More Avery Funnies

**Trying to get everything 2010 in before the New Year, hence all the posting as of late***

#1-  Being Grateful

(pic i had of Avery practicing with Dad for Santa's lap)

Precursor-- Avery has asked me lately why the bell ringers are standing outside stores we've been to.  I explained to her that there are some people who don't have anything and this a way we can help give to them.  Then I've really reiterated that we should be grateful for what we have and not always asking for more and more.  I think she may be catching on because--

A few nights ago I was leaving for a girls night and Ansley was crying.  I laughed and gave Joey a hard time saying, "see ya & have fun with that".  Joey quickly responds to me by joking back saying, "well if you're going to leave like this at least give me your boobs!"  (Ansley is not too fond of the bottle yet...)  Avery was standing nearby, overheard and quickly retorts, "No Dad you can't have mom's boobs!"  Avery then pats Joey on the chest while telling him, "you just need to be grateful for what you have Dad!"

(Avery & Isabelle watching the primary kids sing.  They are VERY excited for Primary)

#2-Daddy's Occupation

Avery had one of her buddies over the other day and this is a conversation I overheard while they were playing Doctor with her toy Dr. Kit-

Isabelle (as she is using the toy stethoscope to listen to Avery) :  Avery, did you know my Daddy is a Doctor?

Avery :  Oh, my Daddy is a Hottie.  That's what my mom says.

Yes, I about lost it...

Follow Up

4 1/2 month stats: 

Weight: 14 lbs 1 oz (25%)

Height:  25 1/2 in. (50%)

Head Circumference:  16 1/2 in.  (15%)

Ansley had her 'Follow Up' Appointment that the Dr's had scheduled for us from when we left ACH.

We met with the Developmental Therapist who evaluated her as to where she is in different developmental areas

Here are the results: 

Gross Motor Skills: 6 months

Fine Motor Skills: 5 months

Visual Perceptual: 6 months

Needless to say we left this appointment ALL smiles! 

She is such a delight and sweet addition to our home :)

We sure LOVE her!!!

Family Photo Shoot

Family Pics (Special thanks to Joey's Dad for doing these for us!)

 My top 3 favorites below

Miss Photogenic

 'Caught in the Act'

 

 

SISTERS 

The Bloopers:

 We were right next to a fountain and could not get the girls attention for anything...

& I tell Joey to make sure to keep his shoulders back and this is what I get:

The Girls

**Warning:   (Parental Guidance Suggested)  

I had all the laundry folded and put away- except my things on the corner of the bed.

I get out of the shower and look everywhere, I mean ALMOST everywhere for my bra, before giving up!

 This is where I EVENTUALLY found it...

Funny thing is she had the straps over the shirt but the actual cups were pushed under the shirt.

Nothing gets by her!

 

Us trying to wake her up (I'm thinking good blackmail pictures for the future...) ha ha ha ha

Our little Chatterbox as of late!
I love watching her day to day- her little personality has really come out within the past couple of weeks!

She loves it when we sing songs to her, lots of kisses and the crinkly sound the wipes package makes when she fiddles with it !

Georgia Thanksgiving

 

Last Sunday after church we left for Georgia.  We left at about 1:30pm.  This drive out when we moved took about 9-10 hours.  We quickly found out that Ansley is not a fan of long car rides.  After about an hour she whined/cried all the way to Birmingham.  (and that includes taking pit stop breaks every so often for her to get out of her car seat)  We pulled into Athens at about 1:30am.  It took 13 hours to get there!!!!!!!  I was not looking forward to the ride home (which ended up being about the same maybe worse cause both kids were sick)! 

Joey woke up the next morning and went fishing with old friends while I took the girls to my favorite park (Memorial Park) and fed the ducks. We also went to our old complex and saw our old landlords (who are like extra parents to us).  Sadly Avery didn't remember our old place:(  She did recognize her little butterfly house she made with Joey that was still hanging on the outside balcony.  I can't believe its been 6 months already since we moved!!!  

Later we met up with more friends, Brian and Claibourne and got to see their baby Evie!

We were due 2 weeks apart but our babies ended up being a month apart.

Ansley and Evie 

 Avery loves dogs so much!  I'm glad she can get her pet fix at other peoples homes cause it will take a lot of convincing for mommy to even consider...

We did not get to be in Athens near long enough!  We did not get to see all our friends we wanted to or eat at some of our favorite places... Guess we'll have to go back soon!

Next we made our way out to Marietta for the traditional weenie roast.

Avery got real territorial over Aunt Jeni when her boyfriend came over-

Avery told me when we got back, "Mom, Phil is Jeni's boyfriend, and my boyfriend is Jeremy(from the show Phineas and Ferb)."  I think I can handle a cartoon character for a boyfriend :)

 

 Thanksgiving morning we ran the Marietta Square Gobble Jog 5K 

We girls have decided to make this a tradition and next time we'll line up at the front  with the non-walker/stroller/pet people!!  That first mile was an obstacle course!!!!

Mr. Turkey also came to visit and all the kids were very excited!!!

This is one of my favorite traditions that the Graham family has:)

 Yummy T-day dinner- had to get Karl in a pic (he flew in from Utah)

 Friday afternoon Joey's grandparents made the drive down from Columbia, SC to see everyone!  Anytime Ansley was not being held G-Grandma would quickly come and scoop her up.

Getting more of her pet fix by taunting the cat

There were also foosball tournaments  

& Hannah and Jason surprised everyone when they announced they will be having their first baby in June!!!!!  WE ARE SO EXCITED for them!

 Kimi and Jill were the champs

 Then we split teams up

 Ansley and cousin Taylor

 Avery got to have a sleepover at Aunt Kimi's high rise in Buckhead and she loved that place.  She kept telling me that Kimi lives in a huge hotel where all the lights are.  They went and saw the new Disney movie Tangled and she loved it!

 Some of the other things we did include:

Black Friday shopping after plotting out our plans of attack (& of course Target and Kohls rank at the top of my list)

Shopping with Dad for Mom's anniversary gift

Dad took family pictures for us and I love them! (Sneak preview at top of blog)

-I am saving my favorite for Christmas cards :)
a few games of Oh Heck

LOTS and LOTS of football watching  - & so glad UGA won cause we are bowl eligible!!! 

The guys had their turkey bowl and traditional game of jumpball where MY husband is always the one that ends up hurt!

 This along with 2 sick kiddos on the ride home!  FUN FUN FUN!  It was worth it I just wish it would have lasted longer.

Our week was NOT near LONG enough!!!!!!

Attitude Adjuster

I was thinking back to my childhood (which I tend to do a lot now as Avery gets older and is participating in and doing so many more things than I'm ready for her to) and I was remembering the paddle that hung in the kitchen with the bold blue letters that ran across it that said ATTITUDE ADJUSTER.  Just its presence was intimidating.  I think about those two words frequently because the older I get the more I realize just how much more my attitude still needs adjusting....  Although I had my fair share of attitude adjuster moments as a child, the experiences I have experienced this year have been the biggest ATTITUDE ADJUSTER for me!

I have been wanting to make a thankful post but really want it to be a little different because I feel our family has been blessed beyond what I could have ever asked for in the past 11 months!  So although I am thankful for my supportive family and friends, our home, every ward we have ever lived in, a working car, freedom, the gospel of Jesus Christ our Redeemer, good health, beauty in nature, etc I am going to make a "Not your Ordinary Thankful Post" of things that reflect my Attitude Adjustment... Here goes-

~I'm thankful for the Professors who assigned papers I was NOT thrilled about writing because it made me stretch beyond my comfort zone, become more informed, and understand new ideas from different perspectives.

~I'm thankful for the job around our old complex Joey was able to do to drastically reduce our rent although it came along with some pretty scary incidents including the dead man (overdose) he and the other maintenance man found. (that's for another post)

~I'm thankful that when I was sick during pregnancy with Ansley that it was always in the evening so I could get to school during the day and finish my last semester.

~I'm thankful for our old 550 sq. ft. apartment in Athens that so inexpensively got us through our last 2 years of school.

~I have never been so excited for wet diapers until this summer!  It means my baby has a fully functioning and healthy set of kidneys.

~I am thankful for Microbiology (wow never thought I'd say that) because it is the field Joey enjoys and an area for him to further his education.

~I am thankful to feel sore after a workout because it means I have a strong & healthy body that allows me to work out.

~I am thankful for the ways Avery tries my patience during the day because it helps keep me in constant communication with my Heavenly Father...
         -side note: I know I talk a lot about Avery and how she is difficult but she has lots of good moments and makes me smile multiple times a day.  especially when I get the random out of nowhere, "I love you mom"!  She's  a sweet girl:)  & man I see myself in her daily...

~I'm thankful for the sound of a baby crying even at 3am especially when the cry is in my house!  (it means the lungs are functioning and I have a baby alive and well WITH me)

~I'm thankful for spit-up (from Ansley) on a stretched out shirt (from Avery pulling on me) because it means I am fortunate to have children.

& last but not least

~I am thankful for the 4 1/2 years of wet towels on my bed ;) because it is evidence of my sweet husband who makes me feel like the luckiest girl in the world!   after 2 years of telling and showing him where to hang his towel after his shower, I quit getting on to him. Now it just makes me chuckle inside!

Happy early-Thanksgiving Family and Friends!!!!  

My heart is full of an infinite supply of thank-you's for your love and support especially this last year!

Hide-n-Seek & Hairpulling

Highlights from our week:

Avery has learned to play hide-n-seek, but has not quite gotten the hang of it...

After the seeker counts and calls out, "ready or not here I come!", she immediately responds, "I'm right here."  This is frustrating yet funny for a competitive mommy who placed her in the ULTIMATE hiding place where I was sure daddy would never find her!!!

 The hiding place I concocted (in the storage closet wedged between boxes and the vacuum was in front of her)

 one of her hiding places

& the Fun Begins...

I am in the kitchen getting lunch ready and Avery lets out a loud shrill.  She runs into me sobbing because Ansley has pulled her hair.  While Avery was playing with Ansley, Ansley had gotten a good hold on her hair.  Sure enough when I went over to where Ansley was she had a good several pieces of Avery's locks in her hand.  I can't decide if Avery was more heartbroken that Ansley would do such a thing because she adores her little sister or if it really hurt that bad.  I explained to her that Ansley doesn't really know what she is doing yet and Avery seemed to be ok with it.  Since then she always asks me to pull her hair back before playing with lil sis:)  I got a feeling this time won't be the last!

One stinkin' CUTE "hair-puller"

p.s.  How I got outsmarted by a 3 year old this week:

Avery is our little 'aquaholic'.

I can NOT keep her out of the water.

It doesn't help that the only entrance to her bathroom is through her bedroom.

I am ALWAYS getting onto her about playing in the water.

So today when I'm feeding Ansley I hear the water running

for a LONG time

Finally I holler for her to come here-

She knows what I'm going to say to her.

When she comes around the corner to where I am

before I even get a word out she tries to convincingly tell me, "Mom, I'm not playing in the water, I'm just washing my hands 5 times!"  

She really keeps me on my toes...

To Grandma's House We Go!

 This move to Little Rock has made us only 3 1/2 hours from home!  & I LOVE it!!!  -so does Mom can't you tell?!?! 

 Ansley was such a trooper!  Excluding the ride to TX she was awesome; she was always looking around, giggling, smiling, and taking it all in.  The entire morning before we left, Avery filled her in on everything at Grandma's (Scruffy, Granpa, her Uncles- she thinks its so cool Uncle Ryan works at Chick-fil-A~her fav, the movie room, the stairs etc)

 Avery picking green peppers out of Grandpa's garden

 Ansley talkin' & gigglin' with Grandpa 

(excuse his shirt please, if you know my dad he has an unexplainable sense of humor...)

& of course Avery knows Granma ALWAYS has chapstick!

Some other highlights from the trip:

games til 2am

window shopping (Mom and I aren't the sizes we want to be yet...)

golfing (the guys)

Mingi (foreign exchange student from S. Korea) showing Avery his guitar, flute, and helping her on the piano- she was in heaven!

& the girls being spoiled ROTTEN!

Needless to say I am VERY excited we'll be so close for the next 4-5 years!!!!
Now, If only I can get my sisters and cousins closer...

October Fun

 Avery and Ansley helping mommy bake in the kitchen

Avery's idea of decorating was load up as many candy pumpkins and candy corn that will fit onto the cookie as possible!

DON'T KNOW HOW WE'D LIVE WITHOUT HER--

This is her singing "popcorn popping" during FHE

She said it was a concert--man she makes us laugh;) 

October would not have been complete without our traditional nutter butter ghosts ~YUM

& Ansley started rolling over! 

The girls all dressed up and ready for the trunk or treat at the church.  Ansley was happier before I put her kitty cat make up on...

 

Sleeping Beauty and Bagger Vance

So many of the kids in our ward had such creative and beautifully made from home costumes I was impressed and in awe at the talent of the women in our ward!!

Unfortunately I didn't get pics of all of them but I did get some

Avery's friend, Sam dressed up as Bob from Veggie Tales (his mom made it!)

& the mustard bottle costume also made by his mom (this is a boy in the primary class Joey teaches)

Me and the girls!  I passed out the candy with Ansley while Joey took Avery around

The Jesse costume Riley is wearing is also home made/sewn by her mom chaps and all!  

Avery loved the cake walk

Avery and her buddy Isabelle

'Pretty in Pink'

 This girl is also in Joey's primary class.  I asked what she was and she told me- one of Lady Gaga's backup dancers!  Love it!

 Avery's buddies, JT and Drew the pirates!

 Another preschool buddy, Henry the Knight (His mom also sewed his costume!!!)  He was really proud of his boots!

The Bouncy House was definitely a hit!

A fun night makes for some Happy Kids on the drive home-

as if we couldn't have gotten enough junk already we had to stop for ice cream on the way home

Joey insisted!

 

 Then for some traditional door to door trick-or-treating!

 Ansley was very alert and attentive trying to take it all in; She seemed to enjoy it all!

 & We Love it too because 5 years ago Halloween is when we met...