She is my sunshine, my only sunshine...

Everyone in our house is sick. All 3 of us have colds, and poor Ava has her first ear infection. But as usual she's all smiles, and busy soaking us with her giant, open-mouthed kisses. I've never seen a kid so dedicated to being happy, no matter how she feels. I swear she could make lemonade out of roadkill. Of all the adorable and charming things I love about her, this might be my favorite.

Joel and Kristen brought the boys for a visit last week, and though Ava isn't quite sure what to make of them yet (Charlie's a rather enthusiastic hugger), it was so great having them all here. We had some gorgeous weather on Thursday so we piled kids, strollers, sun hats, and diaper bags into two cars and hauled it all to the zoo. It took us an hour and a half to get everybody ready, 35 minutes to get there, and another 20 to get everyone and everything out of the cars and headed to the front gate, but once we got inside it was all worth it. Tyson was having more fun than any other kid there. Here are some pics from our adventure.

The weather turned nasty on Friday, but since the Easter Bunny had hopped all the way to Grant Ranch from, um, well, wherever it is that he lives, we dressed up the kiddos and went to see him. Apparently there weren't very many parents dumb enough to take their little ones out in a snow storm just to see a giant rabbit, so we had him all to ourselves for a while. Ava was pretty confused by the whole thing, and Charlie was certain the bunny was up to something, so Andy helped out and got involved.

Lisa, I think that picture is a contender for next year's calendar. And maybe this one as well...

Sorry, Joel. I couldn't help myself. I'll expect payback when we come to see you in July, but I don't care. It was worth it. :)

Ava and Ollie sittin' in a swing, G-I-GG-L-I-N-G

Happy St. Paddy's Day everyone!

Ava and Ollie had a play date today, so Lisa and I decided to take the kiddos to the park. You may remember Ava's last experience with the swing (yawn), so I wasn't sure how she was going to react. I could tell you, but I think you should just see it for yourself.

I love when our girl is so happy.

Stick with me, kid. I'll show ya how it's done.

As many of you know, our dear friends Chris and Brandy Laakso recently had a beautiful baby girl so we made a trip to Houston to meet her. Her name is Peyton Elizabeth, and she's the tiniest little thing you've ever seen.

Since Ava's gotten pretty good at working the system, I can only assume that she's got a thing or two to teach the newest Laakso. I can almost hear her now:

1.) "First of all, you have to use the crying to your advantage. Do it too often and it'll lose the 'poor baby' factor. But make sure that it sounds really sad when when you do use it. The cuddles you get are totally worth the red eyes."

2.) "Second, smiles are worth their weight in gold. Don't just give them out all willy-nilly; if you hold them back a little, you can get your parents to do anything to see that little grin. And I do mean anything."

"That should get you through the first few months. We'll reconvene this summer when I'll show you how to properly wear a cute hat, and explain why no one can resist a baby in jeans."

Ava did great on the trip. She sat through her first full meal in a high chair, where she politely inquired about the mashed fajitas, then did a little light reading while she waited for us to finish our meals.

She helped Aunt Marianne do a little work, and took some walks in the warm Houston sunshine.

And showed off her fashion sense at a little soiree thrown by Aunt Brandy and Uncle Chris. The whole family had a great time; Daddy got to have a little guy time, I got to do some bonding with little Peyton, and Ava spent some time reading stories with Sammie. It was so great to see some of our old friends and introduce them to Ava. I know she's going to grow up to love them as much as we do. We already can't wait to see everyone again.