Trip to Portland

A couple of weeks ago Mark, Ava, and I took a trip to Portland, Oregon. Ava was good on the plane, considering the last time she flew was when she was only 3 months old. On the way to Portland the flight was completely full, so it was a challenge keeping her in the seat for an hour and a half. On the way back, the flight wasn't nearly as full, so she was able to have the middle seat to herself. She kept busy by watching Finding Nemo, playing with some toys, and reading the Sky Mall catalog! We had a great time in Portland-we saw some family, went to McMinnville to see the Spruce Goose (the enormous plane built by Howard Hughes), and went to the zoo. Ava loved the zoo-she loved the bears, thought the monkeys were funny, and saw a brand new baby elephant!

My Grandma Hutch--Ava called her "G.G." for Great Grandma.

Brand new baby elephant, Sam.

Ava, trying to get off the ground!

The Spruce Goose-it's huge! The wing span is 320 ft!

Ava, trying to figure out this whole "flying thing"

The Pumpkin Patch

A couple of weeks ago we went down to Bishop's Pumpkin Patch. It was so much fun! Mark, Ava, and I went down there with my Mom and John, Alyson, The (other) Coopers- Raymond, Jenny, Macy, and Ben, The Navarres- Rob, Georgia, Drew, and Emma, and The McDowells-Felicia, Jeff, and Nora (Ava's BFF from daycare!). There were train rides, pig races, a petting zoo, a trampoline, and of course-pumpkins!! Ava had a great time, we ended up staying there for over 3 hours!! Here are some pics... Have a Happy Halloween!

Aly, Grandma, Grandpa and Ava

Ava jumping-there's actually a trampoline under all that hay!

Ava was playing the pumpkin like a drum-and giving it kisses!

Feeding the goats in the petting zoo.

Ava and Grandpa

Oui, Oui...It's Halloween!

Ava and I went down to my parents' house this weekend. We went shopping, ate cookies, scrapbooked (after Ava went to sleep of course) and took some pictures. We originally planned on just taking some pictures of her in her bumblebee costume, but then my mom found this cute leopard outfit. Later, she found the beret and we thought we'd try it out. Ava usually pulls her hats off within a few seconds, so we were surprised when she kept this one on for awhile. She looks like a little French girl, don't cha think? It's much harder taking her to get her picture taken now that she can walk and run...fast! The last time we got her pictures taken, she couldn't walk yet, so much easier!! Oh well, it was fun! By the time we were done, my mom and I were both sweating! Enjoy!

The Chico Airshow

We went to the Airshow on Saturday at the Chico Airport--yes, Chico has its own airport! It's kind of like that television show 'Wings'. I used to fly out of it all the time when I worked for United. The same person would check you in at the ticket counter, walk over to security and check your i.d. again, then go outside to direct the plane in from landing, and load your bags onto the plane for take-off. It's pretty funny, but there was a huge turnout for the airshow. I think the temperature was still in the mid 90s, so it was super hot out on the asphalt. We hung in there for a few hours-Ava did really well and liked watching the planes fly by.

By the time we got there, planes were already flying back and forth and doing their stunts. Some of them made me super nervous-- I felt like I was going to be on one of those "Good Times Gone Bad" tv shows.

They actually got this plane of the ground-it's amazing that a plane this big can fly through the air and even do some tricks too!

Ava waving at one of the planes flying in the air. This was one of the only spots of shade-we were under the wing of a plane they had on display. We camped out there for awhile, but had to keep moving to see more stuff...

Ava with Opa....Going, Going...

Gone!...Wiped out from the excitement and the heat. I think it took her all of two minutes to fall sound asleep when we got in the car.

Fall Fun

I'm making a promise to update our blog more often...I swear! Here are a few pictures we have taken over the last several weeks. We've been really busy going to different fall festivals , taking bike rides in the park, and hanging out with the fam. Ava is learning so much everyday and she's starting to repeat a bunch of words-we have to be careful of what we say now! She still loves being outside, playing with her Opa (Mark's dad), and getting into trouble!!

We went to the Durham Harvest Festival and Ava rode a pony-the pony's name was Annie Oakley. She didn't know what to think at first, but she got used to it and ended up letting go of my hand to hold on by herself.

Ava enjoying Annie Oakley.

Aunt Jenny was feeding Ava a push-up...I think she liked it! What a goofball!

Macy and Ava--Macy gave this purse and hat to Ava, Ava loves to wear them all the time!

Ava loves putting my shoes on, it doesn't matter which pair. She is so proud of herself when she gets them on, but gets so frustrated when they slip off. Here she is pushing her lawn mower around the kitchen in Mommy's shoes.

Turtle Bay

We went to Turtle Bay, in Redding the other weekend. It's only about 1 hour away and it's a neat "adventure center". We went to the aviary to check out the birds, which Ava loved! She wanted to hold them and kept trying to grab them by the neck! We also went into the area where they keep all of the butterflies, but there wasn't enough action for Ava--she wanted to keep moving. They are currently having an exibit called 'Bodies Revealed'-so cool! There were actual preserved bodies that showcased the different systems in the human body (circulatory, digestive, muscular, etc.). Cameras weren't allowed, so I don't have any pictures. It was really amazing though.

Ava pointing at one of the birds before she tried to reach for it!

Can you see the mischievous look in her eyes?

Ava talking to the fish. She can say "fish", but usually it's referring to the goldfish snacks that she likes.

Ava doing a little dance in one of the tee-pees. She would push one of those buttons behind her and music would start playing. She cracks us up!

Fun pics!

It's been awhile since I last posted anything. I have been taking lots of pictures of Ava over the last couple of weeks, surprise, surprise! She is growing so fast! She runs (not walks) everywhere-no more crawling. She can point to her nose, her toes, her ears, her hair, her belly button and her tongue. She nods for "yes" and I'm hoping she doesn't learn "no" for quite awhile. She is becoming quite the entertainer. Here are a few random pictures I thought I would share.

Ava, wearing her shades. Mark says she looks like Elton John in this pair!

Ava, being a goofball. She pulled this hat out of a basket and kept wanting me to put it on her head. She would run around the house, pull it off, and come back over to me to put it back on!

Ava playing in the water at Grandma and Grandpa's in their backyard in Lincoln.

Ava's first time on a boat! She loved it-she seemed to be relaxed by the noise and it almost put her to sleep.

Ava and Emma hanging out at the lake. This was Emma's chair and Ava loved it. Emma has a little brother and sister (twins) that are Ava's age, so she's really good with Ava.

Mark and Ava getting ready for a bike ride through the park. If anyone is looking for a bike seat-get this one! It sits in the front so they can see everything. Ava absolutely loves it! We've been on so many bike rides since we got this seat.

Ava, with her helmet, ready to go!