Dance Dance Revolution!

These videos are kind of long (okay really long), 

but even if you just watch the first parts of each of them you will see that Ava loves music haha. 

I'm sorry, but this is just too cute not to share. :)

And don't you love my choice of music?

I had to expose Ava to the "oldies" before she thinks she is too cool haha. 

And I'm not sure why, but any time this song comes on, she gets SO excited. 

Maybe I listened to it when I was pregnant?

I may or may not have a video of me and my pregnant belly dancing to this song.

And I might have seen the movie?

Maybe.

New car seat

This happened way too fast.

My sweet, tiny baby outgrew her infant car seat.
Today she moved into her "big girl" car seat.

Crazy to think she will be in this thing until she's 4 years old or so!

I also wanted to post a little video of Ava's most recent trick. 

She is walking along furniture all over the place and it is the cutest thing I have ever seen her do. 

Our apartment is like a baby obstacle course.

She will walk from the couch, across her jumper thing and then to the entertainment center and around and around and around.

I love watching her discover her newfound freedom and independence. 

And I love that it entertains her for a few minutes.

Subway Art

My friend Adri completely surprised me yesterday and sent me this Subway Art she made of Ava's birth information. 

I honestly got a little teary eyed as a looked at it and read each word. 

This documents the most life-changing moment of my life.

One of the most special and sacred moments.

I think it is SO beautiful. 

Thank you Adri!

I love it so much!

8 months!

Dear Ava Sophia,

You turned 8 months today! (May 29, 2012) It’s getting harder to take your monthly pictures as you want to wiggle, move, and squirm all over the place. You get distracted so easily these days by anything and everything that isn't a toy, and of course it all goes straight into your mouth - especially grass (see picture below). Since bribing you with money or new shoes is lost on you, we have to just snap away and let your silliness shine through (see picture below).

This month, you took a plane ride with Mom to Colorado for Uncle Jayson's high school graduation. You saw Granny, Papa, Auntie, Karley, Kameron, Aunt Kaitlyn, Uncle Jayson, Nam, Nampa, Grandma and Grandpa Schooff, Grandma and Grandpa Webster, Aunt Maddie, Uncle Blake and the Dulgarian family. Your Daddy was worried that you would learn to crawl while we were gone, but I assured him that with so much family around, you wouldn't be on the floor long enough to even think about crawling. You definitely charmed the family with your constant smiles and cute laughs. You are one VERY loved little girl. You were excellent on the plane and captivated all the people sitting around us. Everyone kept saying how good natured and beautiful you are and that they couldn't believe how well behaved you are. Makes a momma proud. :)

This month we also moved to a new apartment. We didn't move very far, but because we are now on the first floor, you are free to kick your feet and jump in your jumper without fear of anyone banging on their ceiling to tell you to stop. :)

You are still not crawling, but somehow magically you get from point A to point B. You can slowly walk around the apartment pushing your little sit-to-stand walker and you can walk along furniture. Just recently, you started pulling yourself up to standing...but you are still perfecting that skill. :)

This month you learned that if Mom or Dad take away your toy (or the remote control or our cell phones, heaven forbid), you can and most definitely will get it back one way or another. Usually this means screaming bloody murder for a few seconds until we quickly find something else to distract you. This is a skill I am not looking forward to you perfecting. In fact, I would appreciate if you would forget that you learned it in the first place. :)

Here's what else you have been up to this month:

• You have learned how to forcefully spit out your food if you don't like it. It's cute and funny, but also very, very messy. 
• You can wave "bye bye," clap, and give kisses.
• You love to jump. Every chance you get, you jump, jump, jump. You also dance whenever music comes on.
• This month, you mastered the skills of using a walker and holding your own bottle. 
• When we put you in your crib you roll directly onto your tummy and sleep like that all night.
• You love baths and swimming.
• You have perfected the art of finger foods: bread, tortillas, corn, puffs, popcorn, goldfish, cheerios, noodles, ice cubes, crackers, bananas, black beans. 
• Your favorite food is most definitely bananas and you also really enjoy black beans.

You are definitely on a schedule. You wake up at 9am, nap at 11am for 1.5 hours, nap again at 3pm for 2 hours and then go to bed for the night at 9pm. You have been sleeping 12 hours straight for about a month now (knocking on wood, knocking on wood). You drink a 6-7oz bottle at 9am, 1pm, 5pm and 9pm. I feed you baby food twice a day and lots and lots of snacks here and there throughout the day. :)

You are wearing size 9-12 month or 12 month clothes, and size 3 diapers. This literally sends your mom into a state of panic, realizing how fast you are growing. On the other hand, I am excited because all the cutest baby clothes start at size 12 months. :)

Ava, you are an incredibly social baby: you LOVE people! You especially love other babies, children and women. You immediately smile and start up a full-blown conversation in "Ava-ese" as soon as someone looks your way. Unless, of course, that someone is a man. If it's a man...you give him the stare down as if to say, "You are definitely not my dad." Apparently you have already learned the art of playing "hard to get" when it comes to boys. Hmmm, I wonder where she gets that? ;)

Well, my sweet baby daughter, your Mommy and Daddy love you OH so much! Keep being the sweet, wonderful, smiley baby you are.

Love,
Momma :)

Big Girl

For a while, Ava has been able to pull herself up from a siting into a kneeling position.
But just today, she finally pulled herself up to standing.
And then she started walking along the furniture.
I can tell she likes feeling big.
Like she can take on the world.

Of course, I made her do it a couple more times just so I could document it.

Look at that face once she's up - like "Hey Mom, did you see that?"

It's amazing how the small things suddenly become HUGE things with a baby.
So proud of my sweet babe.

Maddie

My sister-in-law Maddie is gorgeous! 

And that's all I have to say about that. :)

Videos {May #3}

Warning: This is video overload. 

CUTE video overload...but overload nonetheless. :)

Here are some videos from our trip to Colorado.

Ava was SO tired as we were driving home one day, but she wouldn't fall asleep. So she was pretty fussy, poor thing. Check out those crocodile tears. 

SO me, being the understanding mom that I am, decided to have a tiny bit of fun with it. :) Love my babe!

This was Ava on our way home from church on Mother's Day. Trying SO hard not to fall asleep.

Ava trying SO hard to drink out of a "big girl" cup.

She's a jumping bean lately!

Ava's new favorite toy: a toothbrush.

Peek-a-boo in the bath. SO cute!

My sister bought Ava a walker and she quickly picked it up and could maneuver her way all over the house, chasing the dogs and everything!

Ava learned how to splash with her legs...she definitely got a kick out of this. :)

And the kicker! We came home today and Ava started walking around the apartment with her sit-to-stand walker. WHaaaaat?

Then, she would let go and stand on her own!

(Yes, we were so excited we skyped with Aunt Maddie to share in the excitement!)

Phew! You made it!

Thanks for watching, come again! :)

Fun in the sun

Happy Mother's Day!

I am so lucky.

I am lucky to have a wonderful mom - who I was able to spend 15 years with on this Earth.

I am lucky to have many other women in my life who are such good examples to me.

Grandmas,

aunts,

my sister. :)

I am lucky to have a beautiful, sweet baby daughter. 

I am more than lucky...I am blessed. 

Today was my first Mother's Day as a mom. 

My sweet husband gave me beautiful flowers and made me breakfast in bed, 

which was hand delivered with a song. 

"Mother I love you, Mother I do. Father in Heaven has sent me to you."

I am so incredibly grateful for my beautiful family. 

Life is wonderful. 

Happy Anniversary!

3 years ago, I married my best friend and high school sweetheart in the Denver temple.

3 years, 

5 moves, 

3 apartments, 

4 states, 

8 jobs, 

2 graduations, 

2 bachelor's degrees, 

1 pet, 

several road trips (too many to count) 

and 1 baby girl who made our family of two into three

...and still going strong!

I can't believe how much has changed in the last 3 years!

Love you so much honey bunch!

Thanks for the best 3 years of my life so far!

And here's to the next 50+ years. :)

This year was Bryson's year to plan our anniversary (we switch off).

He did a GREAT job and definitely surprised me!

This was the extent of my surprises this year - a note on the bathroom mirror. :)

He made me breakfast, got me beautiful flowers and wrote the sweetest card.

Then Friday night, he took me out to a nice restaurant in Lafayette. 

We left Ava with a babysitter, which was the first time we had left her with anyone except family.

I felt a tiny bit of sadness driving away, wondering if she would even notice I was gone.

But (at the risk of sounding like a horrible mom), it was WONDERFUL to have my hubby all to myself for a few hours! 

We came home to reports that Ava had made a new best friend in the cute 6-year old son of the couple who watched Ava. 

I think she might have a little crush. ;)

They even had the CUTEST video to prove it. 

Yes, I have watched and laughed at this video about 1 million times since getting home tonight. 

Here are 3 things you might or might not know about us:
1. We started dating when we were 16. After our first date, I told my sister, "I want to marry a guy just like Bryson."
2. I am 8 months older than Bryson. In high school and college I didn't even think twice about this because we were in the same grade. Now, I'm not looking forward to turning 30, 40, 50 before him. :) Then again, older means wiser...?
3. It took us 3 months of dating to have our first kiss. And that first kiss was...horrible. (No really, it was embarrassingly bad haha). Don't worry, he's made up for it since then. ....a.w.k.w.a.r.d   s.i.l.e.n.c.e....

And on that note...
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!

Thank you Bryson for the wonderful, wonderful, wonderful 3-years!
Wouldn't want to be on this journey with anyone but you!