Ava's Room Re-Do

Our present to Ava for her birthday this year was a bedroom re-do. It was so strange to get everything put together and realize this is probably the last time we'll do this to her room for a long time - this is her BIG GIRL room!!

This is a close up of the wall decal we chose. Sean prefers to call it a "Fathead", and I guess that's truly what it is, but I think more of athletes and comic book characters when I think of Fatheads. I really didn't know what I was getting us into with this decal...in my ignorance, I thought when I looked at the package that it was just one big sticker - or maybe a few. But the reality was, this is a 105 piece wall decal. Surprisingly, it only took about an hour for us to put it up, and we're really pleased with how it came out:

Finished up with some new chocolate brown curtains and a chocolate brown bed skirt. There are still a couple small details we plan to work on, but this is the nearly finished product:

A Sweet Surprise

At Ava's party last week, not only did Memaw and Pepaw surprise Ava with her birthday presents, but they surprised all of us with a very special book they created.

Most of you all know that while Aidan is a very sweet, very smart boy, he still has quite a temper and can sometimes get really upset about even the smallest of things. We are all continually helping him to work through those moments and to use words with an inside voice as opposed to yelling and getting upset. Hmmm....sounds like any typical man - has a hard time expressing his feelings :)

Memaw and Pepaw are rarely phased by his "outbursts" seeing as how they raised four boys. However for us, we have felt it a bit more challenging. Memaw and Pepaw had the idea to make up their own book of poems specifically for Aidan. Some of the poems included are about Daddy, about Mommy, Ava, trying new foods, and lots more. These were created so that we could read them to him to remind him about how special he is, how special his family is, and other important life lessons.

When they were telling me what they made, it wasn't really triggering exactly what the book was. When I had a chance to actually look at it and read it, I instantly teared up. I teared up at how sweet a gesture it was, and at how thoughtful they are. This book was a very good reminder to me just how great of a boy we have, and that sometimes we maybe need to be a bit more creative with trying to teach him life lessons.

Thank you so much Memaw and Pepaw for the very thoughtful book. This is just yet another reason why you both are so special to us, and another way for you to show how much you love us.

Snowballs and Snow Angels

We finally got our first measurable snow fall for the winter a couple weeks ago. Naturally, the kids were chomping at the bit to get out and play in it. I always muse at the thought that it takes longer to get the kids bundled up to go outside than they are out there playing before they get too cold :)

It wasn't the best snowball making snow, but we tried really hard anyway. Here's Aidan trying to make the perfect snowball...
...to throw at Ava!

Not to be outdone, Ava worked on making her own...
...to throw at her unassuming Daddy!
We finished up the outing by making some good old fashioned snow angels:

And we can't forget to snap a picture of the kids all bundled up:

Happy 6th Birthday to Our Sweet Girl

Six years ago, we welcomed our sweet Ava Grace into the world. She brought pure joy into our lives that day, and continues to do so today. I can still clearly remember holding her for the first time, and just being overcome with love from head to toe.

Ava has grown so much since that first night we met her, into such a beautiful girl inside and out. Sometimes when I go into her room to wake her up in the morning, I can still see that little baby face I used to see many years ago. I want her to be our baby forever, and she sweetly tells me, "You can always call me your baby."

She is smart, sweet, kind, thoughtful, and we are so proud of everything that she is. We love you Ava Grace and hope that you have a wonderful day and an even better year :)

Ava's Family Party

For Ava's birthday this year, we decided to go low key. She already has so much stuff - and pair that with the fact that Christmas was just a month ago AND the lunch at American Girl was part of her birthday present - we just made it a family thing at my Mom and Dad's. Ava's dinner choice was spaghetti and meatballs, which my Momma made...and she THREW IT DOWN!! I made garlic bread, and Memaw brought a salad with all the fixins.

Of course we dined on cake for dessert:
After dinner she opened presents, while Aidan set off on a search for the perfect suit of armor to be constructed by Ava's discarded wrappings:
As already stated, this girl has so many things (thanks to all of the people who love our girl...us included), we had a hard time coming up with something she really needed that she didn't already have. We decided to re-do her bedroom with new bedding, curtains, and decor. My parents and Sean's parents went in with us to purchase the items:
Ava modeling the beautiful bracelet her Uncle Drew brought all the way back from Norway. His girlfriend, Pritsana picked it out especially for her. What sweet, thoughtful kids :)
I know I have said this once before, but Ava and Aidan couldn't be more night and day. While Aidan gets embarrassed and uncomfortable when people sing "Happy Birthday" to him, Ava BASKS in the attention and soaks it all in:
Cute kiddos eating their cake. Here, you can see part of Aidan's suit of armor he created:
A BIG thanks to our families. We already know how much you love and care about us and our little family. But, you always find ways to keep reminding us :) Hugs and kisses to you all!!!

NYE in NYC, Part 8

After lunch at American Girl, we met up with the guys and did some window display looking with the kids as we headed down 5th to Central Park.

Ava was in love at Tiffany:
Bergdorf Goodman had a really cool "animal heads on human bodies" display that Aidan thought was pretty boss:
The kids fed some ducks at the park:
Pretty sure the only picture of the four of us together from our trip:
We wrapped up the afternoon by stopping into FAO Schwarz. Ava found next year's Christmas present: a $24,000 Barbie foosball table:
Since Ava got to shop at American Girl, we made sure Aidan was able to choose a souvenir. Both the kids are "Angry Birds" obsessed, so naturally Aidan chose a big fat "Angry Birds" pig who oinks and plays music. Awesome. However, he was the hit of the store - each time he walked past a kid with his pig, the kids would say, "Mom, look! He's got the pig from 'Angry Birds!'"
We ended the day with the one and only time we took some kind of public transportation. We took the train back up to Rhett and Amy's to get ready to start the long trek home the next morning:
The weather was so mild, and knowing that we wanted to see as much as possible, Sean and I estimated that our final walking tally was around 15 miles! It was all very well worth it, and I am happy to say I can check NYC off my list!

NYE in NYC, Part 7

Sunday afternoon, we had lunch reservations at American Girl. Ava, Memaw, Amy, and Lily met me at the store and the ladies ate a very nice lunch in their cafe. Ava was so giddy and excited! She couldn't stop saying, "Oooh, Mommy! Look at that!"

Everything was decorated very girlie, right down to Ava's pink lemonade:
The meal started with an appetizer tray of pretzel rolls, veggies, quiche, and fruit:
The dolls even get to belly up to the table and "eat lunch" with us. Ava was helping Lily's doll get comfortable:
The meal finished up with the cutest little plate of dessert. Chocolate mousse in a little flower pot, and a white cake cut in the shape of a flower:
Unfortunately we don't have any pics of Ava using her gift cards in the store. The store was bat a%# crazy!! It was so amazing to see how much money people spend in that store. But if you're curios, Ava chose a ball gown and pet dog for her doll.

NYE in NYC, Part 6

New Year's Eve night, we went to dinner (which was one of the most horrendous dining experiences of my life - don't even want to talk about it). We couldn't get out of the restaurant quickly enough to head over to the cute little pub we had hung out in the night before.

We grabbed the last table in the joint. The people in the pub were very friendly, in fact we made friends with a group of guys that bought us each a drink. Eventually it was wall to wall people, so we were super duper happy we got to sit:
A midnight kiss and champagne toast once the ball dropped:

NYE in NYC, Part 5

Since we were on 5th, it was only natural to do some window display watching (we did more the next day with the kids...more on that later).

Ahhh....this is quite possibly the prettiest package I saw in NYC. I would love to be able to unwrap the entire Cartier store:
These pretty baubles would pop up and down and turn around from their boxes to the tune of "The Nutcracker". I told Sean I would take anything from this particular window, although I'm fairly certain most of the things in the store are close to the price of a car or house. Hey, a girl can dream, right?
There were big beautiful wreaths everywhere, including Tiffany:
Their windows were carousel themed. In the windows were tiny little carousels with jewelry going along for the ride:

NYE in NYC, Part 4

Saturday afternoon we headed over to 5th Avenue. We got to see St. Patrick's Cathedral - BEAUTIFUL:

Which is right across the street from the "Atlas" sculpture:
And just around the corner from that is Rockefeller Center. The BIG tree:
We witnessed a proposal on the skating rink:
30 Rock!!!!!
WHEW...around the corner from that was the famous "Rainbow Room" sign:
Which is across the street from Radio City Music Hall:
Have you been counting the miles we've walked? At this point in our trip, we estimated around 5...