Look Whooooo's One!

Ava Claire turned one, so we had a family dinner to celebrate. Here is the birthday girl all dressed up for her party.

We went with an owl theme because Ava is our little "delicate bird." I took one of the party plates to Jenny's Bakery and this was the amazing creation I picked up. It was as delicious as beautiful.

We had owl cups and owls for the little girls and birdhouse planters and sunflowers seeds for the adults.

My handpainted birdhouse planters to remember the day.

Happy Birthday to you....Charlotte helped Ava blow out the candles.

Me and my girls.

Ava having her first taste of cake and ice cream, she loved it!

A quick picture of big sister Carys, busy running around playing with all of our guests. She sported an owl shirt too.

Look at Ava and all her birthday presents!

Ava's own towel, a dolphin from Auntie Kim.

Aunt Jackie, Uncle Rad and our favorite neice Charlotte. Charlotte and Ava share the same birthday just 4 years apart. They drove in from Austin to celebrate Ava's birthday.

And brought the princess loot, always a favorite.

Nana and Papa Tom came from Katy.

And brought Uncle Jared, as a surprise.

They also brought the chalkboard, a hit for both girls.

Auntie Kim!

Papa James and CC came from Harborwalk to celebrate your birthday a second time! They came on your actual birthday for dinner and then for your party on Saturday, double the presents! Papa James finished up cooking the brisket.

At the end of the night, we realized we did not have a picture of daddy TJ, he was busy cooking, cleaning and taking photos.

Happy Birthday to our little Ava, I can't believe you are one year old, it feels like yesterday we brought you home from the hospital. You were such a good baby, and you bring so much joy to our house. Carys loves introducing her little sister Ava. We love you very much and look forward to many more parties celebrating you.

Three Hundred Sixty Five

Three Hundred and Sixty Five days later our little Ava is one! She has grown and changed so much in one year.

At one month, Ava brought back sweet newborn sounds to our household.

At two months, Ava started to smile.

At three months, Ava loved to suck her thumb.

At four months, Ava could hold her head up high while on her belly.

At five months, Ava could roll over.

At six months, Ava could sit up all by herself.

At seven months, Ava had a divine interest in toys.

At eight months, Ava started to crawl.

At nine months, Ava pulled up to a stand.

At ten months, Ava could do the furniture walk.At eleven months, Ava solely ate real food and spit out all baby food.

At twelve months, Ava could walk 6 steps at a time!

Ava at 1 Year

Our little Ava is one year old today. How fast did the time go! Here she is at 1 month and now she is standing and walking around our house. She is into everything and has little "meltdowns" when you take something away or your say no to her. TJ and I find it slightly humorous as she will throw herself onto the floor. She is already quite the actress.

Ava has great balance and can stand for quite some time. She will take about 6 steps on average but still cannot stand up without assistance of any sort.
Here is Carys at the same age. They are unique to themselves and definitely have different personalities. Ava seems to understand us more, clapping her hands on cue and playing peek-a-boo and blowing kisses.
Here she is walking, proud of herself. She had her first fever ever two weeks ago, took her to the doctor and it was a terrible virus. We are blessed that she has been a very healthy baby.
She had her last bottle on her first birthday and has been drinking cows milk out of sippy cups like a champ. Her body is slowly adjusting well.
She had her first taste of cake and ice cream on her birthday and loved it.She also went on her first airplane ride, followed by an amusement park ride. She enjoyed herself but does not sleep well being held. She prefers her carseat, stroller or crib much better.
When she sleeps, she sleeps well. It is rare she gets us up at night. She loves her pacifier, blanket and monkey.


Here is a video of Ava walking.



Here is a vidoe of Ava showing off her 1 year old skills.

Traveling for the First Time for Ava, Sick as a Monkey

The great hand, foot and mouth disease epidemic of 2011. The morning before we left for Branson, Ava seemed a little warm and sick so I took her to the doctor to have her diagnosed with hand, foot and mouth disease. Little did we know how severe the symptoms were and how easily it can spread! Ava was a little trooper for her first flight, and we only had one night of screaming. Carys came down with it two days later, but much milder. Both girls got the nasty blisters but they dealt with it like champs. Unfortunately, they spread it to Grant who then spread it across the pacific northwest! Yikes, by the end, we were happy to be on the way home.

We had a great visit but traveling with small children is tough. On the way home, a TSA agent and I had some cross words, leaving TJ upset with me...as the thought of me going off in handcuffs and him watching two children under the age of two, both sick...not fun. Carys was waiting patiently in her car seat to board the plane.

Dad...are we having fun yet?

Carys had a great time watching her Mickey episodes on her daddy's phone. They were a life saver for late night meals past their usual bedtimes and have since come in handy for many different occasions.

Here we go! The second time Ava was on the plane, we put her in the car seat to sleep!

TJ captured this moment one night in the hotel, it is a true reflection to the "crazy" yet "loving" time we had in Branson...our little monkey at 11.5 months old.

Silver Dollar City

On our last day in Branson, we went to the concierge looking for a kid friendly activity to do, when we were offered free tickets to Silver Dollar City, an amusement park! They have a kid section and we left right away. The first ride we went on was the swings, my personal favorite. Carys and I were able to sit together.

We were up higher than I expected, making me nervous, but Carys had a great time.

On the way down, "Again" exclaimed Carys.

The next ride we did was the butterfly/caterpillar ride, special bonus, Ava could ride too!

Push the button...and then we soared!

Much to my surprise, Carys did the ladybug ride all by herself.

Here she comes!

Carys' first roller coaster ride!

Weee, the biggest drop.

Teacups, a must!

The final ride of the day, elephants!

It was so hot at the park, we only stayed for a couple of hours. Both girls were troopers and Carys fell asleep in the stroller before we even got to the car! We had a great time, Carys enjoyed the rides, we were happy she had shoes that made her a half inch taller...she got to ride more rides that way!