Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Two Milestones this past week

Ava has taken a step a couple of times! Still not too confident, but coming along. It might be another month or so before she starts really walking. She's more laidback than Jack and content with crawling still although sometimes she crawls with her feet.

Jack learned to write his name! He is very excited about that. Just one more year at home with me and then school for him. I have mixed emotions. I will enjoy this time with him, but I know I will love being involved in his school too.

We have been staying busy lately with Matt's work schedule and the fair, and I've been helping a friend organize/decorate her house which is fun for me.

Our neighbors, the Balls, will be leaving after Christmas to go to language school, so they are getting ready for their big move. It's an exciting time in their life in which they will be done traveling for deputation and one step closer to going to Uruguay.

We are sure enjoying this beautiful August weather and getting out as much as we can in it!

Monday, August 22, 2011

I heard a song today that I haven't heard in years. An old old one called "I'm the happiest girl in the whole USA". I liked it when Matt and I were dating. My favorite part is

Skip ti de doo dah, Thank you, Lord, for making him for me.
And thank you for letting life turn out the way I always thought it could be.
There once was a time I could not imagine how it would feel to say,
I'm the happiest girl in the whole USA.

I used to always tear up at that part because I'm so grateful to God for allowing me to meet Matt and have this life that we have. And now I could look in my backseat at two little blondes, one's almost asleep and one just smiling at me, and of course I teared up again! Life is good, and I hope there's many more years of the same for us.

Friday, August 19, 2011

We ended up having a couple of appointments this week. Ava is 21 lbs and 10 ozs, and Jack is 38 lbs. Jack is 41.5 inches. I can't remember Ava's height, but they are both doing great. Ava is still not walking quite yet, but I know it will come in time. It will be nice when it happens since she gets heavy! We had a lesson in our moms group about parenting, and I remember one phrase. "Delight in your ordinary child." Everyone wants extraordinary children. There is nothing on the internet about how to have an ordinary child, just ways to create super children. But it's just kind of a good reminder to appreciate them the way they are at the pace they are. We felt Jack did things ahead of schedule, but then he couldn't eat meat until he was 3. Ava could probably eat a steak, but doesn't walk yet. All these things make them ours, and that's pretty extraordinary!

Monday, August 15, 2011

This is a nice interim week in which not much is planned (on purpose). I was busy last week with a few projects around the house. I will try to get some pictures on here; but our camera broke, so that makes it a little harder. I was getting the itch to do something different in our decorating and we had no space, so we had a garage sale. We made a little money and rearranged and found some good deals, and now it looks different. There's still more I could do, but with the money I had, I do really like it. I really enjoy those little projects, so it's fun and invigorating for me while it drains Matt of all energy. He does enjoy painting, so I will take him up on that this week maybe while we paint the bathroom. I'm thinking blue.

Saturday is the softball tournament, and then we are gearing up for the state fair next week! So this is our calm week.

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Say AAHH!

So Jack had his first dentist appointment yesterday. Matt did me a favor and woke up early to take him. I get kind of nervous about those things. But he did great and came home with some "sloff" (floss) and a badge from a police officer that they ran into. So he was very excited and told me all about the chair and the water they squirted in his mouth. I think he might like to go back! And I'm happy that he has good teeth. I always think of the old movie "Cheaper by the Dozen". Frank says, "You children have been given good health, and by jingo it's your job to keep it." So no getting sick or cavities or ER visits allowed!

Ava went to bed at 6 pm last night and although I can hear her in there, she's just content. AAHH!

I have had a fun week or two. I'm just enjoying being at home, and that means I'm organizing something or rearranging furniture or redecorating. And it's been all of the above. I will have to put some pictures up of some of my projects when I'm done. I'm undertaking painting a desk this week. I've been wanting something blue, so here goes!

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Odds and Ends

About 4 years ago we put a post on this blog about Jack finding the toilet paper dispenser and using it as a toy. He was about 10 months old at the time. Ava's a little behind Jack in this section of her life but, alas, she has found it! Now comes the work of keeping her away from it!



One of our favorite times of summer is coming: Fair Time! We love going to fairs since they feel like a little mini vacation. We finally got to one this past weekend when we went to the Anoka County Fair. It was hot, but it was fun! We didn't eat too much, but we got to see all the animals and Jack got to ride some rides and play a game. It was a good warm-up for the State Fair!





Jack found this 4-wheeler at the fair and said that I should get that for him for Christmas. He's got an expensive taste! I told him I didn't have $700 laying around for that.


Ava continues to get more mobile. She still hasn't taken any steps, but she can stand on her own for a little while and she can walk with help. Here is a video of her playing with her new toy she got for her birthday and doing some walking.