Done with that "game"!

 Anyone that knows Ava, is aware that she takes her time to warm up to people if she hasn't seen them in a while or isn't in the mood to talk. She can even be this way to my sister which is a surprise. Jason and I have struggled with Ava in this area and have tried to teach her to not be shy and to talk to people when they talk to her. It has been very frustrating because we have NO control over it. It seems impossible at times to have a child like this when Jason and I are the complete opposite. We on the other hand are very aggressive and outspoken.  We have some friends that live in our neighborhood that we see on a daily basis and often come over for dinner. Well... by the time they leave at night Ava is barely warming up. They left out of town and we haven't seen them all week and Ava has missed them. Ava and I had stopped at In and Out Burger yesterday and we sat in the car and ate our lunch together and she says to me....

Ava: Mom, I'm not going to be shy anymore to David and Britany.

Mom: Well thats good. What made you decide that?

Ava: I don't know, I'm just done playing that game.

Mom: What game is that?

Ava: The not talking game.

Mom: I didn't know you were playing a game. Mom and Dad would be so proud of you if you weren't shy to people.

Ava: I'm going to play a different game.

Mom: Really? What game is that?

Ava: (really loud) Hi! I'm Ava (with a BIG smile on her face)!

Then 2 seconds later as I am shoving a cheeseburger into my mouth, this truck pulls up to us ( we were sitting in the parking lot) and honks his horn. I rolled my window down and he proceeds to ask me if I was in need of some theatre equipment. I replied, "thats ok, we already have some". Ava pipes up really loud and says, "ya, we have a game room and me and my daddy watch tv in there all the time". I didn't even know she knew our game room was theatre equipment. I guess she was right, she is done with the SHY game. Ever since she has been a different child. I am glad that she is growing out of playing that "game". Although I never knew it was a GAME! 

 (Those of you who know Ava recognize that this is a HUGE step!)

Nail Salon - Anjelah Johnson - Comedy Time

I got this off another blog. I thought it was HILARIOUS! Watch the entire thing if you have 4 minutes. I'm not a You tube watcher but this was funny and SO true!

5 months

Our little Elsie is 5 months and growing like a weed. I would love to freeze time. She has started baby food and is beginning to L-O-V-E it. 2 of her bottom teeth came through a couple weeks ago and she is testing them out on mom when she eats. Not so fun for mom! We are still able to take her to restaurants and somewhat enjoy ourselves but I am guessing she will be left with her sisters and Grandma pretty soon. She WON'T take a bottle and loves to be with mom 24/7. She is sitting up ALL BY HERSELF and loves her toys. We are loving her belly laughs and enjoying every minute with her. I, on the other hand am still working on getting her in to her crib soon. Still have some work to do there. We love our Elle Belle and are having so much fun with her! Here are a few pictures of her first foods....


Loving sweet potatoes

I had to get a picture of her admiring her hands. She loves them and plays with them all day long! I love this Bumbo. She sits on the counter and gets to watch me cook, do dishes etc. They never had this when I had my first 2 girls.

"YUM, those taffy look way better than my baby food"

Happy Birthday Grandma Debbie!

I know I am a little late on this post as I DID have every intention in doing this Thurs afternoon. When I walked through my door after a fun lunch with her life got a little crazy with the kids! Emmie was sick, so as soon as I got her off the bus I took her to the Dr. and they immediately sent us to the hospital for some lab work thinking she had something scary (meningococcal)! After being there ALL night long and trying to recover the next morning, I was beat! All her tests came back negative, but she was positive for Strep so I am now home with a very sick little girl. Sorry for being late and here is to Grandma Debbie.......

Happy 56th Birthday to Grandma Debbie! Would you ever guess that she has 20 grandchildren? I wouldn't! She looks amazing for her age and always does such a good job at taking care of herself. She is so much FUN to be around. Every time we go to visit she always makes us feel so welcome that we NEVER want to leave. She is such a good example to all of us and is such a great mother. At times, we stay up all night chatting about life and there seems to NEVER be a dull moment! We laugh until we are crying most of the time when we are all together. My parents manage to take us on some fun vacations and we always have the time of our lives. She always does such sweet things for all of us. This summer while we were there I went over to watch "The Bachelor" (because I had missed it) and she came down the stairs with a tray full of goodies for Ava and I. Everything always looks so much better when she pops it, peels it, or pours it! (you all know what I'm talking about) She has too many talents to list and is probably the most creative person ever. She can whip up an amazing dinner with hardly anything to choose from in the fridge. She can make an outfit look like it just came off the runway with pennies. She can also whip up a video to show and will have you crying it's so good. We've had some great times together and also had fun at Cheesecake Factory the other day for her Birthday. I want her to know how much we love and appreciate her. 

Us girls in Rome, Italy at the Colosseum

Ashy and Grandma in Italy

So young at heart!

Emmie with Grandma and Grandpa at Disneyland 2006

Ava and Grandma Disneyland 2006

Grandma and Elsie at the Beach 2008

Kids say the darndest things!

I want to start documenting the cute things that Ava says so I don't forget. We went swimming last night and Jason saw a big spider on the decking and was killing it with a shovel (he is so scared of bugs!). Ava and I were in the pool and I said to him, "don't kill it, it could be pregnant". Side note..... Scott killed a big spider at the Simas' house one night and it was preggo and a hundred spiders scattered when he killed it! It was NASTY! Jason said," I already killed it". Ava swims up to me and says in the most innocent sweet voice, "Mom, I didn't know spiders get married"! I really don't like my kids growing up.

We have another Kindergartner ✄

Once again, I can't believe Ava is in Kindergarten. My girls aren't in the same district, therefore they started on different days. After much thought I decided to put Ava in ½ day Kindergarten because I think she still may be a little young for full day. I'm not quite sure I made the right decision. Her teacher is amazing and I LOVE all the kids in her class but I feel like the 3 hours goes WAY too fast! Plus, I am driving her both ways because I don't have anyone to carpool with due to my decision to enroll her in another district. I guess we will see how it goes. I NEVER realized how nice it is that I get front door bus service for Emmie. This taxi cab thing isn't going very well and it's only been 2 days. Plus, you have to wait in this long line to pick up your child. Today I waited for 20 minutes in the car line while my daughter was sweating in the sun. However, I'm going to jump off my soap box and be grateful that 2 of my kids are at school and have great teachers and great kids in their classrooms. Life isn't that bad. She had a great first day and loved the playground and drinking fountains!?? Yes, she was so excited that there are drinking fountains there. Doesn't take much to make her happy! Here are a few pictures.....



Couldn't leave Elsie out!

She was so excited she couldn't stop smiling until we got inside and then this was her new POKER face......

Check out this look that she is giving the girl next to her. She is taking it all in! 

"Mom, please leave". I certainly couldn't get a smile once we entered the classroom!

Officially a 1st Grader!

I can't believe my baby girl started school again. She wasn't in a good mood this morning as she didn't appreciate me waking her so early. As we got her off, I couldn't help but think how grateful I am for a healthy daughter. She is getting so big and seems so much older this year. Life seems like it passes by way too fast. When Emmie was born the doctors told us she would be with us until the age of 8. That would leave me another year and a half with her. Obviously, they are WRONG.... but, I can't help but feel so grateful every year she goes to school and has a good year. I went into her classroom today and a couple of her friends from last year had been hospitalized this summer. Hearing any bad news like that just breaks my heart. It has been 2 years since we have been in the hospital with her. I am so grateful for her sweet spirit. Our home isn't the same when she is at school during the day. When the bus pulls up to drop her off in the afternoon, I have the biggest smile on my face. She is so proud to ride the bus and loves every minute of it! She has been blessed with such an amazing teacher and aide (grandma) and absolutely loves school!

                                     Big 1st Grader

Of course, Elle had to be a part of getting Em off this morning!

Ahhh.... I just love these feet. We painted toes last night and I think she has the most beautiful feet. I love her birth mark.

            Meeting her new driver and aide

I'm 5!

After much deliberation, Ava finally decided to have a swim party in her new pool for her birthday. It was a tough decision let me tell you. She loved having most of her cousins and a few friends over to celebrate. There was so much excitement about the "party" and then the morning of Ava was all shy towards her friends. Maybe it's a maturity factor. Anyways, she did have a lot of fun as time went on. We swam, ate pizza and cake, opened presents and just relaxed! It was actually fun for me too because I got to relax and swim with the kids! She is already on to talking about turning 6 and what she is going to do for her party. Getting a little ahead of ourselves! Anyways, she had a great party and loved playing with all her friends and cousins. Thanks for coming everyone! I can't believe I didn't get a group shot of everyone.

We had to have a "Princess" party again . These figurines were on her cake. Thanks for taking pictures for me Trace! 

And... the "Princess" eating her cake

Cannon, Kaylea and Macey

Some of her friends.... Kali, Sophie and Halle

Best Buddies

She promised me she wouldn't be shy when we all sang to her. What do you think? It's definitely a shy face!  

Friends and cousins!

Kali, Soph and Ava

Little munchkin fell asleep in the pool!

Friends Forever

Cannon and Elsie. He just LOVES her! I love that she has found some of her fingers. Now she needs to learn how to use them to get herself to sleep instead of depending on me!

The girls

Macey

Em bug, Me, Cannon, Elsie and Ava
Kam. I love this kid, he is such a sweetheart. She wanted to invite boys!

Opening Presents. Funny how only the girls were interested in watching this. All the boys stayed busy in the pool!

ava

Grandmas and Carrie

Her Cousins. I love that they are all so close in age.

I love this picture of Macey.