Avery’s Secret

Halloween

While my mom was in town we hit up every Halloween store trying to find Avery a costume. I can’t wait for her to get older to tell me what she wants to be. We ended up finding this cute leopard costume that fit Avery perfectly. On Halloween we went to our wards Trunk-or-Treat. I think Avery had a good time. She was little miss independent and wanted to walk around all by herself. 

She started off with her whole nose painted but she quickly rubbed her face once we put the paint on.

Avery decided she needed a break from all the trick-or-treating for a treat!

This is how she asked for candy! She would try to repeat us when we said trick-or-treat but sometimes it wasn’t very clear so she would just hold out her bag.

Painting Pumpkins

We thought it might be a little hard to carve pumpkins this year with Avery so we decided to do some painting instead. Avery loved painting her pumpkin. She did not want our help at all. When we tried to put her paintbrush in different colors of paint she let us know that she didn’t want help. It was a lot of fun that is until we were done and had to take the paint brush away from Avery(she didn’t think that was fun)!!! But it all worked out and here are a few pictures of Avery’s masterpiece.

 

Levi helping out at first

Avery happy to be painting all by herself

Avery concentrating way to hard

And the finished pumpkin

Schnepf Farm

We took a family trip to Schnepf Farm. I had know idea that this farm had so many things to do. I thought we were just going to  go pick a pumpkin for Avery but man was I wrong.  First there was a hayride, then a petting zoo, we played at the park, there was a giant slide and a carousel and a bunch of other rides.  We got some pictures of Avery on a giant hay stack. Then on the way out Avery picked the pumpkin that was the perfect size for her.

The Train Park

We have been slacking on the blog lately, there has just been too much going on. My mom came and visited us for a week at the beginning of October. We did a lot of shopping everyday. We also went to a the train park in Scottsdale where Avery got to ride a train around and she also played on the carousel.

Avery also had her 15 month check up. She now knows where we are when we walk into the doctors office. She will not let me put her down in the waiting room, which I don’t mind because who know what kind of nasty germs she will get there. Then the second we get called back she starts crying like she had just gotten her shots. She is terrified of the Doctors assistant. But her visit went well and she is doing good. She weighs around 21 pounds (she didn’t gain much from the last visit). Which kind of surprises me since she eats so much at every meal. But she did get a little taller, and is still in the 97% for height. I can’t believe how big she is getting. Everyone that sees Avery thinks she is a lot older than she really is.

Labor day get-a-way

More like a get-a-way from the heat. For Labor day weekend we headed up to Pinetop to stay at the cabin. The weather was perfect. We took walks every day. Avery loved being outside. She constantly wanted to go outside but so did we so it all worked out. We took Avery for a wagon ride around the lake and feed the ducks. There were a lot of people walking their dogs around and Avery had to say Hi to all of them. Have we mentioned she LoVeS dogs!

It was so relaxing. I enjoyed sitting on the porch listening to the trees sway back and forth and watching all the little chipmunks run around. I finished two books that I had already started and I started another one while we were there.

Avery loved trying on all the flower headbands that Grandma had made and she wanted to ride the tricycle all around the house even though someone had to be pushing her since she couldn’t reach the pedals.

It was a great GET-A-WAY! Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for letting us come and visit!

Avery’s 1st hair cut

Avery had her very first hair cut last week.  Her hair really wasn’t that long to begin with but it kind of looked like she had a mullet going on so we just had the hairstylist even it out and cut off that mullet!

Before the hair cut,

during the hair cut,

and of course after the hair cut.

Not much of a difference but up close it is all evened out and hopefully her hair will start growing more so we can do some pig tails or something!

I took a push pop to help distract her while she got her hair cut. It worked pretty well she never once reached up to her head like she does when I try to do her hair with a bow or a pony. I might have to invest in some more push pops!

We have a one year old

On July 6th Avery had her first birthday! While we were in Utah we had a birthday party for her. She loves to play with the toys she got from her cousins. She got a bubble machine and we have to hide it from her because if she sees it she immediately wants to go outside and blow bubbles and we all know that it is too HOT for that right now. Another one of her favorites is a tea pot that sings and tea cups. She carries the tea cups around pretending to drink out of it makes sipping noises. Then she likes to give me a try. Grandma and Grandpa Neilsen gave her a rocking horse that she loves to ride.   We also had a little party here in Arizona with Levi’s family. Avery had learned from her party in Utah by watching all her cousins open her presents that now she new what to do. She tore right into them. She loves her HUGE pink bear from Grandpa Hatch and she got some clothes and an awesome phone from Grandma Hatch. Now she can stop playing with ours! Avery loved her giant cupcake that Levi and I had made her. She ate it right up and smushed it all over her highchair. I cannot believe that we have a one year old. That is just so crazy to think about.  It feels like she was born just a few months ago.  She is growing up way to fast. At her 12 month check up she weighed 20lbs 11oz. The doctor said she was good on her weight and that she was the tallest out of all the babies her age!

Everyone that meets Avery tells us how smart she is. We were at the check out at the store and a lady behind us was playing peek-a-boo with Avery and she turned to me and said, “She is so cute how old is she?” and before I answered Avery was holding up her finger showing her how old she was (It was actually one day before her birthday). The lady was very impressed and asked me if I had already put her in a school or if she was just learning this at home. It is just so crazy how fast and how much little kids learn.

Things Avery is doing these days: Shows you how old she is with her fingers, claps her hands, gives you five, she says woof woof when she sees a dog, walks everywhere, folds her arms, she can say mom dad dog and baby.

Avery is so much fun and I am so glad she is our daughter! She makes our life so fun and I couldn’t imagine life without her. Thank You to everyone that called to wish Avery a happy birthday! Even though she doesn’t really talk back on the phone she loves to hold the phone up to her ear and listen to you!  Also thank you for all the birthday gifts, Avery has been having so much fun with them all.

Happy 4th of July

 

Avery thought it was pretty funny when dad put her tutu on her head!

A little vacation

Avery and I went to Utah for a week to play with friends and family. Levi had a plane ticket but decided since he just recently got a new job that he would stay home and work. We sure did miss him! Avery and I both had a great time hanging out with family and friends.

Avery was on the move the whole trip exploring new places. We don’t have stairs at our place but at my parents house she was a pro she wanted to go up and down all day long.  My mom keeps all the kids toys in an ottoman and Avery could have sat in there all day long playing with all the toys.

It was strawberry days while we were there so during the day we went with Elise and Reed to a park where they had a lot of games for little kids! Reed had a lot of fun climbing up the rock wall and sitting at the top of the slide and calling for me to bring “Avee” to him so he could take her down the slide. That night we also went to the strawberry days rodeo which was a lot of fun.  I haven’t been to a rodeo in quite some time.

One day we met up with my sisters-in-law and their kiddos at the splash pad. My friend Ashlee and her son Parker came with us too. We had a lot of fun. It was our first trip to a splash pad and hopefully not the last time. Does anyone know if they have these in Arizona? I haven’t ever seen one around. It was a lot of fun and once Avery is walking a little bit better I am sure it will be even more fun for her.

We had a family birthday party for Avery while we were there even though her birthday is in about two weeks. We thought it would be fun to see everyone and have cake. Since Avery really didn’t care about opening presents all her cousins were happy to help.

 

  The whole reason we planned this trip was because this is when Hannah and Nik had their wedding reception in Utah. I didn’t even get a picture of them but here is one of Avery in her cute dress!We had so much fun and can’t wait to visit again…….real soon!!

Curly Hair?

Everyone that has grown up with me knows that I have never had a curly hair on my head. My hair is straighter than straight. When I was in high school I would try and curl my hair on occasion and just get fed up because it would last for about an hour then it would flatten out and look horrible. The best bet I had of having curls in my hair for a day was with a whole can of hairspray and I mean a whole can. So that is why most people have never seen me with my hair all done up in curls. It just doesn’t last long enough for all the effort.

When I was pregnant my hair got so thick.  I swear I never lost a hair off my head. Then after having Avery my hormones went all haywire(I’m sure this happens to most) and I started losing all that hair I hadn’t lost for nine months. I lost hair by the handfuls, good thing I have a lot of hair. Now months later my hair is growing back and I have all these crazy fly-aways sticking straight out all over my head. It looks ridiculous!! Now I have noticed that the hair that is growing back around my ears and underneath around my neck has some curl to it!  What? Where did this come from?

When my mom was in town visiting I had my hair in a pony-tail and she asked me, “Did you curl your hair?” because all the re-growth hair that didn’t fit up in my pony-tail was all curly! What am I suppose to do with this? Am I going to have to buy a flat iron? Hopefully when it grows a little more and gets a little heavier it will straighten out!

Rocking it old School

When I picked up Avery one day I found this.  Apparently I had forgotten to pack a spare outfit in the diaper bag for those BLOWOUT days! Grandma Hatch had dug up one of Levi or Arts old baby boy outfits for Avery to borrow.