Lots of random happenings!!

Lately, we have had some random fun. Baby Aves, is growing like a weed and getting funner and funner as each day goes by. We finally broke down and bought a high chair. I know it sounds dumb but I wasn't ready for one of those in my kitchen quite yet. I tried to feed her in the bumbo and that was not working out too well. She would just try to get out or play with anything she could find. So why didn't we do this EARLIER?? I don't know what we were thinking! The high chair is the best thing ever. The other day, I was so fed up with her spitting food out and getting it all over my clothes and in my hair. Here's some happy times in the new chair.!Yesterday, my friend Nicole and some of her ward friends, invited Avery and I to the rec center. I was so impressed. Even though Avery can do much on her own, she loved sitting in the water, splashing her hands, and kicking her legs. She loved all the water falls and stuff. It was nice for me to get out of the house. Thanks for the invite. I loved that place. We'll definitely go back!!Avery's personality is growing and developing into such a fun little girl. We love having her in our family. She is so sweet and I couldn't be more happy with parenthood. Erik was giving her a bath last night and she was having so much fun with her little rubber duck, we had to capture the moment. We love you baby Aves!!

Where have I been?

K, I've been totally slacking. Things have been a little crazy for us. These past couple of months, we have been out of town almost every weekend. On Thursday, Erik had surgery on a hernia, so I have been taking care of two babies!! LOl. ha ha. Just kidding, I love taking care of my family. He's doing well and I like to tease him that my c-section was by far worse so he better buck up :) A few weeks ago, I had the chance to head to St. George for a bridal shower. Brooke Stubbs and I have been friends since we were eight so this was so exciting. Me and these girls have known eachother for ever. Lindsay Terry had the shower at her house. She and I have been friends since we were eleven, Dusty and I since we were nine, and Angie and I since we were twelve. I love friendships like that! These girls are what makes me miss St. George soo much. Thanks linz for throwing an awesome shower! Ps. Can I just live in one section of your house. You'll never know I'm there ;)Then weekend before last, my dad, my sister, her man, and my niece came to stay the weekend with us. We went to Circus, Circus so my niece could ride the rides and see all the acrobatic stuff. That place was crazy busy and we forgot a bottle for Avery so Erik and I didn't get to stay long, but we still had fun. We always love when family comes to stay!

Fourth of July fun!!!

Every year, it is a tradition for us to go to Richfield, (Erik's home town) for the fourth. It is always so much fun. Friday morning, we went to the parade, the kids had a blast running up to the floats as people threw candy from them. Afterward, there was a big gathering at the park. Tons of food, fun and friends. Avery was so tuckered out by then, she fell asleep in her stroller. Later, we had a BBQ, headed for the park with friends and family to watch the fireworks. It was so cute because Avery got to hang out with her two little friends, Addison and Titan. They are all close in age. The fireworks were so long. They went for about an hour. It was crazy!! The next day, we had a big breakfast in Erik's aunts backyard. Lots of family was there and it was so great to see everyone. We then had our neice babysit Avery and all of us couples went on a two hour four wheeler ride up piute trail. It started to rain and became super cold. Erik and I got to snuggle up and we absolutely loved it. We had so much fun. After our ride, we headed off for another BBQ at some good friends house. We had an awesome weekend. It's always hard to be surrounded by people for days and then come home to no one. I look forward to our next family gathering. Erik's family is so much fun to be with. Our time together is always memorable. I love them all so much. Thanks for an awesome weekend you guys!!

My hubby, my hero!!

This is my tribute to Erik. I'm sure most of you know, my husband served in the Iraqi war for a total of two years. Six months of it we were engaged, and a year and half of it, we were married. I lived alone while he fought for our freedom. He supported the war and felt it was right to do what he could to protect what others have died to give us, freedom. You never realize how large of a sacrifice it is until someone you love is risking their life. Because Erik was constantly in harms way, I will never look at the fourth of July the same. It will always be dear to me and when the fireworks are streaming throughout the sky, so will the tears from my eyes. Freedom is not free! Many lives have been lost and continue to be lost for us to be able to do what ever the heck we want on a daily basis. My husband will always be our families hero. He is the best husband, father, and friend. I love him so much and can't picture my life without him. I thank heavenly father every day that he made it home safely. I love you so much honey! You are my hero!!

FoR fUn AnD fOr SaLe!!

My friend Nicole and I get kind of bored so we made some tutu's and just had so much fun making them we decided to possibly sell them. If anyone wants one, we can make them in any color and any size. Also, we've been making bows, head bands, and clips. They're so fun and cute. We especially love the curly ones. We like to say they look like little fire crackers. The white head band with the red, white and blue curlies is what they look like. Those can be done in clips and look super cute with pig tales. We didn't plan for this little venture but had so much fun with this new found hobby, we thought why not share it if we can. Please let us know if any one would like to purchase anything. This is a few things we have done. It's hard to tell but the tutu's look way better in person. They are super puffy and dang cute!!

Life in Las Vegas Update!!

A few people have been asking me how life is in Las Vegas. Our last post, wasn't too positive. So, I thought I'd better give an update. We are doing really well. We're getting excited for our house to be built which is supposed to be done in September! Hmm, we'll see. They haven't even started, but they claim that when they do, it only takes 90 days. So, my thoughts are they better hurry! We've drove by our lot and they are conditioning the ground and getting ready to dig. We are really looking forward to having a house again. Plus, we love the stuff we've picked out for it. Apartments are kind of rough! Lets just say I can hear our neighbors going pee! EEEWWW!! I do love having the pool though! That is so nice when it's a hundred plus degrees outside. Erik is getting so excited to go to dental school. He still has a little ways to go but he attended this dental thing this past weekend. He got to drill, fill cavities and all sorts of stuff. He absolutely loved it. That makes being here worth while. If he is going to love being a dentist, than I know its worth it for a few years. The shopping is awesome here and I have two great friends that live close, Nicole and Shauni. Our ward is great. It's a really young ward, with lots and lots of kids. Because both of us have family in St. George, we find ourselves there often. I love it though because it still just feels like home. Things are going great for us. Avery is growing like a weed, Erik is working his fanny off, and I am dabbling in some fun things. Life is pretty good!

Oh so sweet!!

Avery has this cute little glow worm. It sleeps with her every night and at all naps. We take it every where with us! Yesterday while she was napping, I went to check on her and this is what I found. She always snuggles up to it. I wish she would snuggle me that way!
Check out the new toy! She loves it!

Fun and frilly!!

My friend Nicole and I started making tutu's for the heck of it. You know us stay at home moms, we get board and try to get crafty. They are super fun and dang cute!! I made this one for Avery, and it was almost like she knew it was dress up and picture time. She totally got into it. She was smiling for the camera. We had a blast. I love my little princess!!

Bumper pad madness!!

We all know that bumper pads in the crib are dang cute and they seem like a must! However, Avery has become quite the crazy sleeper. She's everywhere!! Erik and I are so nervous she is going to suffocate in those dang bumpers because she gets her face right in them. I check on her at least once a night. Last night I got up at three am, went and checked on her and she was kind of stirring a little. I found her grabbing onto to the bumper, pulling it down over her face, trying to get it in her mouth and all the while, she's still asleep!! I moved her back to the middle of the crib and went back to bed. I couldn't sleep so I checked on her again. Low and behold she was at it again, trying to get the bumper pad into her mouth. We normally don't feed her at night, but something told me she might be hungry. So here I am at three thirty feeding her. I put her back to sleep and she does it again. I was so bugged, Erik and I ripped them out. She was mad and threw a fit. We thought we would let her cry it out for a bit. We must have been so tired cause neither of us know when or if she stopped crying. Erik woke to her screaming at five thirty. He went and got her, came barging through our bedroom door, screaming, "She is having an allergic reaction!" I jumped out of bed to find her eyes and lips completely swollen. Erik ran to the nearest pharmacy for benadryl. Crying usually doesn't make her lips swell so I checked her body for any bug bites and nothing. By the time Erik got home, the swelling had already gone down quite a bit. We are so confused as to what happened. We're thinking maybe she was sucking on the crib and the paint caused a reaction. Who the heck knows. I guess I'll never take those dang bumper pads out again.

Memorial Weekend!!

First, I just wanted to recognize what memorial day stands for, remembering the dead, especially the ones we love and respect. I want to acknowledge my nephew, Sumter Lee Bateman, who died 4 1/2 years ago, at age 20 in a car accident. We all miss you and love you dearly. We know where you are and that you're happy! I'm so glad to have known you, and I know I will see you again! Also, this weekend we had Erik's brother Dave, and his wife Kelsee came into town from St. George. We attempted to do some fun things but due to the weather, a lot of the outdoor activities were canceled, but we had fun anyways!! We went to the district which is similar to the Gateway in Salt Lake. There's a park that has a large movie screen, and you watch movies for free out on the grass, just like on wedding planner!! There's a carousel which Kelsee and I would have rode had it not been raining, the Cheesecake Factory, where we ate, and Pottery Barn!! I can't afford to shop there but hey, I can
always look! On Monday, we went to the lake with Kelsee's cousin, on their fun boat! Thanks for letting us tag along you guys!

Avery cakes liked the boat!