on these good things and appreciate what I have.  I am glad I decided to keep a gratitude journal and I think it will be fun to look back on and remember how blessed I am.

Tahoe

At the end of January we went to Tahoe for a couple days with my parents.  This was the first time Ava got to play in the snow.  We weren't sure if she would like it, but now we know she LOVES it.  She had so much fun and didn't want to come home.

We arrived in the late afternoon with just enough light for Ava to try out the snow around the timeshare.  As soon as we unpacked the car Ava wanted her snow clothes on.  Since I wanted her to have a good experience I decked her out from head to toe with warm, waterproof gear.  She stayed warm, dry and was SUPER happy.

She found an igloo someone started and tried to add to it.  The snow was hard and icy, so it was hard for her to build up the igloo.  Ava gave up on that idea and moved onto sledding down a tiny hill outside our front door.  It was the perfect little hill for her to try sledding and overcome any fear she had.  Ava had so much fun and didn't want to go back inside even though it was getting dark, cold, and we were all hungry.  We had to remind her we could play the next day and she finally gave in.

That night we had a nice dinner out and then hung out in the timeshare.  Upon Ava's request we played Hungry Hippos and watched "The Empire Strikes Back."  Ava loves to talk about being frozen in carbonite and wanted to see that part of the movie.

The next morning we got ready and headed out to a real sledding hill.  Ava was super excited and did a happy dance when we got there.  The snow was still icy, hard, and not compacted.  It made it difficult to climb the hill because we kept sinking into the snow and getting stuck.  Ava didn't care and made it work.

At first Ava wasn't interested in going down the hill.  She just wanted to play, make a snowman, and snow angels.  While she played with Papa and Nonna Rich and I took turns sledding down the hill.  It was fun, bumpy, and not too fast.  It was also nice because it wasn't too crowded.

After a bit we convinced Ava to take a turn on the sled.  Once she went down the hill that is all she wanted to do for the rest of the time.  Rich and I took turns riding with her, but by the end she was going by herself and loving it.  Ava was sad when it was time to go, but happy from all the fun we had.

That evening we relaxed and hung out again.  We watched the first part of "Return of the Jedi" because Ava wanted to see Han be saved from the carbonite by Princess Leia.  We were all tired, so we went to bed early to prepare to leave the next day.

The next morning we got ready to leave, but Ava needed more time in the snow.  Rich and Nonna took Ava to a small hill at the backside of the timeshare property while Papa and I packed.  Ava and Rich did some more sledding and they built a bigger snowman.  They were having so much fun we almost were late to checkout.

It was a fun, but exhausting trip.  We are happy Ava had so much fun and we are enjoying watching the videos from the trip.  Now that we know Ava loves the snow we will have to make more trips to play.

Day 1:  Getting all the snow clothes on.

Ava is ready to go and just waiting for the slow adults.

We found a giant snowball.

Rich and Ava throwing snowballs.

We had a lot of fun playing Hungry Hippos.

Ava's Happy Dance.  LOVE IT!

Grrrr...I'm ready to tackle the hill.

Ava and her tiny snowman.  We forgot the carrot and other stuff in the car, so she improvised.

Ava having a good time playing with her snowball.

Rich got a little air hitting this bump.

Headed up the hill.

Rich and Ava getting ready to sled down the hill.

Ava and I smiling from all the fun we had sledding down the hill.

Weeeee!

Ava really wanted to try snow, so we found the cleanest, whitish patch of snow we could.

Ava ready to be pulled back to the car.

Future Archaeologist?

The day after Ava's birthday she woke up asking if she could go on a rock hunt.  She was so excited about her rock digging kit.  After getting ready for the day we got out her kit, read the directions, put safety gear on, and chiseled away.  At first Ava loved it, but as time wore on we realized it wasn't easy to chisel the block away.  After a bit she decided it was my turn, so I gave it a try.  It was much easier for me.  From that point on I would get a crack started for Ava and she would finish it.  It was a good team effort and Ava had a blast.  She was excited to find all the rocks and saw them as treasures.

Ready to hunt for some rocks.  The goggles from kit were really uncomfortable, but definitely necessary.

Ava was really focused and tried so hard to chisel away at the rock.

Ava using the magnifying glass and brush to remove the dust.  There wasn't much dust at this point.

Ava brushing the dust off a rock, so we could see where to chisel next.  Notice all the dust.  It was pretty messy and I'm glad we did it inside a gift box I could just throw away.

Presents & Cake

After dinner we went back home for Ava's favorite part of the day.  She wanted to open her presents as soon as she saw them wrapped a few days before.  She had also been talking about her cake for a couple months prior (no pressure).  Ava was so happy and enjoyed every presents and eating her special cake.  What a blessing it is to have such a sweet and wonderful little girl.

I LOVE YOU "Sweets"!

For part of Rich's gift I made him some Star Wars pajama pants.  Ava helped me a little too.

Ava gave Rich a Mario Kart Kinex set.  She told him he had to share with her.

Ava being silly.  She is just so cute!

Ava loves to rip open her presents.  This was a surprise hit of the night.  It is a rock digging (archaeology) kit.  I bought it last minute thinking it would be fun and too my surprise she talked about doing it the rest of the night.

Kim (Ava's birth mom) sent her some presents in the mail.  She got a beautiful princess costume, crown, and light up shoes.  She also got a princess kitchen timer and a cookbook.  She was really excited about the cookbook and decided she wants to make the cornbread...this girl loves her some cornbread.

Ava completely unwound this bow.  It was funny and unnecessary to getting the present open.  She just thought it was fun.

This was also another last minute gift that has been a big hit.  Ava loves her other dance game, but this is Disney Just Dance.  She LOVES it and is pretty good.

Ava talked about wanting this Tic Toc Crocodile flashlight before Christmas.  She has a thing for flashlights and this one makes noise.

Yes, I know Ava is blurry.  I use a tripod, but couldn't get her to stay still.

Ava started eating the cake before we could cut it.

I love the look on her face.  It made me feel good to know I made my Ava so happy.

Dinner Party

When Rich got home from work the party continued while we went out to dinner.  Rich decided he wanted to eat at Ichi Maki.  Rich enjoyed sushi and Ava ate a variety of things, but mostly edamame.  We were able to bribe Ava into eating some raw tuna and salmon.  At first she said she liked it, but then she had a harder time with the second bite.  I was proud of her for trying.

When we were done eating to our surprise our waitress brought Rich and Ava a dessert and sang Happy Birthday.  We don't really know what the dessert was.  It was a little weird.  Ava enjoyed the whip cream and chocolate sauce though.

The two birthday kids.

Ava being brave and eating raw fish.  This was her second piece, so it didn't go down as easy.  I'm so proud of Ava for trying new things...even if she was bribed.

Ava and Rich blowing out the candle on the unusually dessert.