Happy Birthday Ava !

Ava i s 3 years old today! I can't believe how fast the time has flown by! She is the joy of my life and definitely keeps my life interesting . I love her with all my heart. Happy Birthday Ava!

Flashback Friday

Belly shot before heading to the hospital

Me and my nurse. She checked me in stayed with me all day, went home and came back 12 hours later just in time to help with Ava's delivery

Giving somebody an update, don't I look enthusiastic?

3 years ago today I checked into Fountain Valley Hospital to have labor induced. I was 5 day over due with Ava and very anxious to be done with pregnancy and move onto mother hood. Little did I know what I was getting into! I definitely didn't expect to not have a baby on November 16th, but after close to 23 long hours of labor I delivered a beautiful baby girl on the November 17th. More on that tomorrow......

Frosting

Monday morning as Ava and I were pulling out of the drive way to start our day I noticed all the frost on the grass and commented to Ava "look, it must have been really cold last night there is frost on the grass!" Ava immediately replied "mom, you are so silly, frosting is for cookies!" It made me laugh all day.

Tag a long

My cousin Kori tagged me to get me out of my blogging rut, so here goes!

Tag #1 3 facts/habits about me

#1. I LOVE to read! I am always reading something. My mom says its cause I feel the need to escape my own life and I totally agree. It is so nice to just get wrapped up in another world for awhile. I just finished the 3 books of the twilight series and I can't wait until the next book is out. I also like John Grisham, James Patterson, Dean Koontz, Stephen King, David Baldacci.... anything that sucks me in!

#2. I bite my fingernails! Still at age 26, I just can't seem to kick this bad habit once and for all. I have quit periodically for months at a time, but I always start back up again. I try not to bite in public though because I do know that it is a dirty disgusting habit!

#3. I am a cokaholic(if that is even a word)! Seriously I usually have my first one by 7am. We role through the Jardine drive thru and filler up. I just have to have it. It makes my day all that much better. I try and drink the diet stuff as much as I can, but it just doesn't cut my craving as much as the real thing. So, if anybody is wondering why I am holding on to an extra 30lbs this is the reason. I LOVE COKE!!!!

Tag #2 The Senses

Favorite Smell: I will try and keep this one to a minimum :) Ava, she just has a smell all her own and it is so comforting to me. I really miss her when she is away and I always sleep with her blankie cause it smells like her. A few other favorites: my grandma Clarks house, Warm Vanilla Sugar and Breathe Romance from Bath and Body, Sunsilk shampoo, and Body by Victoria Secret and they have a new scent it is awesome too, it is called Desire.

Favorite Site: There is this place in Southern California on the drive from Long Beach to San Diego were you come around this bend and there is the ocean, right their in front of you. It is amazing! I remember the first time that I saw it and thought WOW! that is my favorite place in California. I love it and just got to see it in August. I wanted to stop and take a picture but Ava was sleeping and I didn't want to wake her up

Favorite Taste: This is a hard one too! Here is a short list: Lemon Sour Cream pie from Marie Calendars, company potatoes, carmel (especially from Grandma Clark), COKE, homemade orange rolls (and I don't even like oranges), anything that qualifies as candy

Favorite Sound: I love to hear Ava talking or singing to herself when she plays. I just sit in the other room and crack up!

Favorite Touch: cuddles from my girl, warm fuzzy socks, flannel sheets (clean ones are the best), and hugs!

Katie, Carly Blasco, and Becca it your turn. Tag your it!

Flashback Friday

It has been forever since my last post! So, I decided to do a flashback Friday. These are a few pictures from the trip to Disneyland we took last October. I can't believe how much Ava has changed in just a year! She even has her binki in this picture ;)

Happy 26th to me!

Two Special Guys

Ava and Brad cleaning the mirror!

Being a single mother I have often worried about who will be a great male role model for her. I know that of course her father will be, he just doesn't have all the characteristics that I think she need in an awesome role model. I am so lucky that Katie is married to such an awesome guy, who lets us tag along on their family outings and spend so much time. Not only does he like us but he has been willing on many occasions to be an example for me and to Ava. I really look up to Ryan and hope that one day my life will be blessed with someone so fun to be around. Ava and I have also been blessed to have Brad become a part of our lives. He is so wonderful to Ava, and to me. He spends time with Ava, giving her much needed attention that I can't always give her. He just plays with her doing whatever she wants . He lets her wash her hands as long as she wants, wash the mirror using as much windex as she want (I never do this), he teases her too! I just love when they get to spend time together. I feel like it fills a gap in her life. Last Sunday Ava and I went to Sharon and Brads for lunch after church. Brad and Ava made silly hats for us all to wear. Then after lunch they disappeared into the bathroom (one of Ava's favorite places to play). They cleaned, which she also very strangely likes to do, then when Sharon inquired on what exactly they were doing for so long Brad's reply was "We've moved on to face washing!" I went to see what exactly this meant, and Ava was wiping his face with a paper towel. It was just too funny. So, Thank you Brad for giving Ava some much needed "fatherly" attention! It means more to me than words can ever express.

Memory Monday!

I thought I would post this picture of Becca on her first day of Second Grade. Becca had her first day of Eight Grade last Monday and I can't believe how grown up she is! This is the way I will always remember my cute little Doobie.

Silly Girl

Ava is definitely going through a fun stage right now. She likes to pick her own clothes, put them on all by herself (after asking me which way the go), pick her own shoes, and fix her own hair. She is actually pretty good at getting her hair into little ponytails, they aren't very cute but it just amazes me how she keeps trying and trying to do it until finally she masters it. She is obsessed with fixing hair right now and stands on her stool in the bathroom getting the comb wet and combing her hair into the funniest little ponytails. She wears her princess shoes most places. Last Saturday I asked her to get ready to go grocery shopping, these are a few pictures of what she came up with. Keep in mind she did all of this on her own, the clothes the shoes, the hair and the accessories. She cracks me and while letting her express herself might be a little embarrassing I feel inclined to just go with the flow and pick my battles!

Cherry Hill

Well, Ava made it back from a two week visit in California on Saturday and I was definitely glad to have her home. On Monday Katie and I loaded up the kids and headed to Cherry Hill. The kids had a blast. Ava and Cooper didn't spend as much time going down the slide this trip like they usually do. Instead they tried to sit on the fountains and wrestling with each other in the water. I must admit that at certain times I was worried that one of them was going to hit their head or scrape their face on the bottom of the pool because they were pushing each other around so much and laying on each other in the water. But they had fun, and that is really all that matters. It always amazes me how well Cooper and Ava can get a long and then within a minute they can be fighting like crazy. I am really glad the we all got to spend the day together.

Ava Shakin her Bacon

Savannah, Cooper and Ava were all sitting in the kitchen last Saturday taking turns "shakin their butts". They would each take a turn while the other two watched and sing shake my butt, shake my butt. None of them really have any rhythm but they sure are funny to watch!

A Fun Weekend

Sharon and Ava sitting on the deck looking at the ducks.
There was a beautiful swan too.



A few weekends ago Ava and I got to go on a little getaway with Sharon and Brad and stay in their condo near Heber. We had so much fun just being away from home. We got their late in the afternoon on Friday and played outside, Ava got to blow bubbles which is one of her favorite things to do right now. We went to a really good restaurant and had gelato for dessert. On Saturday we went to the Homestead for breakfast. There was a big deck outside that went out over a little pond that had fish and ducks. Ava was very excited about the ducks. She calls the gucks and says pack, pack, pack. It cracked us up! We sat in the hot tub for awhile and then we all went to see Surf's Up. It was a cute movie! Thanks Sharon and Brad for a fun weekend!

Flashback Friday

I am officially joining the Flashback Friday group. This week we are going back 7 years to my High School graduation. I thought now would be a good time of year for this with school ending, so today I dug up some old pictures. It was kinda fun to take a little trip down memory land and look through my old scrapbooks that are just collecting dust on the top shelf of my closet. I had to laugh today thinking about how differently my life has turned out that I planned it would seven years ago. I am so happy that is had turned out differently though because I feel like I am in a pretty good place right now. I have a beautiful daughter and I love being her mother. I am on the road to having a career that I really love and would have never imagined myself capable of doing. LIFE IS GOOD!

Hats

Lately I have been working a 9-7 shift so I have some time with Ava in the mornings. I really enjoy getting to spend time with her in the mornings. She loves to cuddle when she first wakes up so we usually just lay around for a little while. We get to eat breakfast together too! I try and cherish every moment that I get with her because there doesn't seem to be enough of them lately. In my perfect world I would get to be with her all day every day, but that isn't the case right now. I can't believe how much I miss while I am at work. I try not to think about this very much because it breaks my heart. I am just so thankful that she spends her time somewhere where she is happy and loved! Anyway, I had Heidi take this picture of us this morning with our hats. Ava wanted to wear a hat like me today. She is just so dang cute!

Interesting Night

Ava holding the yogo after we got home
The recovered yogo! Anybody hungry?

Last night Cooper came over while Katie and Ryan went to dinner. All was going well, Ava and Cooper were actually getting along without any fights or mischief. After there bath they wanted some Yogo's so I gave them each there own little bowl full. They were sitting together on the coach when all of a sudden Ava starts yelling "Get it out, get it out". So I run over to find out what she is talking about to find that her and Cooper had both put a yogo up there nose. I managed to get Coopers out but Ava just kept pushing hers further and further up her nose. It wasn't coming out! I scooped up both the kids and headed to insta care. Katie and Ryan met us there the get Cooper. Katie stayed to help me and it was a good thing cause it took three people to hold Ava down while the Dr. fished the yogo out of her nose. I can't believe how far up there is was! On the way to the Dr. Ava was crying and saying that she didn' want to go to the Dr. and Cooper just kept telling her it will be all right and be right next you the whole time. Hopefully Ava learned her lesson and won't be putting anything else in her nose!

New Hair Do

Last Tuesday I finally took Ava to get her hair cut. I had been wanting to do this for awhile now, with the hope that it will grow in a little bit thicker. The last time Ava went for her monthly visit with her Dad I got my hair cut. She noticed immediately and just kept telling me that she wanted a hair cut too. She requested to have a pink hair cut like mine. I don't know what this means to her, but I told her she was getting one. She sat so good during the whole thing and was excited about her new look. I think it turned out really cute!

Cute Cousins

When I was leaving Katie's house one late afternoon the kids were playing on the tramp. I happened to have my camera and decided it might be an opportunity to get a good shot of the kids. I actually got a few good one (this is rare) so I thought I would share them with everyone!

Some Good News

I have some good news. Next Tuesday is my last day with Einsteins! I was offered an Assistant Manager position with Jamba Juice so I am going back. I am really excited about this change. Of course, as with any change I have a little anxiety, but I really feel that this job change is the right choice. I am really excited and hopefully if all goes according to my plan I will be promoted to a General Manager by the end of the year and have my own store. There are 3 new locations scheduled to open by October and I really want to get one of them.

Update

I know, I am a terrible blogger! But here is a small update on what is new in my world. I moved into a new apartment 2 months ago. I love it there. It is a two bedroom and I love having the extra space! Ava actually sleeping in her room is a whole different story though! I have tried to bribe with Cinderella sheets, Dora pillows, treats and she still just ends up in my bed cause I usually just don't have the energy stand firm. My latest attempt and sleeping in her own bed is her binki. She can no longer sleep in Mom's bed with her binki. She did sleep in her bed (most of the night) last night because she chose the binki. This angle might actually work! I know this problem is my fault, because I have always let her sleep with me, but I am ready for my own space now. Here are a few pics of Ava on her new "big girl bed".

Two two year olds+bathroom=disaster

This is what accured the other night while Katie and I let Cooper and Ava out of our radar for all of five minutes. Those two can get into trouble so quickly! They went into the bathroom and each with their own role of toilet paber managed to clog up th toilet and spred spit wads all over the bathroom and hallway wall just outside the bathroom. Ava was so soaking wet that I could ring the water out of her hair and clothes. What a fun surprise and mess for us!