Family Reunion

Last weekend we had a family reunion with mom's side of the family.  Mom comes from a very big family.  One of my cousins put together this family tree.

My grandparents:

Although I'm pretty sure it's Gladys

They had 13 children (my mom is the youngest), 41 grandchildren, 79 great-grandchildren, and 29 great-great-grandchildren.

It was a nice to see everyone and for Avery to see a lot of people she hadn't met before.  Oh, and to eat lots and lots of good food!

It is crazy how time flies.

Then

Myself with big cousins Greg & Summer

Again with Summer & Greg

Now

Summer & Greg

Then

Myself with little cousins Andrew (L) & Paul (R)

Now

Paul & Avery

Then

Mom & I

Now

Mom & Avery

Then

Some of my aunts, Grandma, myself, & little cousin Chris

Now

Some aunts & uncles

Tuesday Date

Rob went to a concert last night and instead of doing the responsible thing and eating something at the house, I decided to treat Avery (and-who am I kidding?-myself) to Chick Fil A.

Boooo!

It was all good until it was time to leave the "payground." Cue flailing and crying.


When we got home we walked over to the neighborhood playground.  Side note-I think my child is the only kid I know who doesn't like to swing.  Doesn't want anything to do with it.  Side note 2-at one point I was the only adult there out of about ten kids. One group of kids (about 10-12 years old) had a toddler with them.  Is this normal?  I digress.

The two of us had a fun girls night!

Dada: MBA

Last Monday was Rob's graduation ceremony.

I woke up Monday morning feeling bad, but I went to work anyway.  I was feeling progressively worse after a few hours and decided to go home.  I got an email from Lynn saying that she was very sick (remember that Bomb Pop?) and I knew I was coming down with it as well.  From Thursday to Saturday the little hostess infected nine people (that I know of).  I could barely get off the couch, much less make it to the ceremony.  Cue extreme sadness and tears.  As long and boring as graduation ceremonies are I actually wanted to go to this one.  I was so proud of Rob and excited to see him be recognized for his degree.  My mom picked Avery up from daycare, fed her, entertained her, and put her to bed (which I was extremely grateful for).  Fortunately Rob's parents and grandparents were there to support him (and take pictures for me!).

Enough about me (surprisingly, my misery is not the main point of this post).

My point is to express how very proud I am of him.  He started the program when Avery was three months old.  We had an infant.  I went back to the office that month.  Rob was working full time and starting a full time Master's program.  There was a lot going on.
At the time, Avery turning two and Rob finishing the program seemed very far away.  It's hard to believe that both things happened last week.

There were a lot of late nights studying.

Many nights away from the house entirely, in class or working on projects.  My mom came over most Monday nights.  It was very helpful to me and Avery looked forward to seeing her Mimi-Thank you, Mom!

A fair amount of stress (and complaining...and cussing).

I am extremely proud of the sacrifices he made and the hard work that he accomplished.

He had a very full plate and I'm not sure he's going to know what to do with all of his free time now:)

We are very proud of you, Dada Thomas, MBA.

Mother's Day & Avery is 2

Good morning birthday girl!  You're 2!

We started the day with a breakfast casserole made by Rob.  For Mother's Day I wanted to have a picnic at the park.  After a stop by my mom's house (since we didn't get to see her at Avery's party) to drop off her Mother's Day gift and to open Avery's birthday gifts we headed to Woodward park.  It was a BEAUTIFUL day.  We had an awesome spread, all prepared by Rob.

We enjoyed the park for a few hours and went home to take naps.  When Avery woke up we gave her a birthday present-a trike!  She pretty much has it figured out.  The little bell on the handlebars is her favorite part.

For dinner Rob made delicious fajitas on the grill.  I have to say-it was a perfect day (for Avery and I anyway, Rob was probably exhausted).  The next day would not be so good.
To be continued...

2 Year Checkup

Height: 36 inches (94th percentile)

Weight: 24.5 pounds (21st percentile)

Head: 18.5 inches (36th percentile)

She got a shot but didn't cry or even seem to notice.  She commented on her yellow band-aid, picked out a Spiderman sticker, got her first sucker, and we were on our way.

The good news is that she is doing great and exceeding all 2 year milestones.  The bad news is that she has a double ear and sinus infection.

2nd Birthday Party

Avery's birthday party was Saturday, the day before her birthday.  We (and by "we" I mean me, myself, and I) wanted to have a vintage circus theme this year, and in spite of a couple hiccups, I think it turned out well.   I ordered a customizable party package from Dimpleprints shop on Etsy.  She provided a package of almost 200 pages worth of printables like signs, cupcake toppers, banners, and more (I didn't use everything in the package).  The invitations came with it as well.

The bottom sign says "Welcome to Avery's Carnival"  Washed out photo:(

The night before the party Mimi (aka the baker) came down with a nasty virus.  We had big plans for a cute cake and cupcakes, but I was more bummed that Mimi would miss the party.  We could pick up a cake at the grocery store-I wasn't worried about that.  Stephen saved the day by picking up the cakes that had been baked but not yet decorated from my mom's house.  We threw the icing and decorations on in about 20 minutes.  They probably did not turn out as well as if Mimi would have made them, but they looked pretty cute nonetheless.

Popcorn Cupcakes

Popcorn Bag Cake

Please don't submit me to Cakewrecks.

The food was simple carnival food like hot dogs, pretzels, peanuts, popcorn, animal crackers, lemonade, etc.  In fact, I felt a little guilty that nothing (aside from the cakes and the caramel corn) was homemade!

We were a little rushed to get everything ready because we attended another birthday party that morning, so I didn't get any great pics of the decorations or anything.  Just imagine cute popcorn and peanut bags, vintage striped straws, cotton candy favors, and a birthday banner.  Oh well.  Avery had a great time, and that's all that matters.

Later that evening, Aunt Lynn couldn't resist getting a treat for Avery from the ice cream truck (something she would pay dearly for-more on that later).  Avery played in the yard with her new water table, in her adorable new swimsuit.

She knew what she wanted

She was exhausted at the end of the day and actually asked to go "night night."  It means a lot to us to see everyone come together to celebrate her birthday.  The day was a reminder of how loved Avery is.

Happy Mother's Day

Momma,
Do you realize how much you do for us? Probably so, but we do too. We realize that you keep our lives humming. You provide us with an endless amount of love and caring. It doesn’t matter if the situation is good, bad, sweet, sassy, happy, grumpy, clean, or dirty…you always take it in stride. We realize the time and effort that you spend on the endless cycle of laundry, cooking, cleaning, shopping, and emotional support. Even though we have busy lives you always go the extra mile for us. “Shortcut” is not in your vocabulary, you always give your best. Today, for a change in pace, we request that you be lazy. We are very grateful to have the best mother/wife in the land. We thank you for everything that you do for us. You make our lives great and you mean the world to us.
Love,
Avery & Rob

2 Years

     Sometimes I can't remember what I had for lunch the previous day.  Or what I did last weekend.  But I can remember bringing Avery home from the hospital like it was yesterday.

     It was a Sunday: Mother's Day.  What a wonderful Mother's Day gift (although I still give Rob a hard time because he didn't get me a present that year).  On TV you always see moms being wheeled out of the hospital in a wheelchair.  I don't remember why, but I walked.  Slowly.  My mom and a nice nurse walked out with us.  Rob had taken 17 trips to the car already.

     It was overcast, cool, and rainy.  I think it rained for an entire week.  I remember this well because that meant Arthur was stuck inside.  His obsession with the new little person that had moved in drove us crazy.  He wanted to sniff her head.  He went crazy over her head, going into turbo sniff mode anytime he could get close enough.  The problem was that she had some sensitive areas and swelling on her head from labor and delivery, so we had to be careful.  When we got tired of running interference, he was sent to the garage.  This happened often.

     We took turns sleeping on the couch with Avery.  I don't remember the TV being on much.  It was pretty quiet.

It was a lot of this

This

And this

In two days she will be 2.  She knows her letters, numbers, and colors.  She loves to jump.  She loves bubbles, coloring, and "priddy" things.  She likes Mickey Mouse, Elmo, Blues Clues, and Barney.  She's sweet.  And sassy.  And funny.  And energetic.  Her hair is filling in.  She's petite.  She has more teeth than a piranha.  She eats like a horse.  She sleeps like a log.  We love her more than anything.