Birthday “Staycation”

After a year’s worth of request from Ava to go to the water slides, for Ali’s birthday we did a staycation at The Princess Resort near our house. Now we are bombarded with the “when can we do that again” from Ava…

A night at the resort was a great getaway – we took full advantage of the pools, water slides, and enjoying walks around the resort property. Here are some highlights.

“Fancy” Ava is chilling in the car on the way there.

Yes it is hot – 115!

Our first order of business? Why the pool of course. Ali likes the zero entry pool so can crawl right in.

A brief moment of sitting still…

 

In addition to the pool and the water slides (no photos of it unfortunately), Ava had fun with the sand as well. She helped some boys make sand castles.

While Ali was fascinated with Dad’s hat.

Soon Ali discovered the sand as well.

And even better, it is messy!

Having all of us in a single room was not exactly smooth. That evening the girls (finally) fell asleep after a while (mostly after driving Ali around for a bit).

The next morning Ali was ready to check out the view from the balcony.

While big sister was more interested in exploring the resort. Here she is pausing for a short rest.

Then we were back at the pool and the sand. Ava is hard at work on her castles.

And proud of her work!

Ali is working on her “princess” pose.

It was a fun getaway right in our backyard…something we will do again…

Ali’s First Birthday!

Our sweet, dear Ali. One year ago you came into this world and make our lives that much more full of love and joy. This year has flown by, and while I’m sad to say you are no longer a baby, we are looking forward to even more fun as you grow and explore the world.

So, what’s gone on this past month and where are you at now:

Eating - you are still nursing one to two times per day and taking a couple of bottles. We are working to transition to whole milk in cups. You are not too hot on that yet, but we will get there. In the last few days you have been eating well. Your favorite foods are turkey, fish, toast with nut butter and grapes. When you are done, you have fun throwing the food on your tray to Pepper, who is eagerly waiting. You had your first piece of cake and seem to love it as much as mom does!

Talking -Mama and Dada, Duh (Dog) and lot’s of Ah’s.

Walking- Not on your own yet (thank goodness) but pushing your walk along toy and pushing chairs around like a champ. I’m sure it will be any day now.

Sleep -you go to bed around 7-7:30 pm and sleep until 5 am. We can almost set the alarm by you. Still taking an early morning nap for about 45 minutes and an afternoon nap from 1-3:00.

Favorites- You love playing with the playschool house and flipping through board books. Your other favorite things are mommy and daddy’s cell phones, big sister’s toys, and any clothes lying around are bound to go around your neck. You love to play “peek a Boo” and are thrilled when you are clapping or dancing. You are in the pool daily, as we survive the record heat and love splashing the water. You don’t mind going under water or getting your face wet. Mommy thinks you will take after Ava in swim talent.

Some other fun things:

• You now have 6 teeth, as your 2 front teeth just came in this past week. Before that we called you “Fang.”
• You are a natural born climber, climbing the couch, people, Pepper, chairs, etc.
• You like playing “ball.” Passing it to Mom, Dad, or Ava and “catching” it back.
• You grind your teeth and make cute tongue click noises. Those teeth must be bothering you.
• Our nicknames for you include: lovey, love bug, sweet pea, sweet potato, pumpkin, munchkin, and sweet girl (Ava’s favorite).

Happy Birthday baby girl!

We can’t wait to see what the next year brings.

Ali and her first piece of cake…

Holy cow mom – where has this been my whole life?

Finger lickin’ good…

 

Getting messier…

Yum – plate lickin’ good too…

Although I can play peek a boo with these plates too…

Could I get more on me?

 

Click the image above for a video of Ali and the cake

 

Later wed did some presents…with the whole family.

Big sister Ava helping Ali.

May thru Mother’s Day

May has been a busy month – between swimming, school ending, Ali’s baptism, etc. we have stayed busy.

Either from being in the pool starting with when she was in Mommy’s tummy, or from watching big sister, Ali is not surprisingly a water kid. She loves the splashpad at the park.

Especially with some encouragement from big sister.

The same big sister that has fun with waterslides at a neighborhood party.

or hanging out with the neighbor boys….

The timing of our new pool worked out perfectly – it was finished just in time for the start of the warm weather.

Ava loves the waterfalls as her diving blocks…

Ava even helped Dad spread some of the rocks around the pool.

But of course she needs her own tools to do it…

6 years, 2 houses, 2 kids, and a new dog later, Mom and Dad celebrated our sixth anniversary with a much needed dinner night out.

Then back to our usual family fun. We were able to take in another fun outdoor concert. Ali definitely got into it, dancing a bit with Mom.

While Ava was able to hang out with her school friends.

And of course Ali found some toys to stay occupied.

Click the image above for a video of Ava dancing

 

Ava did a soccer drills clinic for the month of May. She worked on dribbling through cones.

And on taking the ball home for a goal.

May is also Mother’s Day. This year, we decided to try the “Make” store for Ava to make a candle for Mom. Despite being warned not to tell Mom, Ava’s first words on getting to the house after making the candle were “Mommy, I’m not supposed to tell you that I made you a candle”. After which she proceeded to tell us where she was hiding it in her room until Mother’s Day.

Around the house, Ava enjoys her books…

And she has started to get hide and seek. Here she is showing off the hiding spot in her toy chest..

Most of the time, the girls definitely adore each other. Whether it is having crawling races across the family room, swimming together, or just a little cuddle time on the floor, Ava and Ali have fun together.

Click the image above for a video of the girls playing on the floor

Click the image above for a video of the girls crawling race.