Monterey Bay Aquarium

On Monday we met up with my parents and went to the Monterey Bay Aquarium.  We all had a good time and learned it takes 2x longer to look around with a 3 year old.  By the time we were done we were all exhausted.

It is tradition to take a picture as a family in the giant clam.  Rich and I started this when we were first married.

The first exhibit we went to was the penguins.  Ava was really excited to see them and we got to watch them eat.  Ava made a new penguin friend named Betty.  She kept swimming right by Ava which made Ava happy.

To the left Ava is inside a bubble taking a picture of the penguins.

Ava taking a picture of me taking a picture of her.  We are a family that loves our cameras.

Ava and Rich crawled in the aquarium tunnel in the kid's Splash Zone.

Ava insisted daddy be the red fish and go down the slide with her.

I decided it would be fun to be an octopus.

Ava jumping on the jelly beds.

This is the newest exhibit.  We were excited until we went it.  We ended up being disappointed because there were a lot of "fake" jellyfish.  It was a lot of weird psychedelic displays.

This was the most entertaining thing in the new exhibit.  It is a human kaleidoscope.

Rich and Ava.  Can you see them?

Ava and I on a jellyfish.

These were Ava's favorite jellyfish, but they weren't even in the new exhibit.  Upstairs there is an older jellyfish section next to the Outer Bay exhibit.  The jellyfish upstairs are much better.

Ava was determined to get on top of this sea horse.

Each time we've gone Ava and I have posed in front of this picture.  It is fun to see how much she has changed.

This is Ava and Rich's traditional spot to pose.

Ava watching the Ocean Sunfish.  I love this fish.

Ava on Rich's shoulders watching the hammerhead shark in the Outer Bay exhibit.  Ava loved the hammerhead sharks or "head bump" as she calls them.

Ava thought the wave washing over us was too loud.

Ava really got into the touch pools.  Last time she hated it and cried.

Rich helping Ava touch a Bat Ray.  We had to wait a long time before one came close enough for Ava to reach.  It made her happy though.

As we were leaving a nice lady from the aquarium stopped to show Ava her Decorator Crab (fake).  She shared some facts with Ava about it.  Ava then in return took out the items she got from the gift shop and told the lady about them.  Ava had a puffer fish, jelly fish, and hammerhead shark.  It was so cute to see Ava talking to the lady.  The lady was very impressed with Ava's knowledge and said Ava is on her way to being a future marine biologist.

Monterey: Bike Ride & Beach

Last Sunday, after going to church, we headed down to Monterey for a few days.  When we got there we took a nice bike ride on the Monterey Bike Trail down to Lover's Point for a picnic.  We enjoyed the trail and the view as we rode.

Ava had a the best seat and really enjoyed our ride.  I'm a little sad because this will be the last year she will fit in her seat.

Rich feeding Ava a deviled egg.  Ava requested to eat deviled eggs on our picnic.  They were really messy and didn't travel well in our lunch sack.

Ava chasing a sea gull.

This sea gull was kind of aggressive and was trying to eat Ava's deviled eggs and sweet potatoes.  Ava didn't like that so she chased it away.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After our bike ride we checked into our hotel, rested for a few minutes, and went to the beach.  Ava was excited to go to the beach.  She talked about it all week and was planning to build a big sand castle.  At the beach she changed her mind.  As Rich started to build a sand castle she would knock it down.  After a while of trying Rich gave up.

Then Ava decided to make a "spooky cave".  Rich and Ava dug the cave in the side of the destroyed castle.  Rich would dig for a bit, then Ava would stop him to see if it was big enough for her to crawl in.  If it wasn't big enough she would dig a little bit then tell Rich to do more.  Eventually, they got it pretty deep and Ava was able to fit in it....well for about 30 seconds before it collapsed on her head.  Ava was a little surprised, but didn't care too much.  She was just so happy to be playing at the beach.

After about 2 hours of playing and freezing at the beach we headed back to the hotel to warm up.  Ava had a much needed bath and we all enjoyed hot chocolate.  That night we played Toy Story memory, read stories, and snuggled in our beds.

When Rich scooped up a big bucket of water he found a lot of little sand crabs.  Ava thought they were interesting.

Ava holding a sand crab.  What a brave little girl.

Ava didn't want to get in the ocean, but she did want Rich to get in carrying her.

Ava loves to sit on Rich's shoulders and hold onto his hair.  Poor guy, but awesome daddy!

Rich starting the BIG sand castle.

Ava sort of helping.

Still helping.

Now she is in destruction mode.

Ava trying to squeeze into her "spooky cave".

It's getting bigger.

Ava was happy for a few seconds until it crashed down on top of her.

Ava was buried pretty good and Rich had to fish her out.  I love that she is still smiling,

On our drive to Monterey Ava said, "Daddy, I share my bed with you."  Rich replied, "Thank you for wanting to share, but I'm going to share mommy's bed."  Ava didn't like that response and repeated in a more demanding voice, "Daddy, I share my bed with you."  In this picture you can see who won.

Little Miss Chatterbox

Ava likes to talk.  She likes to talk to us, friends (both real & imaginary), strangers, and even herself.  She talks all day long about anything and everything.  Ava likes to tell me everything she is doing or going to do.  She is the little narrator of our life.  Most of the time it is cute, but there are times I crave silence.  Here are some of the more memorable conversations and things she has said.

One-sided Conversation with a Dove

While playing outside in Ava's sandbox we heard a dove cooing.  I pointed it out to Ava and we listened until it stopped.  After a few minutes the dove flew over our fence and landed on a tree branch behind us.  Then all of a sudden Ava started talking (more like shouting) at the dove.  This is what she said...

"I have a bird bath.  Are you dirty?  Come to my birdbath.  Bird, come to my birdbath!"

Cold Hands

I have been blessed to have a child that likes to go to the grocery store with me.  Ava is very helpful and finds ways to keep herself entertained.  Her latest game is making her hands cold from the frozen foods or dairy sections and then touching me.  Ava thinks it is hilarious.  Most of the time I do too except when she blurts out something embarrassing.  

The other day we were playing this game, but after awhile of getting her hands cold and touching me she switched it up.  I wasn't watching her closely, so when she blurted out "mommy touch my bootie" I was surprised.  When I said, "No", she just repeated it louder.  At this point I was confused, embarrassed, and worried someone might think I was a weirdo.  I told Ava, "No.  I don't touch your bootie."  I stood there bewildered for a moment when I realized she was spinning around and putting her bootie in the cold refrigerator for the cheese.  I guess she got bored freezing me with her hands and wanted to try something new.  I love how silly, sweet, and innocent Ava is, even if it causes me to  be embarrassed.

Big Sand Castle

A few days before going to Monterey Ava said to Rich,"You help me build a big sand castle?  For me to live in?".

Head Bump

The week before we went to the Monterey Aquarium Ava kept saying she did not like sharks.  The morning we were getting ready to go to the aquarium Ava said, "I like sharks now."  As we looked at the Outer Bay Exhibit Ava really enjoyed the Hammerhead sharks.  It was one of her favorite things and she even got a stuffed one from the gift shop.  After we saw the shark Ava kept talking about "head bump".  I couldn't figure out what she was talking about, but Rich told me that is what she called the Hammerhead sharks.  It was so cute and now her stuffed shark is affectionately called "head bump".

It's official I'm obsessed

I'm not sure why I resist popular trends so much, but I do.  When everybody was talking about and going crazy for Pinterest I decided to avoid it.  After a while of constantly hearing about it or seeing things posted on Facebook I decided it might be kind of useful, so I checked it out.  I started out slowly, but now I'm pinning things like crazy.  I have found great ideas and have used many of them.  It has been a lot of fun and sparked the creative side in me.  It has also been therapeutic during our remodel.  I'm glad I finally jumped on the bandwagon and in the future I need to not be so stubborn about trying new things.

Here are a few more things I've made...

Hair bow and flower holder.  I got a really cool old frame at Good Will and spray painted it.  I then found cheap fabric at Joann's for the background and ribbon I had around the house.  Ava loves it and even wears more hair things now this is up on display in her room.

Pillowcase skirt.  I don't really sew, but I'm learning.  This was super easy and cheap.  I bought a pillowcase at a thrift store and only had to sew a waistband since the bottom is already hemmed (open part of pillowcase).

Terra Cotta birdbath.  This is what we started with.

This is what the birdbath looks like now.  Spray painted and glued together.

This was not on Pinterest.  This is something Ava and I came up with on our own.  We found this old globe at Good Will and Ava fell in love.  She loves talking about the earth and the fact we live on it.  I could not pass up this unique and cheap deal, so I sent Rich a text to see if we could hang this somehow.  He said probably, so Ava came home with the world in her hands.  She even made me put it on the seat next to her for the car ride home.

Pinterest Has Kept Me Sane

For the past three weeks (going on four) our house has been a messy disaster.  It is all due to our kitchen remodel/add-on (post to come at completion).  It has been difficult having our lives and schedules so disturbed.  I have not been sleeping well and feeling a little stressed.  To help me stay sane I have turned to pinterest.  I have found a lot of fun projects and have worked on a few to help me relax.  Here are a few things I have made...

These are a simple little treat I found.  There are 2 different kinds.  Both start with a pretzel bottom.  One has a melted hershey kiss with a M & M pushed in.  That one is called a belly button.  The other one (which we liked better) is a melted rolo candy with a walnut pushed in.  Super fast, easy, and yummy.

This worked out great because we had blueberries we needed to use and shredded zucchini.  It is a blueberry-zucchini bread.

 

Hair bows and flowers.  I used a variety of materials: felt, ribbon, lace, satin, organza, buttons, and rhinestones.

These are the satin and organza flowers.  They are my favorites.  I really don't think the picture does them justice.  It is nice because Ava actually likes to wear them in her hair.  It might help that she helped me pick out the colors.  Ava's favorite is the purple one.

This is something I made for Ava's room.

Ava's Rock Friends

This morning Ava wanted Rich to push her in the swing, so while I got ready they went outside.  When I was done I peeked outside and saw Ava up in the tree.  I wasn't surprised because she loves to be in the tree.  I went outside to see what was going on and was thoroughly entertained.

Ava had a few big rocks with her up in the tree and was referring to them as her rock friends.  As I walked out she was telling Rich her rock friends were sick and needed to go to the doctor.  Ava then started handing the rocks to Rich and I, so we could take them to the doctor.  This was weird, crazy, and hilarious.  We were both laughing.  Then Ava announced her rock friends wanted to swing.  She got out of the tree and put her rock friends on the swing.  Rich locked them in and then Ava pushed them.

It was priceless and I'm so glad I was able to capture the moment.  Ava sure does have a weird, wild, and creative imagination.  It is always entertaining to see what she will come up with next.  She makes me laugh, smile, and enjoy life more.  I am grateful to be Ava's mom.

Ava in the tree holding a rock friend.  She is also yelling.  She liked yelling over and over because of the echo.  She is also wearing her "Buzz Boots" which are probably too small but she loves them.  This is her second pair and we are considering buying another for this coming winter.  I know we are crazy but she really does love them.

Rocks strapped in and ready to swing.

Ava pushing the rocks.  What a good friend she is.