We started our weekend a little early with a morning drive to Big Bear last Friday. A weekend away with Jeff's folks, Uncle Lindsay and Uncle Pat was just what the doctor ordered, so up to the mountains we went! Jeff, Lindsay, Pat and I went skiing on Saturday while the grandparents played with Avery. I didn't last past 11:30 a.m. - how sad, right?! My feet hurt, I was super tired, the slopes were 50% ice and 50% slush...and a beer in the lodge sounded amazing. Those who know me well know that a beer never sounds good to me, so I must have really not been feeling the skiing situation. As it turns out, no one else was feeling it that much either and within an hour we all ended up enjoying a few brewskis in el lodgo.
While we "ski bunnies" were drinking beer, Avery and her devoted grandparents built an awesome house/fort in the yard behind our cabin. So much fun! Here are some pics from the weekend starting with a shot of said house/fort.
We all had fun playing in there!
No caption needed for these hotties.
Cute. Ness.
Sweet kisses...
What a good mommy!
Warming up the hands during our snowball fight.
Fierce snowball fight competitor.
Sledding!
It was a great weekend with our family and if it wasn't for our Sunday plans to look forward to we all would have been depressed about leaving Big Bear.
Our wonderful realtors hosted a taco truck night for our neighborhood on Sunday (tacos on Saint Patrick's Day? Only in San Diego...). Most of our neighbors were able to come and we enjoyed watching the kids play while getting to know each other over tacos and cervezas!
A few of the neighborhood boys and Belle. This was taken right before she ate right of the kids' plates. Belle!
Party in the cul-de-sac. Love this neighborhood!
I had to take one picture of Avery eating straight from the cheese dish before ushering her along!
Tacos, quesadillas and Coronas. Just how Saint Patrick intended it.
Apparently you couldn't buy in the neighborhood if you weren't a 5 year old boy with a toy lazor.
Papa and Avery sharing secrets. =)
FPT
Let's be honest. Funny Picture Time should really be called Cute Picture Time this go around. Look at these two!
Three days a week I drive Avery to my parents’ house or daycare. On the drive we play “I Spy” (our fav as of late), watch videos (Avery only, I swear) and chat about the day and who she’s going to see. This was part of our convo on Monday morning’s drive to my parent’s house:
Me: Who are you going to see today? Avery: Papa and Danda! Me: Yup! Papa and Danda. Avery: Say "Papa." Me: Papa. Avery: You sound like Danda. Me: Why, thank you. Avery: You're welcome.
Ha!
This next conversation was during a rest stop at Starbucks on the drive back from Big Bear last Sunday:
Me: We have a big day ahead of us. We have to get home, take a bath and get ready for the party. Avery: Party? Okay! Me: Yeah, we get to eat tacos and play with our friends, but we have to take a bath first. Avery: That’s a nice idea. FPT
Morning dance routine practice on the counter. And a 5, 6, 7, 8.
We made the big move 4.5 weeks ago and are slowly starting to feel settled. Moving with a youngster has proved to be slightly challenging (read: unpacking with Avery around is literally counterproductive). We take out; she puts back. We move the empty boxes to the living room, she slides them all over the house whilst putting random objects inside said boxes thus providing for more unpacking. It was all fun and games until Jeff and I realized we’ve been here for over a month and the place still looks like we’re squatters. Okay, maybe I’m being a little dramatic. And really, I shouldn’t blame the slow progress on a two year old. It’s more than just her, but she’s more fun to talk about than the fact that Jeff and I work a lot, have busy lives and do enjoy a little late night mindless TV without our attention being on the boxes at hand.
The house is one thing, but the neighborhood?! Well, that’s just Candyland hopped up on Skittles and milkshakes. There are 18 homes on our cul-de-sac, which in and of itself is great…not a lot of cars driving through, plenty of room for the kids to play, etc. These 18 homes have all been built within the last five months, so everyone is the “new neighbor,” and we’re all in the same boat with unpacking, settling in, meeting each other and so on. Want the kicker?! Within these 18 homes are 21 kids between the ages of one and 12 with the majority landing on the younger side. Oh, and you can’t forget about the two babies on the way, which will make the count 23 come June. This is kid paradise. Jeff calls it “constant recess.” And, along with lots of kids come lots of awesome parents. Score!
Here are some photos of our house and neighborhood. I will take more once our place is picture perfect.
The night before the big move - pizza and family at our new home!
The Simpsons chowing down, planning the move. Blurry and all.
Ready for some more big news??
Avery is potty trained! Wahoooo! She exceeded my expectations completely and “got it” within an hour. I have to be honest though, “getting it” is close, but not exactly the same as “getting it and applying it.” We’ve had a few accidents, but way less than I anticipated. I almost cried when she officially went potty for the first time…partly because I was so proud and amazed and partly because she looked so proud and amazed.
In related “big girl” news, Avery is now sleeping in a toddler bed. While this is a great feat, it was spurred on because she jumped out of her crib twice in three days. Thankfully, she never got hurt, but minimizing her risk was a top priority. Avery has had a little trouble adjusting to nights in our new house and our once perfect nighttime sleeper is currently battling some nighttime woes. We are making progress and are keeping positive that Sleeping Beauty returns soon.
Things come in three, right? You betcha! More news - Avery’s hair is now long enough where we can put it in pigtails! So stinking cute. As long as you distract her with candy or TV, she will let you “do a do.” It’s fun and she looks adorable! Jeff and my Mom wanted us to grow her hair out. I was hard to convince because I love her pixie cut. We’ll see what she prefers. She is bound to have an opinion shortly.
Pigtails and potty training. Busy weekend at the Simpsons!
We will keep the updates coming, so check back soon!
FPT
Cooking with Papa during one of our last nights with my folks... =)
Jeff and I met on a blind date in December 2004 and were married in October 2007. He is the apple of my eye, the hop in my step and the love of my life. In September 2010 we proudly welcomed our first child, daughter Avery Elizabeth and this site was created to share with our friends and family, near and far, Avery's journey through this magical thing called life.
