Partners

Avery's the best stir-fry eating partner I know. She'll eat the mushrooms and baby corn that I'm not such a fan of. I knew I loved her for a reason. :)

Running Errands

You know how much I love Target, right? Well, Missy turns 1 next week so Brian and I were running some errands there. It just so happens that Avery can turn herself around and stand up in the top of the cart while buckled. Serious talent. It's only at Target where the top is so big. So, I stuck her in the basket and she couldn't get enough. She was doing her cackle laugh that echoed through the whole store.


Does she not look like the captain of the cart?

ZOO!

Avery went to the zoo with her cousins for the first time today. It was pretty funny. I think she was more entertained watching the other people there than the animals.

What a cute safari bunch!

Another Birthday!

Wow, we sure have a lot of August birthdays in our family. Our little niece turned 7. SEVEN!! Her birthday is always crazy to me because she was born the year we were married, which means in December, we'll have been married SEVEN years!

I feel old.

She had some fun hanging with Nanny tonight playing with some fun toys.



This little girl will put anything on her wrist that resembles a bracelet in the slightest. Tambourine? Not today--BRACELET! It made for some good percussion during our happy birthday tune at least.


Oh, she'll climb anything she can as well. I don't really know how she got up there. One minute we were watching the dogs out the window, and the next thing I know, she's on the window sill. Sorry guys, I'll come clean the little hand prints off your window. (I think they're all over your mirror as well.)


I promise there was a beautiful birthday girl and candles and a cake, but Brian was keeping the camera safe in his pocket I guess.

95

95 miles is the magic number this week on my bike. It also happens to be the number of french fries I consumed today. :) Good thing I rode 30 miles.
We spent the evening running errands out by Nanny and Grandpa so we stopped by and enjoyed said fries with them. Thanks for the fun night!

Yum!

Avery had some licorice today. She LOVED it.

We also hung out with some cousins and I'll tell you, I think I've only posed Avery for a picture a handful of times. Usually I'll sneak attack her with the camera or just call her name so I can see those pretty eyes. I was reminded today why I don't try to pose a picture...

Oh, here's a good one. haha. This lovely dog has been a hit with all the kiddos.

Book + Box = Happiness

Well, a packing slip might be slightly more fun than a book...at least in Avery's eyes.


Don't worry, I didn't get anything exciting. Just diapers. The only exciting thing in my life right now is Pinterest. It's scary addicting. In fact, I'm glad Brian's not home so he can't see I was browsing until midnight last night. No wonder I'm so tired.

Keeping Busy

Well, Avery and I are missing the pops tonight while he's camping in Yosemite. They are hiking Half Dome. I'm a little nervous for him...especially because today another hiker died falling off the face. Avery and I kept busy to keep my mind off it. She sure loved the park!

Apparently...

It's way more fun to pull all the toys out of the box so she can sit in it...



Getting out proved to be much trickier...

Yay!

Nanny and Grandpa came for dinner tonight. It was fun to see them. It's been too long I think. Avery loves all the love! We might need to make this a weekly tradition. :)

Food! Glorious Food!

Avery's learning how to use a bowl. Usually we just cut up her food and put it on her tray because she'll toss the bowl right off it. Well, she's getting better...Sorta.



I promise next week to take a picture of Avery in her cute Sunday outfit. I seem to always have diaper/onesie/nap hair Sunday pictures and she really does start the day looking cute. We were in a hurry today because I had to get there early to play the organ. I told myself I'd play the pedals but wimped out half-way through prelude. Maybe next time.

80

That's the magic number this week. 80 miles ridden on my bike. Next week, 95. I'm toying with the idea of a Century (100 mile bike ride) in October...I don't think it's gonna happen. It'll probably end up 100k instead. Although, training with Avery on my back side sure made my 25 mile ride without her pretty nice this morning. The only thing hurting now is my bum knee. Sorry, Grandpa! He got stuck with the load of bricks this morning. haha.

We took a pit stop for a little fuel and to take Avery out of her trailer and found a baby duck with it's mama. It still had fluffy new feathers on its back end. So cute.

Sandbox?

Maybe I need a sand box. Anytime I open the front door, this girl jets for the plant on the porch.

YUM!

Nothing beats a breakfast tomato straight off the vine after an exhilarating bike ride. (well, bike chariot nap for missy.)




Oh, and a little dare devil antics in the car. Visions of adventures to come.


Add a little foot race with her buddy, and I'd say it's been a good day.

Having Fun!

Avery has her favorite toys in each room around the house. She doesn't quite roam too far from me yet so while I get ready for the day, she plays in our bathroom with EVERYTHING under my sink. Usually she just pulls it all out and throws it all over the tile, but she found something more fun today.

If it's possible, I'm loving her more everyday. She's such a fun little person to hang out with these days. Super smart and totally funny!

I don't keep anything dangerous in that cupboard, so I figured she was safe. Except well, she might have eaten a little shaving cream. It said for sensitive skin, so hopefully that includes stomach tissue. There wasn't a poison control number on the can so I think she's okay.

Tissue anyone?



She also folded her arms when I asked her for her dinner prayer tonight! Usually I just fold them for her and it last 3 seconds, so yay for Avery! I think sign language might be in my near future. Anyone tried it and like it?

Buried

I promise I don't always bury my little one with toys, but hey, it kept her happy while I found some fun deals today.

Funny Story

We have a mail box on the side of our house. You know, the community kind with 20-some-odd boxes in the cube. Well, ours isn't in there. It's on the opposite end of the block about 6 houses down. Ridiculous.

Well, I used to think it was ridiculous. Now getting the mail is one of Avery's favorite things to do, so I'll be happy it's 6 houses down instead of 6 steps.

She feels like a big kid on the sidewalk!

She gets tired pretty fast though.


I can't help myself, so here's a video...her waddle is the cutest.

Make a video - it's fun, easy and free!
www.onetruemedia.com

ps...I hope you are all sick of this blog by now. I'm actually getting a little tired of it myself. I've lost the fun of blogging all together, but I know Avery will love this when she's older. In fact, she loves to watch her own videos right now. But hey, I do have to pat myself on the back for keeping this resolution. 8 months and counting....if only my diet could survive that long!

Someone Had A Birthday!

My most favorite Grandma in the world had a birthday today! So glad I live close enough to celebrate with her!

Avery loved the cake...and the dog.

We Went Camping

Sorry I missed you yesterday. We went camping. It was...uh...fun. Actually we did have a nice time, the night was just rough. It's a good thing we drove three hours to get there or we would have just gone home at eleven when the crying began. I forgot what waking up every hour feels like...then holding the poor thing for half the night. I can't quite figure out what the problem was except that she was so out of her element that she just couldn't ever get comfy. Oh well. It was beautiful anyway and felt good to get out.

When we first got there, Avery loved watching us set up camp from the pack-n-play. Too bad it was short lived.

Next, we tried to contain her on a tarp. She was content to sit on it and play on the sidelines for awhile. I kept feeding her little treats to keep her from eating the dirt and rocks.

That was short lived also.

She loved the fire. She was dying to play in it. I decided this is a hard age to take camping. She's not walking more than five steps yet, but too mobile to enjoy the world from my arms. Oh well, the toasted coconut marshmallows roasted over the fire were totally worth it all. Seriously, none of us even made a s'more because they were so good on their own.



Okay, so Friday night was torture....and cold. But once the sun came up I decided we'd make the best of what energy we had left. It was a beautiful morning and nothing quite beats sausage, eggs, and bacon in the mountains.
Avery enjoyed the food but wanted rocks for dessert. She just got her teeth and she was trying to grind them down on the rocks! Can you tell we gave up keeping her out of the dirt? I was too tired to care if she even ate it. Just the rocks worried me.

She thinks she's so sly sticking a rock in her mouth...look at that guilty face!

These two make me laugh. They're pretty perfect for each other, but going through these I laughed again because I'm sure that was Austin's 8th soda and we hadn't even been there 10 hours! I can't make too much fun though, because I enjoyed a little root beer too.

We got Avery ready for the day (I actually threw away the jammies...that's how tired I was...) and she found this cute little tree just her size. Visions of my beautifully decorated Christmas tree crashed into a reality of "kid-friendly" this year as I watched her tear the thing apart.

We went out exploring and found a couple really beautiful lakes. (I hate this picture of me, but it's one of the only ones I have...don't look too close)

We brought lunch out to a lake and Avery finally got a good nap in.

So did Brian...

A lake side picnic. Yum.

Avery did a lot of walking.

A LOT of walking...

Glad Brian got a little time to relax from all the baby tending. Not a bad view either.
I think she had a good time, don't you?