Go, Go, Goers!

This past weekend Scott, Ava and I drove down to Grand Meadow to celebate Isabel's second birthday. We hadn't been down there since June, so it was a great trip for us to catch up on everything. Isabel and Ava had so much fun together...it's amazing what a difference 8 months in age makes. Overall, they played really well together, although it was a constant struggle on who was going to push the toy strollers (thank goodness there were two!), and also to push the mini shopping cart (think Barbie-sized...) I think my favorite moment, however, was when Isabel came over to me with a dirty diaper, wanting to be changed. She laid down on the floor in front of me. Maybe 10 seconds later, Ava came over and laid down behind Isabel, copying her exact position with her legs in the air too! I think Isabel would be a GREAT influence on Ava!! The birthday party was very fun, and Isabel received all sorts of neat gifts...Ava was completely taken with the tea set, and was carrying aro...

We had a busy week taking photos and video, hence the quantity of posts in one night! Once again, and I will say this until I'm a broken record, Ava LOVES Darla. Darla is so patient and sweet, and allows her to pet, pull, grab, smush , and smooch her to her heart's content. Ava cornered Darla the other night...the last pic had me wondering if too much love is possible! I just love the sheer look of joy on Ava's face as she's giving Darla her love...that little dimple is in full force! And here are a few fun videos to round out this post... Ava's such a strong little girl...instead of rolling the pony across the floor, she picks it up and carries it! And in this one she's rocking her baby doll and the dog's pig toy in her chair...with an extra kiss thrown in!

Not only have we moved into fall, but we've also kicked off the cold and flu season.  A yucky little bug was making its way through Ava's daycare, and she finally caught it last week.  Her fever spiked around 103.5, so we kept her at home for a day to recover.  Of course, she was feeling well enough to catch up with Curious George, the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, and Dora!  Once our tv viewing was done, she was in the mood to "play" while Mommy did a little work. It didn't really work out well to have her on my lap while I was typing, so instead we pulled out her laptop. She was nice and snuggly wrapped in her blanket while she worked away! These photos really made me laugh as my building at work is a little chilly. I often wrap a blanket around me as I'm working on my laptop...just like Ava! Since she really loves typing on my laptop, desktop, and Scott's PC, I decided she needed a real keyboard of her own.  Ava loves just typing awa...

We have finally moved into fall here in Minnesota...although we didn't have that warm of a summer, so it wasn't really a stretch to delve right into autumn.  In order to get everything ready for winter, I needed to empty out all of my plant containers, and clean them out to be stored.  Usually, it's a boring task, but this year, I had a helper!  And it's a good thing we got everything put away that sunny day, because just a few days later, it got chilly!  The ash tree in our front boulevard was the first one to lose its leaves, so this time Scott had a helper in cleaning those up, as well as pruning back our front bushes. Maybe we can enlist her help to shovel snow this winter...:)

Ava's hair is finally getting long enough that it comes below her collar...and Daddy can style it into crazy 'dos after her baths.  I did brush this one down before bed...her hair is already nuts during the day - it doesn't need any help!  Her hair is actually hitting below her collar - maybe someday soon we can do a little ponytail in the back. We've been working on storing all of her smaller clothes and toys that she no longer uses.  I pulled out her old tub, and she had a grand time playing in it...no matter where I put it, she crawled back into it.  When she wasn't looking, I hid it from her...otherwise, it would be a permanent fixture in our living room.  Ava figured out that if she stood on the edge of the tub, she could try to crawl onto the couch.  This resulted in more than one tip-over! She likes to run around with her blanket around her shoulders, like a little shawl.  So chic! I am SO excited about this...yesterday morning...

Ava had her first encounter with Play Doh today. I happened to be in the Play Doh section at Target today, picking up a gift for Isabel ( shhhh , don't tell, Tiff!) and I thought it would be fun to bring some home for Ava. Mostly I was concerned that she was going to try to eat it. Sure enough, she tried to pop a couple of purple chunks into her mouth, but I was able to stop her in time. I triple checked the package to make sure it's non-toxic, just in case! She wasn't quite sure what to do with it since she couldn't eat it, but after a while, she got the hang of it. Mostly, she just squished in with her forefinger, but it's a start! I think next time we'll do a little project at her table so she has more room to "work"... We were very happy to see Daddy this afternoon - he started the hunting season up north, so it was a girl's weekend in the Goers' household. Last night Ava spent several hours with Grandma Deb and Grandpa Whitey, whil...

I think I've mentioned before how Scott likes to put his shirt on Ava...for some reason this reminded me of the Snuggie product (the blanket with arms); however, she looks less than thrilled in this picture. More like, "Daddy, take your stinky shirt off of me." We've really been having fun with Ava and her bath...recently she realized she can lay down and kick, so even more water goes flying. I don't think there's anyway to stay dry when giving a toddler a bath...! We have a little routine of wrapping her up in a hoody towel once she's done with her bath, and putting her in front of the mirror. She LOVES watching herself in the towel...and tonight she even said "baby" as she was looking at herself. We went to Scott's cousin's wedding last night - the last wedding of four weddings this summer/fall the year for us! Scott was a groomsman...since he's such a jeans & t-shirt guy, I always love seeing him in a tux/suit. I can't ...