WANTED

Can you believe our little turkey is turning 2?

Neither can we!

Since Avery is literally OBSESSED with Woody,

we figured a Woody themed birthday party would be appropriate!

Wait until you see the cake I ordered!

I am more excited for this than the actual party!

(Pictures to com...)

Anywho, ALL of our family and friends are invited to come celebrate!

(Can you believe we survived another year?)

(Hopefully we can make it through the Terrible Terrific Two's!)

Oliver

Most of you know Monte and Gracie found new homes last year. (They are both with very loving families that are providing them a wonderful life.)

Well, I hated not having a furry child around. When Nick was gone on work trips, I never slept. I would hear every noise in our house and imagine a boogie man downstairs. I knew if I had a dog, it would help me feel more secure. (It could atleast bark if it heard an unusual noise.)

I had basically been begging Nick and would even send him dozens of pictures a day. (I know how to push buttons.)

When we found out that we were moving back to Salt Lake, Nick said he would think about it.

Well, one day I was cruising around on KSL ads and found the cutest dog with the sweetest face. I sent Nick the picture and he even agreed this little guy was cute. I begged and pleaded to call on him and Nick said we would talk about it later.

Before I knew it, the ad showed SOLD. I was heartbroken. I couldn't get this little guys face out of my mind. I even cried to Nick!

I kept searching online to see if I could find another one. None seemed to hit me like the original.

On Nick's last day of work in Logan, I showed up to his office to take a picture of him with his building. Nick's mom was coming up to help us with Avery because we were moving the next day. She was already at Nick's work and as I was getting out, I saw this fluffy dog jump up on her window in her car. It was the dog I had fallen in love with, Oliver!

I dropped everything and swooped him in my arms. Avery kept laughing and and kept giving him hugs. It was the sweetest thing!

I guess I ruined my surprise by showing up to Nick's work unannounced. He was going to come home with him with a Valentine's Day card and balloon. (Sorry babe! I tend to ruin my surprises!)

Well Oliver, we call him Oli, is a perfect match for our family. He is 1 1/2 years old, potty trained and puts up with Avery. He is the sweetest thing with such a fun and loving personality. AND he doesn't shed or snore!

Thank you Nick for getting Avery and I a furry friend. We LOVE him so much! (Even though Oli LOVES you the mostest!)

Sledding: First Attempt

We decided to try and take Ave sledding for the first time. We've been wanting to do it for the longest time and finally found a Saturday that we had open.

We headed over to Sugarhouse Park after a snowstorm the previous night.

There weren't too many sledders out, which actually surprised us. (Probably because it was only 9:00AM. We are early risers now!)

Ave seemed excited. We marched half way up the hill and I took Ave down first. She did great so we decided to march to the top of the hill next.

She would not sit on Nick's lap whatsoever. (It hurt his feelings. Sad face!)

So I took her down again.

Since there was so much new snow, powder kept flying in our faces. I think this is what scared Avery. She was fine at first, but soon broke into tears. It was so sad.

We tried a third time and she basically ran away from us.

(We learned from a wise friend to never let your child leave an activity upset. They will then have bad memories from that particular activity. Try to leave with the child happy or content. Then they will want to try again.)

She started to march back to the car all by her lonesome. So we started throwing snowballs at each other. She laughed for a minute and then we are done.

We are hoping to put Ave in ski school next season, so hopefully she'll like the snow by then. :)



In the meantime

Once again, I cannot find my camera cord to my new camera! Boo! This move has really jumbled my brain!

In the mean time, I let Avery play with my old camera. Here are a few of her own masterpieces:

Good Job Ave!