Classic

This morning, we were all in the living room. Iain was putting Avery's new tricycle together and the girls were playing and helping. All of a sudden, Avery walks over to me, pulls my hair as hard as she can, and then starts smiling and giggling. I told her "No" and that it was very bad manners to pull hair. Then I said, rather rhetorically since Avery doesn't have too many words in her vocabulary just yet, "Where did you learn to do that?" (since it's not in Iain and I's normal repertoire to model this kind of behavior). Without any pause, Audrey pipes up, "I teached her."

Well, there you go. Not much left to be said.

Things That Make My Heart Melt

Today, the girls were having a picnic. They had eaten all of their food and Audrey said "we're still hungry" (now, mind you, this was after they had eaten a sandwich, grapes, raisins and a cheese stick). Our nanny told Audrey that there was no more food, so Audrey immediately took the raisin out of her mouth (the last morsel of food that had been packed with the picnic) and said "here you go, Aves."

It's funny how they go in stages ... last night, Audrey had a meltdown because she didn't want to give Avery a hug or kiss goodnight to tell her "I love you," but today she was going to do everything possible not to let her baby sister starve. =)

The Littlest Dancer

Even though Audrey didn't want to dance at her recital last weekend, she and Avery have been dancing all over the house this week with Grandma. At the store today, Audrey asked me if we could buy some tap shoes. I have no idea where she came up with that. Anyway, here's a video of Avery in action last night. I'll try to get some footage of Audrey shortly to post (it's really not hard these days ... it seems she wants to dance all the time now).

Audrey's cute quote of the week: we have some fire escape stairs from our condo that we call the "secret stairs", and she told me yesterday "We can't go on the secret stairs now. They're not available because it's almost winter." Well, there you go. I wasn't aware they were closing, so I'm glad she told me. =)

Audrey's First Dance Recital!

Today was Audrey's first dance recital. She's been in a weekly class with other 1- and 2-year olds, and during the recital today, everyone was dressed in a red leotard and red tutu and 'danced' to We Wish You a Merry Christmas. Here are some pix and video of Audrey in action.

Oh, wait, there's nothing there??? That's because Audrey refused to put on her 'costume' (even for just walking around the house) and didn't want to dance on the stage with her class (even in her 'regular' clothes). So we don't have anything to share. But both girls had a great time watching all the classes dancing, and we'll try again in the Spring. =)

What Happens When You Let a 2-Year Old Dress Herself

Audrey got a new skirt from her friend Elisa yesterday, and she insisted on wearing it to bed last night and then again today. It's freezing outside, so I told her she could keep the skirt on, but had to wear pants under the skirt. She also insisted on wearing her new yellow/pink flower shoes. When I tried to give her pink socks (not even sure those would have matched, but it would have been better), she insisted that the only socks she would wear were her soft red socks. She also had a very strong opinion about which sweater she was going to wear.

So here's the result. I'm sure people at the zoo this afternoon must have thought I was color-blind. Avery, on the other hand, in her bellbottoms, was about the best-dressed 1-year old at the zoo. Here's a pic of the 2 of them after we got home this afternoon.

Suitcases and Dinner

My mom left to go home yesterday and Audrey really, really wanted to get on the airplane with her. We toyed around with it for a few minutes, but decided in the end that this wasn't the best timing. In any event, in exchange for not going to Florida, Mim told Audrey that she could go pick out one of her Christmas presents early ... a new Princess suitcase that Audrey really, really wanted at Target. We went yesterday afternoon and, being the astute mom that I am, decided that two suitcases at our house would be better for my sanity than 2 girls fighting over one. So we bought two. Here they are yesterday, sitting in them ... Audrey was pretending they were carseats and that we were driving to the airport.

The other pix are of some good friends of ours who came for dinner tonight. Since our dining room is so small (and won't easily hold 8 people), we let the kids eat at the small table in the living room and watch Blues Clues while eating. I'm surprised they had time to eat anything, in between all the staring at the TV! The first is Audrey, Avery and their friend Elisa. The second is Avery and Massi sitting in the corner and playing together (well, really, just next to each other). It was so cute ... from the back, they look like twins.

Decorating for Christmas

We put up our Christmas tree on Sunday. Audrey was very interested at first in hanging ornaments on the Christmas tree, but after a few minutes, all they both wanted to do was either (1) take ornaments out of boxes (especially the glass and other fragile ones) and wave them around or (2) take ornaments off of the Christmas tree. We had a great time, though, and my mom was here to help.

Notice Avery's Camelbak ... because you never know when you'll need to re-hydrate during Christmas decorating. Also notice the Mardi gras beads ... they bring their own party in case the one we're throwing isn't fun enough. Now, does anyone have a good suggestion to get a 2-year old and a 1-year old to smile for the camera at the same time (or, for that matter, at all sometimes)??? =)

My Beautiful Niece

There does not exist a cuter 5-month old on this planet!

We're Back ... & We Have News

First, and most exciting these days (in case any of you who read this haven't heard; I'm sure there aren't many), we are expecting Baby McConnell #3 on June 7!! We aren't going to find out if it's a boy or girl, so don't ask. =) We also don't know whether we'll use another "A" name, so don't ask about that either. =)

As for the rest of life, I know it's been a while, but following is a quick timeline of our last month of life:

Oct 21: Put our house on the market (thinking it would take months to sell)

Oct 23: Receive a final contract on our house

Oct 25: Decide we better start looking for a new house to move into for the next 7 months of life

Oct 27: Find another place to live

Oct 28: Decide we have to move in the upcoming weekend because there will be no more free weekends between now and date of closing

Oct 28 - 30: Pack (with a lot of help from 2 little girls, who really like to unpack more than they like to pack)

Oct 31: Move into another condo (same complex, short commute, same big hassle) with the help of some great friends Nov 1: Drive to LA for the day to visit some awesome friends

Nov 3 - 5: Allison goes to NY for a business trip

Nov 7: Try to unpack some boxes

Nov 8 - 14: Super family trip to Hawaii; I get to meet my little 'niece' Addyson for the first time, who is super-cute

Nov 17 - 18: Allison goes to CT for a business trip

Nov 20 - 25: Allison's brother, sister-in-law, and cutest 5-month old in the world, Ava, visit SD

Nov 22: Allison goes to ER for some crazy stomach bug

Nov 23 - Present: Allison's mom visits; the whole family gets sick; Thanksgiving is postponed by a day; Now we're all feeling great!

So I know that was a lot of drama and probaby way too much detail, but I just wanted to prove that I have some legit excuses for being so far behind in blogging. Now the bad news is that in the midst of the unpacking, I am still unable to locate our card reader (so no still pix on the blog today). I'm also sorry to say that I was extremely lax in taking any videos either in Hawaii or from Ava (and B&B's visit), so I'm includng only one video from Hawaii. Thanks to our very cool friends Dirk & Annie for their extreme hospitality (and just overall coolness) during our visit!

Audrey's First Haircut

I've cut Audrey's bangs many times, but yesterday was the first time she's had the rest of it cut. We went to a kids' salon and she got to sit in a little red car as the "hair-cutting chair." She didn't really love the cape that went around her, mostly, I think, because she couldn't use her hands. But the woman did a great job and she put a little braid in the top of her hair when she was done. It's so cute and I need to learn how to do it!

So here are a couple of pix (I had a hard time getting her to pose, so these will have to do). Also a couple of them from the children's museum yesterday.

Random things

First, I have the most amazing husband and children in the world!

Second, we listed our condo for sale today, so if you know anyone who needs a really awesome place in SD, send them our way. =)

Third, how do children learn to lie? Last night, Audrey was playing downstairs with Iain (cleaning the front porch; see point #2) and when she came up, she was filthy. I told her it was time to get into the bathtub. Her first reaction was to run between her headboard and the wall and say "I can't, I'm too far away." What? So I told her to come closer. Pretty simple. Then she said "I can't, I'm sick." What? You're not sick. Where does she get this stuff.

Fourth, a very cute shot of them at their music class today, dancing together.

Dance Class

It's been a busy few weeks since I last posted anything. The girls are growing and learning and keeping us very entertained! Audrey wants to know about everything. "Where is the airport, Mommy?" I tell her it's about 2 miles away. "What does 2 miles away mean, Mommy?" I tell her it means it would take us about 5 minutes to drive there. "What is 5 minutes, Mommy?" And this could go on for hours. Meanwhile, Avery is copying everything Audrey does (which is usually good, but sometimes not so much). Last night, Audrey sang ring-around-the-rosie for about 10 minutes non-stop, while the 2 of them ran around in circles around the table and threw themselves down at the appropriate times. When Audrey stopped singing, Avery stopped running, looked up, and started to whine until Audrey started singing again. So cute.

We also found out this week that Iain was selected for grad school next year, so all signs point to us being in Washington DC at this time next year. We like SD, but we're ready for the next adventure (especially since the next adventure takes us closer to family)!

Here are a couple of pix from Audrey and Avery at their dance class today (which is mostly a 'listen-to-music-and-shake-cool-toys-to-the-music class', but which is awesome for them). They are going to have a recital in December (Audrey has to learn how to bend her knees and put her arms in the air), and I'm already anticipating a whole lotta' cuteness coming out of that!!

A Day at the Aquarium

For Daddy. Love, Audrey and Avery.

Potties, Gates, and Going to Bed

So we're working on getting Audrey potty-trained. But Avery has been watching. Here she is from a couple of days ago, practicing her own skills. =)



The second video is from today. This is a daily occurrence ... as soon as Avery gets her shoes on, she knows it's time to go, and she goes to the gate, waiting to get out.



As for going to bed: Iain had to work tonight so the girls and I went to have dinner with him. As we were getting ready to leave the base, Iain was standing next to the driver's side door, talking to me. We heard Audrey start singing, to the tune of Mary had a little lamb:

Now it's time to go to bed, go to bed, go to bed, now it's time to go to bed, and put our jammies on.

So that was pretty cute (I had never heard her sing this before). But then she just busts into verse #2:

Now it's time to take a bath, take a bath, take a bath, now it's time to take a bath [slight pause, a little thinking], and then we brush our teeth.

Even cuter. But then she realized she knew a third verse:

Now it's time to take a bath [I know, this sounds like verse #2, but it has a better ending], take a bath, take a bath, now it's time to take a bath, [get ready for a really long ending], and then we brush our teeth [and then in the same tune, as if it's the first ending] and then we comb our hair [and then a pause, and in the same tune again for the ending] and then we put our jammies on [and another pause, and another ending] and then we go to beeeeeeeeddddddddd [and she carries out this last word for as long as her breath would allow her, as if she knew that the last note of a song should just be carried on and on].

Iain and I were silently cracking up, almost crying, it was so funny and adorable.

Daddies

My dad died 10 years ago this past week. A third of my life, I have spent without him, which seems almost impossible to grasp. But I am so thankful that he was MY daddy. Brantley and I are so blessed to have grown up with him. A man of virtuous character, he was also hilarious, giving, and he loved us without exception. I wish that our girls, and that Ava, could have known him. They are missing out!

Mom and Brantley, I love you guys. I wish that Dad were here to celebrate with us in the amazing joys of the last years, but I'm thankful to have you both, along with Becki and Iain and those precious angels.

Quote of the Day

Totally forgot to mention in the last post ...

Tonight, Audrey was carrying around this little plastic kanagaroo they have, that I think goes with some Fisher Price farm. Anyway, the kangaroo has a baby kangaroo in its pouch. Audrey brings it to me and says "Mommy kangaroo carrying baby kangaroo in a baby ah-zhorn." She was trying to say Baby Bjorn. Hilarious.

Runner-up quote of the day: She came into the kitchen where I was warming up some dinner. I guess it smelled like pizza to her and she said "Where's the pizza? Smells like pizza but there's no pizza."

Random Cuteness

All four of us are a bit sick, but we had a fun day together. Today was the first day Avery rode in the new forward-facing carseat (actually, Audrey snagged the new one so Avery is sitting in Audrey's old one). But they're both facing forward now and I think Avery likes it. We went to Mission Bay this afternoon, and after about a 4-month sabbatical from twisty slides, Audrey has again decided to try them and she LOVED every minute. She's also getting quite good at the 'big girl' swings. Avery loves the swings and loves just generally chasing Audrey and carrying things up and down the grassy hills.

Audrey has had two pretty good days of potty training, but I will definitely be glad when it is over. I think we still have a long way to go (although maybe we'll get them both done at the same time ... Avery seems to like to sit on the potty more than Audrey, and she's so cute ... she gets about a foot in front of it and then walks slowly backward until her legs hit the potty and then sits down)! Avery's new favorite trick is 'high five' which she wants to do over and over.

Here are a few pix from today (and then a random pic from Audrey at a friend's house on Friday ... the goggles were too cute to pass up).

Point Loma

There was a retirement party this afternoon for one of Iain's colleagues. The party was at the 'compound' of houses where his Captain and two of the Commanders live, down at the tip of Point Loma. It is, quite possibly, the most beautiful spot in all of San Diego, right where the bay meets the ocean. They have a huge backyard, beautiful homes and an amazing view of the water. Here's a little shot as we were leaving the party.

Avery is 1!

Happy Birthday, Avery! We had a little party at Aunt Connie and Uncle Bobby's house and lake. Both girls got tons of presents (yes, it was a good day for Audrey also) and then we had some chocolate cupcakes and some fun in the lake. We love you, Avery, and are amazed at your energy and sweet personality (not to mention your awesome dancing skills). You are such a joy and we are blessed to be your parents.

Awesome friends

We spent the afternoon with some awesome friends from Orlando. Thanks to Mike and Karen (and Sarah) for letting this crazy crew come for the afternoon. We have about doubled ourselves in the last 3 years ... there were Lena and Logan, Ariana and Noah, Katelyn and Caylee, Ava, Sarah (& baby L), Audrey and Avery. 10 kids under the age of 4. Good times catching up with everyone and eating some good food! There's a nice little video of Brantley on the zip line too. Mike and Karen's house and yard are made for fun! Audrey and Avery are going to want to move in with them ... a giant playroom, a slide on the porch, a pool, a trampoline, a swingset and jungle gym, and of course, the zip line.

This post is just a run-on of thoughts, but the bottom line is that I love these guys. Miss you all!

Audrey, Avery & Ava

The 3 cousins together for the first time. Addy, we miss you!

Avery Feeding Tucker

Poor Tucker. He almost had it.

In the Sprinkler

The girls had a great time today playing in the sprinkler in Mim's backyard. It took Audrey a few minutes to decide it would be fun (she was a bit tentative at first), but once she got the hang of it, she had lots of fun (and even went back out again after supper for another round). Avery would walk in a little bit and then turn around and come back out as fast as she could. Maybe tomorrow she will be jumping over the sprinkler in excitement. =)

Pretty Girl

Spaghetti Night

Dancing Queens!

These girls have seriously been dancing and running and singing for more than 30 minutes now! I have multiple videos and I don't know which one I like best, so I'm just uploading the most recent one. Of course, I always get this great footage when they have saggy diapers just before bath time. =) Avery has started clapping a TON in the last 24 hours. It's her new favorite skill.

Avery at the Beach

We went to Glorietta Bay on Coronado yesterday, and played a little bit on the beach. We've been to 4 different beaches this week in SD, and this one was by far the least appealing. The sand was more akin to mud, there was seaweed in the water (which Audrey did NOT like at all, and wouldn't go in the water unless we carried her to the few little patches that didn't have grass), AND there were sand fleas. Yuck. But, as luck would have it, yesterday was the only day I remembered to bring the camera. So unlike the other days, where both girls were laughing and playing and running into and out of the water, yesterday was really just Avery playing at the shore in the mud. But this video of her is cute. After the beach, we went to dinner and took a walk around town, with Audrey running up to ever door of every closed shop and yelling "Not open either!" They are such sweet girls and I think yesterday is one of those really wonderful evenings that is permanently etched in my mind.

Iain's Hat (I think it's really called a Cover)

Iain gave the invocation and benediction at a Change of Command ceremony today. His cover for the uniform he THOUGHT he was going to wear (that's another whole story) was sitting on the dining room table and Audrey grabbed it.

Avery Walking, Audrey Running

Our friends Forrest, Kim, Ariana and Noah were here last week. We had a great time with them, though I'm sad to say that I wasn't very good about getting my camera out while they were here. Ariana is 2 months older than Audrey and Noah is 4 months older than Avery, so it was quite an activity-filled house! Here's one cute video of Audrey and Ariana running through the house. The other is of Avery walking (obviously).

Learning to use the DVD Player

Why can they never smile at the same time???

So as an update, Avery is walking everywhere now. We think it was about a week and a half ago that she switched from crawling to walking as her primary mode of transportation. She also still puts everything in her mouth, and she is an eating machine. Audrey is talking so much. She uses English mostly, but she's quite good with Spanish as well (though if I try to say something to her in Spanish, she says "no, Mommy speak English." ... apparently Iain is the only approved parent for speaking Spanish). We're making slow progress on the potty training, and her new favorite thing to wear is a pink and white plaid dress that she calls her "Cinderella" dress. They are playing much more together these days, which is so thrilling for me to watch.

A couple of days ago, Audrey was picking out bathing suits for her and Avery to wear to the beach (they each have about 10 bathing suits, thanks to Aunt Bud). Audrey picked out a bikini for Avery (the only one in the drawer) and then said "I wear top and bottom bathing suit like Avery and Mommy." So I told her it was called a "bikini" and she said "I wear a zuchini". I was cracking up inside, and told her it was a bikini. She repeated bikini, but over the course of the afternoon, each time she said what she wanted (including when Iain got home), she called it a zuchini. Hilarious!

So let me just brag about these girls for a minute

Audrey and Avery are amazing little girls. Every day, they crack us up and amaze us with how smart they are. Audrey's new favorite phrase is "that's much better." So today, I turned on the TV and she said "Watch Dora," so I told her okay and she said "Dora, much better than Elmo." Then at dinner, she wanted to move the new chair to her spot at the table and said "white chair much better than booster chair." And tonight, she was putting on her Hello Kitty pj's and she said "EL-o Kitty much better than fairies" (fairies are her other favorite jammies). Hysterical. And Audrey is so sweet ... tonight, I tried a new tactic of putting Avery to bed first. As soon as I left the room, Avery started crying. Audrey came out of the bathroom and I asked her to finish brushing her teeth and she said "Get Aves first. Avery is crying. Get Aves first." So cute.

And Avery, meanwhile, is a crazy woman. She climbs EVERYTHING, and yesterday at Iain's grandma's house, we found her on the top step of a step stool, one foot on, one foot swaying in the breeze, reaching about 1.5 feet to a table close by, trying to get a toy. She is taking more and more steps, and is trying to keep up with everything Audrey does. She also LOVES to dance, and no matter what music is on (from the radio to Audrey singing a capella), that girl is going to be moving her arms and laughing. It's awesome.

Every day, I am reminded how blessed we are to have these children. I hope you remember today to thank God for the blessings you have in your life.

Pat a Cake

Pop Goes the Weasel

Audrey singing, Avery dancing!

Ava and Fun Today

Avery and I just got home from a few days with our very cute niece, Ava (and her parents too). There's a little video of her, and also a quick video of Audrey & Avery having a good time this afternoon.

Happy Birthday Brantley

I have to say that you're much cooler at 34 (that's right, everyone, he's 34) than you were at 9, but then and now, you are the best brother ever and I love you! Maybe when I visit next, we can celebrate your birthday and reincarnate the T-bone and baked potato meal in honor of old times (and, plus, just because it tastes good). =)

Vacation Part 1

A few highlights from our vacation:

1. Avery took FIVE steps on Sunday morning in Patterson, CA (in, of all places, a Carl's Jr., which might be the second time I've ever been in a CJ in my life, so I don't think we're going to be go often to re-live the moment).

2. On Friday night, in a Mexican restaurant in Los Banos, CA (yes, transalated to The Bathrooms, CA), our waitress was telling us that one of her customers spoke seven languages, and then she proceeded to tell us what they all were: Italian, English, Spanish, Australian, ... (um, wait a minute, did she just say Australian?) ... And then she said "I guess Australian is sort of similar to English." Um, yes, it is SORT OF similar to English. You might even call them the same language. I could not even look at Iain or the waitress because I would have cracked up. So Iain and I got a great laugh about it after we got in the car. This restaurant also had a great grassy patch in the front where the girls took off their shoes and ran around laughing and playing.

3. We had lunch at a restaurant in St. Helena, CA (Napa Valley) with some of the best burgers and shakes we've ever had (thanks, Kelley & Joe, for the awesome recommendation).

4. We have been having fun listening to Audrey's constant talking in the car. She has opinions on everything, and her new favorite thing is to say "No Mommy" or "No Daddy" in a very matter-of-fact, authoritative voice with the look of someone who has been commanding people for years. I have to say that I much prefer this to the whiny voice she used to use, but I also prefer her other favorite phrase "here you go, Mommy" to this one.

We forgot to clear our camera's memory before we left, so we haven't taken many pix. But I'm about to clear it, so hopefully there will be some more postings later in the week. In any event, here's a pretty funny one ... our car was so loaded, there was no room for diaper changing on the inside. =)

Welcome Ava!

Our new little niece arrived last night at 9:07pm. She was 6 pounds 13.5 ounces and 19 inches long. Becki and Ava are both happy and healthy, though maybe a little bit tired. Iain would want me to mention that Brantley is doing fine as well. =)

Congratulations, Brantley and Becki!! She is beautiful, and is blessed to have the two of you as parents! We love you guys.

Today

Audrey is Too Cool for School

Audrey has used her potty every day for the last 5 days during our "getting ready for bed" routine. That is big news around here! I snapped this picture of her tonight. Classic.

Aunt Aeriale Visits

Our amazing friend Aeriale arrived today! The girls love her and I don't think they even remember that Iain and I are here. Here's a little shot from a few minutes ago.

Avery Starting to Walk

Avery's starting to push her toy around the living room. Here's a little shot of her from 2 minutes ago (yes, sometimes, I CAN post in real time). =)

Tonight

Avery is getting a lot of airtime in this posting, but it was hysterical to watch her with Rufus' cat door. Rufus was on the porch trying to get in, but unfortunately for him, Avery was blocking the way. Avery, meanwhile, was ecstatic that Rufus was so close to her for so long (albeit, on the other side of the door) since that rarely happens, so there was no way she was giving up her position.

The other two are Avery as a "burrito" after her bath and Audrey finishing her dinner. We made homemade pizzas, and you see that Audrey's pizza is almost all gone and her corn remains largely untouched. =) On a random note, last night at dinner, Audrey decided she wanted to wear a bib like Avery. And tonight, she wanted one again. So she had it on, and at one point a drop of pizza sauce fell onto her bib. She took it off and said "new bib." We told her that the point of a bib is to get dirty so that her shirt stays clean. She was not to be dissuaded, and refused to put it back on, saying "dirty bib" (you can see it lying on the table in the picture).

Also in random news, while giving Audrey her bath tonight (Avery was already out and crawling around), Avery crawled into the bathroom and proceeded to climb up the step stool that we have in front of the sink for Audrey. She went to the top (second) step then tried to climb on the top railing to boost herself onto the vanity. We have to keep our eyes on that one!

Memorial Day Weekend

On Saturday, we went to Camp Pendleton (north of San Diego) for Audrey to take a pony ride. When we got there, they brought out this huge horse with an adult size saddle (or at least not a saddle for a 2-year old). "THIS is our pony?" So they gave us the lead, and the 4 of us walked on a hilly trail (with Audrey in the saddle), two times around for $2. That's the best deal going! When we put her in the saddle, she looked around like she'd ridden 100 horses and this was no big deal. Audrey had a good time, and her favorite part was when Harry the horse would snort. Her least favorite moment was when a fly landed on her leg and she thought it was a bee and she said "get you" (as in, the bee is going to get me and I don't want it to). Audrey and Iain fed the horse an apple when we got back. Anyway, she had an awesome time and so did the rest of us.

Then we headed to get some sandwiches and had a picnic at Lake O'Neil (also at Camp Pendleton). Iain pitched our tent in a shady place next to the playground and all 4 of us took a nap for about 2 hours. It was perfect. (We had brought Audrey's blanket, so it helped her get in the groove for taking her nap). While we were sleeping, some birds came and pecked open our bag of chips and it was a disaster of chips when we woke up. But the little critters did a good job of carrying away their feast, and by the time we left, there were no chips to be found.

We then rented a paddleboat and went for a spin on the lake. We were out there for about 45 minutes and Iain did most of the paddling by himself. Thanks honey!

We stopped for a great dinner on the way home in Ocenside Harbor and the girls were angels, as always (well, almost always). =)

It was one of those magical days that I think I will remember forever. Of course, the video camera was full so we missed capturing video. But I did get a few still pix.

Yesterday we went to church, then went to the beach in Oceanside in the late afternoon. There's a great playground on the beach where we played for a while, and then Audrey wanted to go in the water. The first wave that hit her above her knee scared her a bit. But soon, she was running with Iain on the beach, into the water and out of the water. She'd wait for a little tide to come in and hit her feet and then she'd take off running with her hand in his. It was so beautiful to watch. We tried putting Avery's feet in the water, but she wanted no part of that (can't say I blame her ... that water is COLD)!

We're headed to a BBQ this afternoon. Should be fun. I think we need more 3 day weekends! =)

We also are finally Skype users, so let me know if you want to Skype with us. =)