Saturday, October 23, 2010

Something Not-At-All Wicked This Way Comes

In case you've been living in a deep, dark hole and missed it: Halloween is almost here!! So, as all good parents would, Andy and I spent the day doing our best to prepare for this holiday in a way that's appropriate for a 15-month old. Basically, this means completely avoiding anything that could be remotely construed as scary.

The first thing we needed was a pumpkin to carve a cute face into, so off to the plant nursery/pumpkin patch we went.


As luck would have it, some future costume ideas for Ava presented themselves...



Those were pretty cute, but I think this one is my favorite...

We moved on from the pumpkin patch and headed to Target where we picked up all the plates, napkins, and shiny decorations we could find that were guaranteed NOT to scare the pants off anybody.

Our final challenge for the day was to take our giant pumpkin and carve it into a character worthy of a Saturday morning cartoon. It was hard work, but I think you'll agree we accomplished our goal; by the time we were done I just wanted to give the thing a hug.


Happy (almost) Halloween, everybody. Boo!!!

Thursday, October 21, 2010

There's nothin' better than a house full of babies.

I love organized racing events. The air is filled with anticipation, the spirit of friendly competition, and the heady, thrilling feeling that comes with completing a task that most would find impossible. And if you're lucky, some really cool people will travel half way across the country to take part in one of your local races, and hang out in your house for the weekend. And if you're super-lucky, they'll bring some cute babies with them.

Last weekend the Denver Rock 'N Roll Marathon brought us the cool people and the babies. Our thanks to Lisa, Ryan, and Braydon, and their friends (and now ours) Sarah, Corey, and little Reid for letting us hang with them for the weekend. Let's do it again some time!

While everyone was here we enjoyed a trip to the mountains...

(The precious little pumpkin on the left up there is Reid; the handsome guy in the middle is, of course, Braydon; and the gorgeous grin on the right belongs to Ava. I love this picture.)

We dressed up in Iowa gear to support everyone's favorite team. Braydon kept a really close eye on the game for us in case we missed anything; and yes, that's Ava sitting in the dog's bed again...



Oh, and Andy, Lisa, and Sarah ran 26.2 miles. :) Congratulations, gang! You're awesome!



And in case you missed my texts, emails, carrier pigeons, or the skywriting, Ava has officially started walking!! For the last couple of days it's just been 3 or 4 cautious little steps directly into the arms of a waiting parent. But today our brilliant girl stood up, knitted her little brow into a look of sheer determination, and toddled an impressive dozen steps to her high chair.

That girl does everything in her own time, and I can't help but love her for it.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Little Mama

Ava is a girl. No, I have not suffered a recent blow to the head that required a reminder of my child's gender, nor do I assume that you have. So in an attempt to clarify the reason for my seemingly obvious declaration, allow me to write that sentence again: Ava is a Girl. With a capital G.

I think my favorite manifestation of this fact right now is her relationship with Dolly. You see, I noticed from the time Ava was tiny that she had an attraction to any toy with a face. So last week I took her to Toys R Us so she could help me pick out a proper baby doll. As we wandered from isle to isle, checking out what each baby had to offer, Ava reached her little arms out to every one, handling the ones I gave her with a awe I didn't think was possible at 14 months.

Now, I don't know how many of you have shopped for baby dolls recently, but I gotta tell you it's a bit daunting. Actually, the word I'm looking for is "scary". They don't just sit there any more, looking sweet and occasionally opening and closing their sleepy little eyes; they jump at you, playing peek-a-boo with blankets held in their stiff, unnatural arms, or literally begging you to pick them up in voices that must have been recorded for a Stephen King film. In the end I was able to avoid anything that was bound to give me nightmares, and we went home with an adorable, blue-eyed baby that will never move on her own - I hope. And Ava loves her. She holds her and pats her little back, muttering "awwwww....." as she rocks Dolly back and forth.

And I watch my Little Mama with a tear in my eye. I can't wait to see what my Girl has in store for us next.

Sunday, October 10, 2010

Dance like nobody's watching

I love that piece of advice, and Ava seems to have taken it straight to heart. She's crazy for music, and anything with a beat sets her little body in motion. Andy and I have been attempting for weeks to get it on film, but up until now that coveted piece of video has been reminiscent of Big Bird's pal Snuffleupagus - everyone but us was pretty sure it was only in our imaginations. The quality isn’t great, and once Ava figured out we had a camera pointed at her she was more interested in playing with that than dancing, but the proof is irrefutable; in her heart, Ava is a dancer.

These particular performances are courtesy of Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam. Enjoy!


Saturday, October 2, 2010

20,000 Leagues Under Denver


Ever had the desire to shell out a whole bunch of money just to walk around a crowded building and look at fish? Well, us either, but Ava's recent fascination with them resulted in us driving downtown to The Aquarium (the capitalization is no accident - that's actually the name of the place) to do exactly that. And yes, it was well worth it just to watch her face.

She marveled at every tank, pointing and repeating the "Oooohhhh!" she kept hearing from the people all around her. Which was cute. Just freakin' cute.


She wasn't sure what to make of the weird, animatronic gorilla in the "rainforest", but frankly, neither were we.


And the skeptic in me was told - just for today - to shut the heck up and enjoy herself. 'Cuz sometimes, she's just wrong.