Disneyland ~ Characters

Ava was excited to see Lighting McQueen until he revved his engine and freaked her out.  That is why Rich is in the picture with her.

Ava was excited to meet Winnie the Pooh because we have been reading the book.

I love this picture because she is rubbing noses with Winnie the Pooh.  That is something we have been doing since she was little.

We were both excited to see Woody.  Toy Story is one of my favorites and use to be Ava's favorite.

Merida was the nicest of all the princesses.  She spent a lot of time with each girl.  She asked them questions and made each one feel special.

This is as close to Anna & Elsa Ava got.  They are inside that house, but we didn't wait in the 3 hour line to meet them.  Ava did get to say hello to Olaf who is on top of the roof.

Rich had to follow this storm trooper around to get a picture with him.

Disneyland ~ Arie's Grotto

The one person Ava really wanted to meet was the Little Mermaid.  To make sure we met her and a few other princesses her Ava's list Rich decided we should splurged and have lunch at Ariel's Grotto.  I have to give him complete credit for making Ava's wish come true.  He is the one that insisted we should do this special lunch for Ava.  I'm glad I listened to him because Ava loved it!

Ava descending the stairs with princess style.

Ava meeting Ariel.

Ava telling Ariel how old she is.

Flower bread rolls.

Ava had an Ursula octopus hot dog with shell macaroni and cheese.

Ava with Princess Aurora.

Ava with Cinderella.

Ava with Belle.

Ava with Snow White (Ava's first favorite princess).

Rich and Ava both got cupcakes for their birthday.  They both wore birthday buttons and got special treatment the whole trip.  It was neat.

Disneyland

 In January we went to Disneyland with my parents.  I really should say my parents took us to Disneyland.  They decided to take us for our birthdays.  So, a week after Rich and Ava's birthdays we headed to Disneyland.  We were all excited, but Ava was REALLY excited.  She talked about the different rides she wanted to go on and the characters she wanted to meet (mostly princesses).

We had a great time and I think most of Ava's dreams came true.  She met many characters and had a special lunch with the princesses at Ariel's Grotto.  She rode on the Little Mermaid ride 10 times and tried several new rides.  Ava's favorite ride is of course the Little Mermaid.  She also liked the Buzz Lightyear ride, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Small World.  Ava was disappointed that Jack Skellington was not in the Haunted Mansion and stated she wants to go back when he is there.  Her biggest disappointment however, was not meeting Anna & Elsa from "Frozen".  Unfortunately for Ava, her parents are not willing to wait in a 3 hour line just to have 5 minutes with the two princesses.  Lucky for us Ava is awesome and didn't let it ruin her trip.

Rich's and Ava's Birthday

These are the cupcakes we made for Ava to share with her class.  We decorated them with candy sea creatures that Ava helped me make.

Ava asked for a rainbow cake.  I made her a rainbow cake, but surprised her with the Little Mermaid decorations.  The heart on top has a cutout from Ava's favorite part of the movie when they sing, "Kiss the Girl".

Ava was excited to get Little Mermaid and princess underwear.

Ava got a few Italian movies.  This one is Cinderella.

Ava was excited to get a princess with a prince doll.  She likes to have the princess get married, so now she has someone to marry.

Ava was completely surprised by this Little Mermaid Lego set.  I found it the morning of her birthday when I was doing some last minute shopping.

I made Ava this car neck pillow for our trip to Disneyland.

Ava and Rich each got their own stylus for the iPad.

I love this reaction to the Little Mermaid shirt I made her.

I made this pillowcase for Rich with one of his old concert shirts that did not fit anymore.  He was going to donate it, but I snuck it out of the donate pile and hid it with my sewing stuff.

I gave Rich a Han Solo in carbonite mold.  He can use it for ice, jello, or baking.

Ava opening the gifts from her birthmom,, Kim.

Ava was excited by all the princess stuff.

I made Ava and her doll matching outfits.  It is Minnie Mouse themed for our upcoming trip to Disneyland.

I made Rich this shirt and sweatshirt with my Cameo Silhouette.

I made these shirts for Ava.

"To ever thing there is a season..."

I am way behind on my blog.  If you are family or a regular visitor I'm sure you've noticed.  It is not because nothing is going on, but quite the opposite.  Ava and I are still up to the same thing, but life for Rich is dramatically different.  As Bishop he has a lot more responsibilities and is away from home serving.  This change effects the family and I find myself stepping in to fill holes when Rich is away.  Please don't misunderstand me or think I'm complaining because I'm not.  I am grateful to be married to a wonderful man that is worthy to serve as the Bishop.  I have seen him grow and have some wonderful experiences during the past few months.  It is not always easy, but I am happy to support him.  The reason I am sharing this is it effects the decisions I make and how I prioritize my time.  Blogging is important to me because it is my journal, but I just don't feel like I have that much time to get it done.  At this time in life (and probably for the next few years) I am going to have to re-prioritize my time.  I still hope to update the blog, but it will probably be less frequent.

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven." -- Ecclesiastes 3:1