Merry Christmas

Ava and her two best friends, Sophie & Cate.


We had a great time at the Parks' house the other night at a Fondue party. Catherine did a great job preparing everything and making it very special for us. We put the girls Christmas dresses on so we could get a picture of just the three of them. They actually cooperated very well, which was surprising.

We hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Christmas Party

Last night we had our youth group's Christmas party. We had a delicious dinner prepared by the staff. The theme was, who can wear the tackiest sweater. So, I headed out to a thrift store the day of the party and found some sweaters. I even found one for Ava.

Ava wearing mommy's bow that Katie bought for our small group girls.

We played a few games. One of which was to decorate someone in your group as a Christmas tree. The staff chose Jonathan.

I didn't end up getting great photos of Jonathan because Ava was a little scared of her daddy at this point. She was holding onto mommy for dear life when we made it closer to daddy. Once everything was off of daddy, Ava said, "ALL DONE!". She didn't like daddy all dressed up, but everyone else seemed to enjoy it...even Jonathan enjoyed it a little too much.

We had a great time of fellowship with the youth and the staff!

Thanksgiving

For Thanksgiving, Jonathan, Ava and I, went to my sister's house. We mostly relaxed, but one day we decided to venture out to Dollywood. We were given free tickets, so it was free for all of us to go. Our plan was to stay a few hours, but we ended up staying most of the day. It was fun, but very cold.

Here is my sister's neighbors inflatable turkey. The girls loved it.

At Dollywood

Ava's favorite ride...the carousel.

Ava loved Dollywood, but she could only take so much!

We (my sister and I) gave Ava her first hair cut. I knew this day was coming, but I have been in denial. Now I love the new do. It's super cute.

And finally, the last picture of the preggo twins before Annie has her baby. She is due in two weeks, but I'm guessing she only has a week left. Keep her in your prayers if you think of her!

Now on to Christmas!!

It's a....

well, I wish I could tell you the gender of our baby, but we didn't end up finding out. We are going to let this one be a surprise. We had our 20 week appointment this morning and it was so fun to see our baby again. Our baby is perfectly healthy. What a miracle the Lord has given us!

Well, I just wanted to update you on our latest news. I will post Thanksgiving pictures soon!!

Yee-Haw

Every year our church has a fall festival for Halloween. They have lots of booths set up to play games and to win candy. Ava enjoyed it a little more this year than she did last year. We decided to dress Ava up as a cowgirl, so Jonathan and I dressed up with her. We had a great time. We didn't end up with as much candy as I would've liked though! :)

The only picture I got of Ava and Sophie. They were both cowgirls.
Ava diving in for some candy. That's my girl!!

And this is how Ava's hat was worn most of the night...on daddy's head!

And I had to end with this picture. She loves her new pj's that Jonathan's parents got her. Can't you tell??

My best friend

So I forgot to post a very important picture from my sisters visit this past weekend.

My sister and I are so blessed to be pregnant at the same time. A dream come true for both of us! We always thought it would be so fun...and it is! Even though she is 31 weeks pregnant and I'm only 16 weeks pregnant, it's still fun going through this together. So, I thought I would share this picture with everyone. It's fun being pregnant together for many reasons, but it will definitely be fun when are kids will be so close in age.

I love you, Annie.
(I hope you don't mind me posting this picture of you! You look adorable!!)

Pumpkin Farm

Last weekend, my sister and her family decided to visit us for the weekend. They have recently moved to Pigeon Forge, TN. It's only a 3 1/2 hour drive! We were so excited when we found out that we were going to be living so close to each other. I mean, we are practically neighbors now! (For those of you who don't know, since my sister and I have been married, we have never been able to live near each other.)
So, we woke up Saturday, had a big breakfast and headed off to the Pumpkin farm. It was a very cold day, so we had to bundle the kids up. We had a great time together. We also met some friends there too. My camera died after about the 5th picture I took. So my sister sent me a few pictures from her camera. My friend, Catherine, also took some great pictures. Once I get those, then I might post of few more. But for now, here are a few pictures of our day.

Ava & Emma

Ava would have played in this the whole time.

My sister and her beautiful family.

Elsie, Ava & Emma

On the hay ride.

What has Ava been up to??

The lack of posting is due to laziness these days. Mostly because I don't take many pictures anymore. Although, I'm in my second trimester now, and I'm starting to feel much better. I have a lot more energy. I actually stayed up until 10:00 the other night and Jonathan was very proud of me. (He's been such a huge help during my hibernation stage!)

Anyways...on to Ava.
Lately, I've been trying to train Ava to actually sit still for a little bit to read books. She's a very busy little girl and hardly stops moving - always on the go. (Except, of course, when the princess movie is on!) She's done really well with staying on the couch. Today she wanted to read to her baby, which is adorable, so I actually got my camera out! (Yay for me!) She kept pointing to all the animals and letting her baby know what they were and what sounds they make. (I should've recorded it, but then I would've had to get my video camera out and I was doing good just to get my digital camera out.)

And this is what happens when daddy gives Ava a bath.

Last week, we had an overnight guest - Madison. Ava is Maddie's number one fan. She loves her so much. If you ask Ava who is coming to see her, she will always respond by yelling, "MADDIE". She will always welcome Maddie with a yell of some sort and lots of giggles.

Ava thought she was a "big girl" while Madison was here, so she had to sit in a "big girl" chair while eating snacks.

Ava all excited the next morning to see that Madison was still at our house! Her dream come true.

This weekend we are going to a pumpkin farm, so hopefully I will have another update soon...unless I forget my camera. (My memory is pretty bad right now!)

Our big news

That's right, we have big news! Ava is going to be big sister! I'm 10 weeks pregnant. My due date is April 14. (Don't get your hopes up, Catherine! I'm hoping for an early delivery with this one.) We feel so blessed by God to have another addition to our family. Ava is still a little too young to understand what's going on, but she does know where mommy's baby is when you ask her and she'll usually hug my belly or kiss it. It's sweet! I will try to keep you all updated during my pregnancy as much as I am able to.

I thought I would also share a few pictures of what Ava's been up to. She's been helping me do the dishes...everyday. She loves it!
Ava's favorite new phrase, "One more, and then all done." She wanted one more picture of herself, which is a first for Ava. She normally hates the camera!


Look Mom, no hands!

Beach pictures

Sorry for the lack of posting. We have had such a busy summer, as most of you can relate. We have been traveling a lot this summer with summer camp, visiting family and work trips for Jonathan. He's working in Ft. Wayne, IN this week. It's just a few hours from my parents house, so Ava and I decided to spend the past few weeks with my parents while Jonathan is working. It's been a nice and relaxing time. (Although, Ava misses her daddy.) I have been horrible at taking pictures since we've been here. I did take a few pictures when we went to the beach, so I thought I would share them. This was Ava's first time at the beach. It's not the ocean but it sure feels like you're at the ocean! We had a blast and the weather here has been so nice. I'm looking forward to the fall.

Mama and Ava getting their feet wet in the ice cold water!

Ava's favorite part was feeding the seagulls. She definitely didn't get that from me.