Grandpa & Grandma...

Good times with Grandpa & Grandma.

Alex Trip: Final Day

Layne & Carly Aunt Lisa playing with Owen

All the kids

Owen & Carly checking each other out

Carly 9 1/2 months

We stopped at Lisa & Roy's house to say our goodbyes before heading home. The babies were just starting to warm up to each other.

Alexandria Trip Part 3: Arrowwood

Ava & I on a walk around the resort grounds

Lake side of the main resort building. Check out the sandbags around the boat house- the dock was even with the water and we got our feet wet when we walked on it.

Eating at the deck grill

The grounds of the resort were just gorgeous, despite the flooding. The beach was completely gone and many picnic areas were under water near the lake. We all walked out on the dock even though it was nearly under water which Ava thought was great (again, where did my daughter go who is afraid of everything?) We enjoyed a wonderful meal at the deck grill. The weather was perfect. A wonderful end to a great day!

Alexandria Trip Part 2: Arrowwood Waterpark

Roy, Carly, Lisa & Owen "surfing"

Owen loved the water!

Chillin!

Mom & Owen in the lazy river

The next couple nights of our stay in Alexandria were spent at Arrowwood Resort. The big hit there was the large waterpark. I've never seen Ava so thrilled. She has gotten so that she is not so scared to do things anymore which is great. After her and I initially tried out all the slides in the baby pool area, she was good to go by herself going down them. Soon, she was going down on her belly, her side, and head first. She couldn't get enough! Brad and I took turns taking her down the big tube slide (which is the tallest thing ever). I was scared to look over the rail when we got to the top. To my surprise, Ava was giddy over it! It was the fastest slide I've been down and parts of it are enclosed and pitch black which I thought would have scared her, but she just kept asking to go again and again. It was great that we were there on weekdays so there was no lines for anything and hardly anyone there. I had to drag Ava out after the intial 4-5 hour stent we were there, so we could eat lunch. We all know Ava wouldn't miss lunch, but she repeatedly turned down my requests to go eat to stay in the waterpark. Owen seemed to enjoy the fountains and the lazy river. He was content most all the time we were in the waterpark, just hanging out. Brad spent one afternoon in the room with him so he could catch a long overdue nap. Overall, he was very tolerant of all the activity. The last evening we were there, Lisa, Roy, Layne, and Carly joined us. Layne graciously took Ava down the big waterslide several times.

Alexandria Trip: Part 1

Roy & Carly at the beach Springer Family at the beach

Owen trying out Carly's saucer & Layne

Ava & Layne (modeling his Wendy's uniform)

Carly enjoying lunch

Layne, Owen, & Ava at the beach We decided we were long overdue for a trip up to Alexandria, so we planned the trip and took off. The car ride was fairly uneventful. Both kids did well except Owen decided he was done with the car for the last half hour and cried hysterically until we got to Lisa and Roy's. We spent our first night with them at their house. They made us a delicious breakfast. We then spent some time at the beach, went for a walk around their neighborhood, and went out to eat. The weather was gorgeous!

Grandpa & Grandma "Chris"....

Brad doing some work at my parent's house (Ava was right in on the action)

Mom had a very interested Owen out to watch the action on the porch

Grandma Chris & Owen

Grandpa Glenn & Ava (A.C. as Grandpa calls her)

Brad had some work to do at my parent's house, so we all went down and spent the night. Ava loves to go the Grandma's house.

Hannah & Luke Come to Visit...

Luke, Hannah, Ava & Owen

Family Photo

Luke playing bubbles with Ava

We had Hannah & Luke over for supper during my two week break from work before the new school year begins. We had to celebrate the fact that they have completed their lengthy adoption application process and are now ready to be chosen by some lucky family. Now it is just a matter of time before they get that call that there is a baby waiting for them. We are praying the wait is not long! They will be such fantastic parents. Ava had a great evening playing bubbles and "bouncy ball" with her buddies :)

Blue Mound State Park...

I don't think we will get to swim at Blue Mound State Park this year as the extreme rainfall has made the water nearly black. This is the first time we have made it there this year since the park was closed for the state shutdown for several weeks. We did have a nice picnic and a little swinging before the mosquitoes started biting.

A Preview to Senior Portraits...

Contrary to Owen, Ava was all in the mood to pose for pictures and do whatever I asked her to. She is certainly Miss Personality! She is really growing up. Soon we will be starting preschool and I can't hardly believe it. We are working on having Ava do more things for herself. We try not to use sippy cups and she is showering pretty much all by herself (she just recently figured out the water temperature adjustment), even combing her hair. She is doing great and seems to love the idea of being more "grown up". She is so willing to help with any chores I ask her to do from unloading the dishwasher to putting away laundry items. She loves to take care of Owen and is quite successful in changing his mood if he starts to fuss. He just loves her to death! She struggles with sharing her toys with Owen as he can get ahold of almost anything now. Usually if she is prompted, she will give him back what she takes away. If the truth was to be told, she loves having him around. I've left them playing together in the playroom and come back to find them both in the closet together and she is talking to him just like he is going to converse back with her. I know she can't hardly wait for the day when he can really participate in her games.