Thursday, January 31, 2013

Outside in January...

Sunshine and warmer temperatures in January meant we were getting out of the house and spending the day out side!!


A run around Lake Fayetteville to skip some rock (aka throw rocks) in the lake.....

picking out the "perfect" rock...

We also had some fun at the park before running home....



Ava Kate thinks she's as big as Owen and likes to try everything he does....

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

January...

A few random pics from January....


Our kiddos absolutely love each other!  Yes...they fight and take toys from each other, BUT they can also be sooooo sweet and loving to one another!

a little snuggle time in Ava Kate's bed....

Getting a new play set for Christmas led to us bundling up in January to play outside!


This is what typically happens at our house on the weekends...

pajamas all day....

a little competition... 


skyping with grandparents....

....and pulling out every toy possible!


Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Happy Birthday Aunt Anna!!

Aunt Anna turned 21 on January 20th!!! And yes....Josh and I managed to stay up late enough to celebrate with her!


 In honor of her birthday, I made my first attempt at making a cheesecake (her favorite) from scratch!  


Since the cheesecake had WAY too many fat grams for Owen, we also made her low-fat strawberry cupcakes!


the birthday girl...

helping Aunt Anna open her presents...


Saturday, January 12, 2013

Play date...

Shortly after Christmas...Charley came over for a play date.  Owen wanted to break in all his new toys and was tired of playing with mommy and daddy! The marshmallow shooters were a hit...and left quite the mess.  I found marshmallows everywhere for about 2 weeks!

It was cold out, but that didn't keep these two from trying out the new play set!

all bundled up and ready to go...

They endured the cold for at least and hour before we persuaded them to come in!

Campbell and Ava Kate enjoying some play time inside....

Sunday, January 6, 2013

Ava Kate's New Trick....

Ava Kate is what I would call a "girly girl" most of the time....BUT when she's concentrating on something she does this really silly grunting!  She's done this for a while know, but it seems to be louder and more frequent as she has gotten older!  I sure hope she grow's out of this before kindergarden when she really has to "concentrate"!


Saturday, January 5, 2013

More Christmas Fun....

our happy girl...

A little Christmas surprise...



... a little snow on Christmas night!

we weren't really prepared for snow, but Owen and I managed to bundle up enough to enjoy it for a short time...

Ava Kate was not excited that she had to stay inside...

We he got bored with snow ball fights with me, he decided to get Ava Kate and Aunt Anna...through the door!



he thought it was hilarious!  


 After warming up, Emma Gayle and Watson came over to exchange Christmas and play.  We gave them marshmallow shooters as well which lead to a non-stop marshmallow war!  It was so much fun!

Watson...

Emma Gayle...

Owen..

 trying out his spider man hand...


 Papa Bart finally felt a little better and was able to join us for some Christmas fun....

Christmas...take 3

We got home a few days after Christmas and went straight to the backyard to check out the play set! Owen was so excited and a little taken back at first, but it didn't take long for him to warm up.  It was cold and late, so we didn't get to play long...but Owen finally understood that Santa had actually given him a play set and not just a picture of one!!


trying everything out...

swinging for a brief second before he got too cold...

Parker and Owen breaking in the slide...

Ava Kate all bundled up and trying out her new swing!  She really liked it and got upset when we took her out. 

After a little fun outside we came in for another Christmas celebration....with Papa Joe, Beema, Aunt Amanda, and Parker!
 


our little diva showing off her new hat..

Parker was in town from the Dominican Republic and Owen was so excited.  He and Parker are BIG buds...and just picked up right where they left off!

 silly faces...

trying out his new flash light...Ha!!

 still a kid at heart....

Parker, Owen, Josh, and Aunt Amanda all got marshmallow shooters.....so the war was on!!! It was hilarious!!!!  There were teams and strategies and hiding places and attacks....and Owen was right in the middle!!!!


 Ava Kate was not a big fan...

 After a million marshmallow wars...my floors were covered and I wouldn't have it any other way!  So much FUN!