Christmas Card Carousel

Today I am linking up with Faith's blog for the Christmas Card Carousel she is hosting. Thanks, Faith for such a fun topic to blog about!




I have to say that getting Christmas cards is one of the greatest highlights of Christmas. Sending Christmas cards is just as great...minus the addressing part. And double minus the licking part. Eew!
I love getting the perfect picture and finding the best card to compliment it. Every year since Aaron and I have been married we have done picture cards. I enjoy seeing pictures of family and friends when we get a card in the mail, so I just figure the same rings true for others.
It's especially fun to add pictures of a cute little subject such as Ava.
Here is our card this year.

(click on the picture to see it better)
Anita from A Piece of Pope made our card this year and I think she did such a great job! I will be using her in the years to come for sure!
I save all of our cards from year to year and add them to this big 'ol bucket. Each year we go through and look at them again, including our own cards from the past. In fact, just today we were looking at our card from 2005. I am not even kidding when I tell you that Aaron and I said at the same exact time "We were so thin!" Haaa!! Married life can sure add some poundage can't it?

Can't wait to see other's cards! Merry Christmas to you and yours!

A Party In Our City: Yo Gabba Gabba

If you read my blog much or if you follow me on twitter, you know that this house (yes, I said house) has big love for Yo Gabba Gabba .
All of us.
Even the manly husband.
One night Ava was watching toons in our bedroom and an episode of Yo Gabba Gabba came on and within seconds she was jumping and dancing on the bed and in total awe of the musical mahem. She was hooked right away.
I had heard the show was pretty much straight out of an 80's atari game mixed with a dose or two of acid, but I was never convinced of such.
In fact, I will argue with anyone out there about this show. It has great messages in all of the songs, including "Don't Bite Your Friends" "There's a Party in My Tummy" (song about eating a variety of foods) "Keep Trying, Never Give Up" and "All My Friends are Different" (song about loving your friends even if they are different than you) and I find it very appropriate for my child to watch.
Ok, so I've made my point. Ha!
I was super excited to make Ava's custom Foofa Skirt and shirt.

She was a big fan, but I was unaware until I showed her the super cool outfit, that Toodee was in fact her very favorite character. Whoops. I guess there is a great excuse now for me to make a Toodee outfit next!!
Anyway, my mom had bought these tickets for us back in August and we were so pumped that the day had finally arrived.
Ava was thinking we were going to a movie, so she was floored when we actually got to the concert theater.

We found our seats and had a little snack/posed for the camera before the show started.


My mom got us tickets on the floor, and at first we were a tad worried that Ava wouldn't be able to see.

But there were no worries at all...

Dad's shoulders work just as well!

It was showtime and Ava wasn't sure what to think for a good 15 minutes! She was in total shock and I'm really not sure if the kid blinked for the longest time.



Some highlights from the show...
BROBEE


FOOFA and PLEX


TOODEE



MUNO


After intermission we got the best surprise ever. The characters walked among the aisles to get on stage.
And guess who Ava got to hug?!?!


I have to say that Toodee spent some serious seconds checking Ava out. It was so, so sweet!!


If you know Ava and her personality and her GINORMOUS love for everything in costume, you can read her face so well. SHE WAS TOTALLY STARSTRUCK! I love the way she pet Toodee. Haha!
The dancy dance special guest was "The Flaming Lips". Ever heard of them? I hadn't but Ava's super hip Aunt and Uncle had and they were totally jealous. That just makes me laugh so hard.
Clapping and checking out the balloon falling from the ceiling onto the crowd.

Balloon in hand. All is right with the world.

We had SUCH a fun night and we are so thankful for a great mom/Nee Nee to get us such great tickets. Ava has talked about this night all day long and I know she won't forget it. She keeps asking if we are going again. She says "We go see Yo Gabba Gabba tomorrow, riiiiiight?!?" in the highest pitched voice you have ever heard. She is such a silly girl.

It's so fun to make these memories with her and to see her face light up with so much joy. Being her mom is the my most favorite thing in the world!!

Christmas with Friends

First off, I want to thank you all for your prayers, warm thoughts, and patience as our family endured the hardship of losing Aaron's grandfather last week. We were all close to Papoo and it was such a sad week. This is the first of many losses in Ava's life, but man, to say to a child someone they loved is in heaven and they will see them again someday but not again here on earth...that is harder than I even imagined it would be. I didn't say those exact words, as she is only 2, but she did ask where Papoo was when we went to the farm friday afternoon. She said "Oh yeah. Is he sick?" and I just told her he was in heaven. So she now says "Papoo is in heaven" and I know that means nothing to her now, but one day it will and I pray we can keep his memory alive with Ava. I have blogged about him before. He was a man with the utmost integrity among his community, and he was known for the love he showed to his family and the loyalty he had for everyone among his many friends. He leaves behind a great legacy indeed.
This is the last picture I have of him, and it was taken 4 weeks before he left this earth. His hands are very discolored as he had a skin infection and had lots of swelling. He lived a good, long life and his poor body was just worn out. Can you tell how much Ava adores Meemaw and Papoo?

He will be missed.

Yesterday was a fun day and we were ready for some fun!! We went to our friends' house for some Christmas cheer!
Jenn had many fun things for the kids to do, set up in different stations. It was a PACKED house, so this organization was perfect! She is most definitely the hostess with the mostess.
We got to decorate cookies,



eat those cookies,

eat some more yummy treats such as pizza, hot chocolate, and red velvet cakeballs (delish!),


make Santa crafts,

do some vaccumming,

and best of all...see Santa!!

Doesn't he look like the real Santa?!?!
To say Ava was thrilled to see Santa would be the understatement of the year, y'all!
AVA. LURVES. SANTA.
Period.
We were in the second group to see him, and she was pretty much begging nonstop until it was our turn to go see him. I'm surprised she didn't wet herself when it was our turn!
I'm also glad she didn't wet herself for that matter.
Ok, back on subject.
Sitting on Santa's lap.

She told him she wanted a Princess Castle and rainboots and Toy Story 3 movie. I love this age because you can basically ask them if they want the things you may or may not have already bought, and they are all "yeaaaaaah that sounds FUN!" hehe.

After Santa and Ava bid farewells, she had to get one last hug. Or three. I think there were a few high fives involved too. She was smitten!

Santa wanted a picture with the moms as well. Eew yuck! I went to my happy place and pretended this Santa was only interested in toys and elves and reindeer and cookies.


We also filled stockings with toys and necessities for underprivileged children at Jenn's school where she teaches. I was so glad we did this as Christmas means so much to the kids, but it's also important that we remember those who are less fortunate and to teach Ava to give and find joy in giving rather than receiving...that's what it's really all about.

I trust you are having a wonderful Christmas month and hope we can stop in the midst of all the hustle and bustle and find joy in the small things of every day life, as well as blessing others in times of need.

Olivia inspired custom set

Do you have an Olivia fan in your house?

I bet she would love this patchwork twirl skirt and monogram shirt made out of Olivia quilt squares.

One of a kind, and made to be worn for multiple occasions!
We can also add a number or name! The possibilities are endless.

Ava is dying to have an Olivia outfit of her own after modeling this one. And this is definitely a character set I wouldn't mind her wearing.


Now just wait until you see the next character outfit...eep!

A Christmas Jingle by Ava

Ava singing her favorite Christmas song as of yet...
And if you notice what song she is singing at the very end, you get mad bonus points! (Hint: It's from La Bamba)

The magic of a little Elf

So we started our Christmas tradition of Elf on the Shelf this year and it went off without a hitch!
I was worried Ava was too young for it or that she might be scared of the elf. Boy was I wrong!! This little elf is MAGIC...not just for the kids, but for the parents as well!
Ava hasn't behaved this well in days!

Daddy read the book to her in our bedroom while I went and helped the elf "set up".

The book is so cute!!
It explains how the elf comes to our house every morning from the North Pole to watch Ava and she flies back each night to give a report on Ava's behavior to Santa.
Next we helped Ava think of a name for her elf. She wanted to call her "Elf Girl" but we told her to give her a name like Ava or Ashley. She said "How about Bef??" (Beth)
My guess is she picked this name because we were just reading "O Little Town of Bethlehem" because she doesn't know any Beths. So funny!
We then told her Beth was in the living room and to go find her. She was so excited!!

Can you tell what she was saying?

"Where is Bef??"
And then she finds her...just hanging out on the blinds.

Look at the smiles on her face!! Pure magic. I promise I saw a sparkle in that little girl's eye!
She decided to chat with her in some sort of Elf/Toddler gibberish...

And then she waved at her and said "Hi Bef" no less than 524 times!

I am so glad we decided to start this tradition in our family!
She gets so tickled each morning as she looks to see where Beth is sitting.
The bonus of it all, of course, is reminding her when she thinks about disobeying...that Beth is going to report to Santa!

And when Christmas is over, I think I will create a "Cupid on a Shelf" a "Bunny on a Shelf" and so on for every Holiday, just so I can continue to bribe my child.
Hey, sometimes desperate times call for desperate measures!

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