we're still here...

It's been almost two months, but I promise, we're still here.  Every time I think about sitting down to write a post, I'm either laying in bed about to fall asleep or busy doing something else, and the thought disappears as quickly as it came. 

I don't get much time to myself, actually, I rarely get time to myself. Thus another reason I haven't gotten to write in a while. I do miss it. I saw just a few minutes ago that my personal blog hasn't been updated in 4 months...woah! It's definitely not because of a lack of things to say. It's plain business that keeps me from it. But I did steal away a little bit today to sit outside in the sun and read my new book "Strong Willed Child."

I hope she doesn't get any new ideas from this book!

We've got a lot of pictures to catch up with, so here we go:

Momma and Ava at Easter... getting this child to smile for a picture these days seems impossible.

so instead we get sneaky pictures, some turn out okay

 and some are just funny!

My loves on Easter

Ava may wear dresses and other cute outfits on Sunday, but don't let that fool you, she is 99% tomboy.   She'll take mud and dump trucks over dolls any day.

check out those mud covered legs!

Ava's drew circles for us.

in-motion shot... she bounces off the walls most days

and her independence drives her to try new things... like brushing her teeth with purple crayon.

Ava got a little preoccupied when trying to help water the flowers, she found soaking herself was much more fun.

We took another trip to the zoo back in May.  We are so lucky to live close to the zoo.  It's a relatively inexpensive and educational fun activity that we all enjoy.  We'll be heading to the Children's museum next Monday.

 

checking our height again this year

Ava loves the stingray tunnel

she's a caged animal... wish I had one of these at home!

last year Ava loved the wobbly bridge, this year she wasn't so sure.

our silly girl, posing with the turtle

2 going on 16... we're in trouble folks!

typical Ava

I swore I would never ever put a harness on my child....  foot in mouth!!!!!  This little monkey is a lifesaver and our little monkey loves it.   And we totally met all the strange looks we got with huge smiles.  Why?  Because our child was having fun, and had a little Independence and she was kicking and screaming while we tried to hold her hand.

When Ava does play with her dolls, this is usually what happens.  Each "baby" has a lovey... can we say OCD?

Miss Ava's hair sure has gotten long. But we like it that way and it's beautiful. So it's an adventure every day to see how we can best keep it out of her face at school. This day, she was quite cooperative and let me braid it.

Playing for her audience

Our first pool day of the season, we'll be having our second one here in about 10 minutes.

showing off her new "big girl hat" from PawPaw.  For being a tomboy she sure loves pink, and thew a fit when her baby baseball hat wouldn't fit anymore.

Potty training....   we'll we've started, but we're not there yet.  Ava still prefers the freedom her diaper gives her.  And with the warmer weather she's constantly on the run and doesn't like to stop to go to the potty. 

another shot of our muddy tomboy.  She's a keeper for sure!

We'll catch up more soon...hopefully.

Easter Egg'stravaganza...

Today was our annual Easter Egg'stravaganza.  Bella came to hang out with us for a while before hand, and the girls had lots of fun playing with the train and basketball hoop.  Ava was so excited that Bella was here and that we were going to see the Easter Bunny that she refused to sleep.  She was wired!

At two, we headed down the street to the middle school.  (The Elementary and Middle Schools are about 2 blocks away.)  We were greeted at the door by non other than the Easter Bunny himself.  After a short hello, we headed into the gym to play some games.  This isn't your typical egg hunt, as there is not hunt!  The candy filled eggs are given out as "prizes."  This year we had almost 7,000 eggs.  Our journey group filled 1,032, and it seemed like nothing... my guess, we'll shoot for 2K next year.

could Ava be any happier?

The girls had their faces painted... of all things, Ava chose Larry from Veggie Tales.  She even had the option of a lady bug, her favorite, but the second she saw Larry, that was it.  Bella on the other hand, chose a pretty butterfly.  It's obvious which girl is more of a girly girl!

bean bag toss

duck pond - the number on the bottom told

 you how many eggs you got

gone fishin'

nerf ball toss... but Ava found it easier to just drop the balls in.

we had to see the Easter Bunny a second time.

On our way to get a snack (free hotdogs, popcorn, cotton candy, water, & capri suns)  Ava saw a puppy, and just HAD to give him a hug.  Bella wasn't as sure, but thankfully her Daddy was there.
 

The girls had a great time, even when we were standing in line for 20 minutes for a balloon.  And of course we had to have a balloon.  Ava popped hers in the car, and enjoyed the fact that she did.  Once we got home, and emptied her eggs, Ava read for a few minutes and then laid on the floor in front of the tv.  I had put in Tangled, hoping she'd curl up on the couch with me and sleep...instead, she fell asleep there.

our sleeping beauty! 

Looking forward to next year's Egg'stravaganza already!  And a special Happy 4th Birthday to Miss Bella!

Mi Vida Loca...

la mia vita pazza..., mein verrucktes leben..., min galna liv...,   no matter how you say it or what language, it's still my (our) crazy life!

Things sure have been crazy busy the past month, thus no blog posts.  But I've got a few minutes before bedtime and before I head out to the grocery store to update you with some pictures. 

Ava is attached to Nathan's hip the minute he walks in the door in the evenings.  They've been playing lots of basketball lately... actually as I type, Ava is being dunked into the hoop... and now Ava is crawling through the hoop which is on the ground.  We definitely don't have a delicate girly girl on our hands.  She is a rough and tumble, keepin' up with the boys, blonde haired, blue eyed beauty!

and a total 'Daddy's girl'

With Daddy studying on Saturdays Ava and I have had lots of other things on our schedule to keep us entertained.  The past couple of weeks we've had baby showers to attend.  Two of them were at our friends, the Spanik's, house.  Ava loves going to see Hali ("Howie") and playing in the toy room with Mr. Jon. 

Jon and the girls hanging out watching Ice Age during one of the showers.

and playing tea party with Tico the dog.

We got a little taste of warmer weather this past week and Ava and I were able to get outside for a bit.  It did us both good to get some fresh air and to run around.  Joshua and his Mom Kristi were able to join us one afternoon.  Ava and Joshua acted as if they hadn't seen each other in months.... oh wait, they hadn't!  They ran around chasing each other and having a blast. 

enjoying some yogurt

our blonde haired, blue eye beauty!

finally they understand the point of this swing!

As I mentioned I'll be heading to the grocery store here in a bit after Ava goes to bed.  Since going back to work and getting a glimpse of the nicer weather, I've decided to save Mondays - my only day "off", to have fun with Ava.  We're looking forward to going to the pool, playing in the backyard, and just having a day off to hang around the house and do nothing if we so desire.  This is what I love about Mondays, we can stay in our pjs if we want....

 make new friends...

have a photo shoot...

(photo courtesy of Miss Ava Reese)

and wear silly glasses.

"School" as we call it, has been really good for Ava.  She is playing with others and learning lots.  Last week when I picked her up she started whining when I walked in.  As I tried to ask her about her day she continued to whine so I sighed and said, "oh Ava, you are a handful girl!"  (not in a bad way, mind you)  Right after I said that, Loretta, the daycare's owner spoke up.  "Oh, but she's not, here.  She might be handful at home (and at times she is!!!) but here she is great.  She goes with the flow, helps the smaller children, listens when we ask her to do something, and is an all around great kid."  Say what!?!?

Ava is a great little girl.  Unfortunately she is a bit spoiled being the only grandchild and niece, which makes it hard to handle something.  Lets also not forget the fact that she is TWO.  I've heard the three's are even worse, but I'm holding out hope that it won't be. 

Ava has been surprising us nightly with the stuff she is learning at AKP (daycare).  We were singing during bath time last night, and she was singing her ABCs right along with me.  She is also bringing home games that she learns and tries to play them with us (clapping hands and spinning in circles, patterns etc.)  We're really excited to see what all she learns this fall when she starts pre-school three days a week.  It will be a whole new adventure, for all of us, and will probably make life, a little more crazy.  

Before heading to school this morning.

(Thank you GiGi for my new sweatshirt!)

Acting out...

Last Friday we added to our family... okay not "we" specifically.  Kristi, Nathan's older sister married Shaun Reed in Morgantown.  It was a simple and small ceremony only attended by a few people.  And that is exactly how they wanted it.  No big wedding for these two, no elaborate reception.  Just a ceremony with the Justice of the Peace (or judge... not sure, we weren't there!) and a family dinner at Sargrasso with a few friends thrown in. 

 the newlyweds

on our way into Sargrasso

(Nathan will HATE this picture)

We did drive down for dinner on Saturday, and it was nice to see everyone.  Ava though, was a handful.  She's been a handful recently, more so than normal.  It's quite possible that her acting out is a symptom or an effect of our new routine.  Or it could just be a bad case of the "Terrible Twos."

Two weeks ago we changed things up.  Sarah recently took a staff position with our church, Discovery, and so Ava is now attending daycare.  We had been wanting to send her to daycare for a little bit each week, so when this job opportunity came about, we jumped on it.  So far things have gone well and Ava seems to like it.  She of course did get a cold the first week, which was expected.  What wasn't expected was that she'd also get a fever and Sarah would have to take a day off work to stay home.  Fortunately, Ava's fever broke quickly and she is feeling better.  Actually, she was bouncing off the walls at the restaurant on Saturday night. 

We know it's going to take some time for all of us to get used to our new routine, but we'll get there.  And we know this is going to be better for us in the long run, no matter what people say - it was a God thing.  (We've had a number of people tell us -in their own way- that Sarah shouldn't go back to work.)  We may not get to post as much, but we'll do our very best to keep you updated on everything going on in the Berry Ann household.  Honestly, there isn't too much going on, we're quite busy with school, a new job, and daycare.  But as Spring rolls around (there is actually a blizzard outside at the moment!), we'll be getting into some more stuff and we'll share it with you.  And Miss Ava will be starting pre-school in the fall, so that will bring more fun as well.

Here are a few pictures from our "family" dinner on Saturday night.

Ava & Daddy in a somewhat calm moment 

 Kristi & Shaun

Ava & Uncle Todd... she LOVES her Uncle Todd!

Little time...

I've had very little time to blog lately, and most of the things that have come to mind have been things I want to put on my personal blog and not here.  So again, here are some more pictures from the past few weeks.

We have no clue how she even knew where her Halloween costume was, but one Saturday a while back, Ava took Nathan upstairs and when they came back down, she was a lion.  It didn't last too long, but for a good 45 minutes or so she played and cuddled with her Daddy on the couch... as a lion.

Have we mentioned our hideous green couch?  Usually it's covered with a nice chocolate colored cover, but when it's being washed or when we aren't having company we deal with the ugliness that is green.  It wouldn't be a bad looking couch if our cats hadn't ruined it and it hadn't been beaten up in all our moves.  So thats the "thing" you see in all our pictures... you'll never see it in person, it WILL be covered. 

Anyway, Ava has started this thing where she likes to stand behind you while you are sitting on the couch.  Not quite sure why, but she enjoys it, and does it with everyone, Daddy...

 and PawPaw too. 

Ava and her cool light up toy that she got for Christmas... and of course the "green ugliness."  Oh, and she likes to pull the cushions off.  Again, not sure why.

Another Christmas present, Ava loves her little table.  She tries to eat most meals here, against our wishes of course. 

movie time with her babies, which oddly, she could care less about.  Give this girl a matchbox car and she is in heaven.

in other dress up news (other than the previous lion)...  we aren't huge fans of princess stuff.  I think we've mentioned this before.  But Ava was given some princess dress up stuff for Christmas.  One evening Ava wanted to watch one of her "repeat" shows, one of the ones she watches over and over and over, and we just couldn't handle it, so we bribed her.  If she'd watch "Princess & the Frog" she could dress up like a princess.  That did the trick, even though she doesn't know what a princess is, she got to have fun in yet another costume.  (Have you seen the movie?  It's really cute, and the music is awesome... that is if you like jazz)

Look at that ponytail!  Ava's hair is getting so long, I just had to include a picture... our little girl is growing up.

And finally, a little play time.  Before you all freak out, she did not shut herself in there, I was standing right there when she climbed in and I wanted to see what she'd do.  The camera was on the table beside me and I was able to get this picture.  I never once took my eyes off of her... I'm not crazy!

In other news, we may be facing some changes at the Berry Ann household soon.  We're still going over things and trying to figure it all out.  As soon as we know something we'll let you know... but keep us in your prayers as we make some hard decisions.  And it's not bad, it's good... and different. 

*And NO, we aren't adding to our family... at least not any time in the next couple of years!  (I know some of you will think it's that)