Snow Hiking!

I wanted to get out for a hike and decided to take Ava with me. It was a cold day (30's and windy), so we bundled up and drove a few miles to a place where we could go for a 4+ mile hike. I put Ava in the backpack and we headed out.

I should have realized ahead of time that we wouldn't make it very far because:
1. Ava hardly ate any breakfast
2. It was cold and windy
3. We got a late start and it was approaching when Ava would start to get tired

We went a little ways before Ava decided she didn't like wearing her gloves. Instead of forcing her to keep them on, I allowed her to make her own decision and take them off. That was probably a mistake but I didn't want to make her cross. After a few minutes her hands got cold so we had to stop to try to warm them up. That was about as far as we made it.

After realizing she was too cold (her hands AND feet were cold) and hungry to continue, I decided to abort the hike and just turn around and go home. We may have gone a total of a mile.

Note to self #1: Always make sure the kids are well fed, dressed, and slept before attempting a hike.
Note to self #2: Don't let kids decide whether they get to wear gloves when it is cold and you know they will end up with very cold hands.

In spite of all this, we had a good time, and here is the picture prove it!

Gymnastics!

A friend of ours told us about a gymnastics gym that opens their doors to kids for two hours every week. It costs just $5 and there are plenty of things the kids can do. Britney has taken Ava there a few times and I got to go with them this week. As usual with Ava, it takes her a while to warm up to things, but she always want's to stay longer. The activities include:

Uneven bars,

...a big trampoline that Ava calls the "jump-oline",

...a pit full of foam blocks,

...the Balance Beam, and more.

She is especially shy about going in the block pit but always giggles when we throw her in (yes, we really do throw her in and she loves it).

Katie-pie

I swore I would never call Kate "Katie". Kate is her name for a reason. Short and sweet. Just the way I like it. To complicate matters, I chose a name that is twice used in the Bassett family already - an aunt Katie and cousin Katherine. All the more reason to stay Kate. But this little girl pulls all sorts of nicknames out of me. Most have fallen by the wayside by this age, but two have stuck - Monkey and Katie-pie. Ava has adopted Katie-pie too, and I think it is sweet. So for now, Katie-pie it is :)

a couple recent activities...

...making "Christmas trees"...

 

...and painting for the first time.

Things I learned:

• Encouraging your impressionable two year old to put the m&m's on the "trees" instead of her mouth does not work.
• Encouraging your two year old to put sprinkles on the "trees" also does not distract her from said m&m's.
• Sprinkles are messy. Very very messy.
• Sugar cones are remarkably good when covered in chocolate and sprinkles.
• Paint that is marketed for children is not always washable. Even if it really really should be.
• My daughter is starting to get an attitude (hence the lack of smiles for the camera while painting).
• I have a bit of OCD ("Wash your brush before you put it in a new color!!" - lasted all of two seconds).
• Ava really really likes to put her hands into slimy substances.
• Painting does not discourage remembrances of m&m's from previous days activities.

My cute sister and her family

Chelsea and Josh let me practice taking pictures of their family. Aren't they such a cute bunch? Chel is having granddaughter number four in February. If she's as cute as Claire, they are in for a treat!

{17} Thankful

{17} Laughter

Nothing makes my job as a mom easier than to hear my children laughing. Kate's new laugh is particularly infectious. Love this girl!

{16} Thankful

{16} Friendship

I am so grateful for the many, many wonderful friends I have been blessed with in my life. I tend to be someone who has a few close friends as opposed to many not-as-close friends. That sometimes makes it hard for me to make friends as I search for those I identify with on many levels. There are pros and cons to this approach. Despite this, I have had some of the most incredible people in my life. Many I wish I kept in better touch with. I hope if you are reading this, you know who you are! Women who have inspired me, lifted me up, been a sister, been a shoulder to cry on, celebrated successes, gone on random ice cream outings/girls nights, and been a texting buddy. These friends have enriched and blessed my life in ways I could never have predicted. Thank you, girls! I love you! I miss you all and will see some of you soon!

Since moving to Flagstaff, I have made some wonderful friends. I recently called on a few of them to help/teach me how to can. We did salsa and applesauce. It was exhausting but fun! We all had a good time and learned a lot :) So glad to have people around me who I can wrangle into my crazy ideas!

{15} Thankful

{15} I know who I am, and why I am here

I am a Child of God

And He has sent me here

Has given me an earthly home

With parents kind and dear

Lead me, guide me

Walk beside me

Help me find the way

Teach me all that I must do

To live with Him someday

{14} Thankful

{14} Supportive Family

I never posted about Kate's baby blessing. We were SO blessed to have so many family members come to her blessing. Every single person drove at least 2 hours to attend, and all of Erik's immediate family flew all the way from Seattle. It was so special to have everyone here! We loved showing off our new place and our new town, and we were so grateful to have so many priesthood members from our family be able to participate. Our girls absolutely loved the attention. Ava finally opened up to the Bassett grandparents and loved being read to and played with. We ate at Brandy's (yummy brunch), went chocolate shopping, ate good Thai food and then yummy Cafe Rio after the blessing. We feel so supported and loved - thank you so much for coming family! We sure love you! 

Everyone that attended, except Katie, who got sick the night before (left to right): Bradley, Dad Walker, Mom Walker, Diane, Kelly, Erik, me and the girls, Mom Bassett, Dad Bassett, Loralee, Claire, Chelsea (and baby girl), Josh, Grandma Larson

Four Generations

The special girl on her special day!

{13} Thankful

{13} Tylenol

It's all about the little things, right? Kate is currently cutting her first tooth (it is almost all the way out!) and boy is it obvious. She was up for almost two hours last night crying. She never does that! She finally fell asleep with lots and lots of cuddles and Tylenol. Bless the heavens! She had a rough day too so I am praying she sleeps well tonight. The only upside is that this might just mean that we won't have a teething child when we go to visit our Seattle family for Thanksgiving (hi family!). I don't know if that has ever happened! I'd be okay with making this our first time :) Sure would make our trip a lot more enjoyable!!

{12} Thankful

{12} Daddy-daughter time

For a good chunk of Ava's short life, she has been a true mama's girl. She definitely preferred me over her dad, like when putting her to sleep, comforting her if she got hurt, etc. But now? Now, she is a daddy's girl through and through. She is his shadow when he gets home from work. She wants to go on "adventures" with him, including hiking and getting the mail. She always talks about showing dad things when he gets home from work. He puts her to bed every night and she definitely prefers it! Recently I have started to miss that preference, but it is so sweet to watch! I'm so grateful for Erik and his patience and sweetness with his girls!

soccer at Buffalo Park

{11} Thankful

{11} Braids

Today, I am thankful for these cute little braids (our first attempt!). A good way to brighten the dreary day outside!

{10} Thankful

{10} Ava-isms

I want to remember the way Ava talks forever! I love it!

Favorite phrases:

"Oh boy!"

"____ funny!" (as in "Claire bear funny!")

"I love it!"

"I wear mama's shoes"

"Get the mail!" (she loves to get the mail with Erik when he gets home)

Cute words:

yaygub - ladybug

chapsip - chapstick

bandaba - banana

kini - zucchini

sesea seet - sesame street

an-dra - Andrea

Other memorable -isms:

- loves wearing my shoes around the house - all day long

- still loves spending lots of time in her crib. She takes a 3-ish hour nap a day and will happily stay in her crib another hour if I let her

- loves all things girlie - bracelets, purses, doing mama's hair, looking pretty, putting lotion on, getting "piggies" in her hair, etc

- is almost completely potty trained! (diapers still on at night, but hardly ever wet!)

- LOVES helping me cook (stirring, dumping things in the bowl, etc)

- is getting much better at playing by herself. Loves looking at books, playing with her dollhouse and bouncing on her ball

- has memorized several books now

- sings OFTEN. knows a lot more songs that we realize and sometimes makes up her own words (ABC's, Twinkle Twinkle, I am a Child of God, I'm So Glad When Daddy Comes Home)

- still sucks her thumb religiously when in bed, but also still listens when I tell her she can't suck it during the day :)

- weighs 33 lbs which means she's only gained like 2 lbs since she was 18 months! She is thinning out...a little bit :)

- wears size 2T-4T clothes (2T shirts, 4T pj's and dresses), and size 9.5 shoe (holy moly!)

- loves playing with Kate and will often help distract her for me when she is tired or grumpy

- loves going on "adventures" in the car. LOVES going to stores with mom

- talks about different friends all the time - old and new, particularly after we leave there presence. In typical Ava fashion, she is shy when she plays, and then talks incessantly about that friend when we leave

- still refuses to eat most vegetables (much to my dismay...she was such a good eater until like 20 months...any ideas?)

- favorite foods are circle crackers (Trader Joe's multigrain crackers), fruit leather, cheese cheese and more cheese, avocado, mac and cheese, veggie straws, any fruit ("clementimes" are a current fav), toast, eggs

- can reliably identify pink, purple, white and black. sometimes green, red, yellow

- knows hearts, stars, circles, triangles. sometimes squares and diamonds

Is still the love of our lives!