Six Flags Discovery Kingdom

Last Wednesday, Avery and I headed up to Pittsburg to visit with Grams and Papa. Jaron went on an adventure of his own...camping and fishing with our friend Matt.
On Thursday, Grams, Avery and I went to Vallejo to what used to be called Marine World and is now Discovery Kingdom. We had a great time seeing all the animals and going on rides. Well, Grams and Avery went on the rides as I was not permitted to go on anything since I am pregnant. It was a little chilly in the morning, but once the fog lifted it was a beautiful day. We spent about 4 1/2 hours or so exploring. We saw the Dolphin show, which was great and saw many fun animals...giraffes, lions, elephants etc... Avery was too scared to pet or ride on the elephant so maybe next time. By the end of the day she was pooped. Both nights at Grams and Papa's she told me around 8:30 she was ready for bed and went down willingly. It was great! Thanks to Grams and Papa for a fun 2 days!

Justin's wedding

Today my good friend Justin got married. I have known Justin since we were infants eating graham crackers in the church nursery. Avery was the flower girl and did a great job. She made it all the way down the aisle throwing her petals as she walked. Though when she got to the end, she did not want to stop and stood there dropping petals until her basket was completely empty. The ceremony was beautiful. There was a quick reception at the church then a smaller more intimate reception at Jen's (the bride) parents' house in Gilroy.
It was so fun to see people I have not seen in a long time. Our friend Josh came down from Canada...the 3 J's together again! We have all known each other forever and have so many fun stories. What a fun trip down memory lane.





The three J's(Jenni, Justin, Josh)

Avery fell in love with the ring bearer, Andrew, my friend David's little boy. They were so cute together and had fun chasing and hugging eachother all day long.

New Haircut for Avery

Avery and I headed to grams' house on Wednesday. Avery got her haircut in preparation for a wedding she was in today. She was the flowergirl in a good friend of mine's wedding.

Avery's hair all flipped out!

Harry Potter Fan

Yes, I admit I am a huge Harry Potter fan. I have read all 6 books muliple times and have seen and own the first four movies which I have also watched time and time again much to the annoyance of my husband. Even at 29 years of age, I feel totally engrossed in the books and the world of Hogwarts. So, of course I am eagerly awaiting the release of the final book and was anxious to see the 5th movie.

My dad and I went on Friday to see Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, which remained pretty true to the book, but felt so short even at 2 hours long because so much was left out. My dad says he can't read the books because they will spoil the movies, whereas I say I have to read the books to get the whole story. Thankfully, the movies have not been disappointing!

A visit with friends

This last Thursday I enjoyed a super fun night out with some college friends. Sarah and Sarah and I were able to catch up over dinner and some yummy frozen yogurt. I am so thankful for these two incredibly beautiful and special friends!

Happy Hollow

Last Tuesday we went to Happy Hollow, a park and petting zoo in San Jose. I used to go there when I was little and since admission was free if you brought canned food for Second Harvest Food Bank we decided to check it out. Unfortunately, it has gone a bit downhill, but Avery enjoyed it!

No More Diapers...I'm a big girl now!

I have been hard at work this last week potty training the girl. I had high hopes of having her trained before the baby comes in September so that I do not have 2 in diapers. Well, I have been so impressed by her because she is so close to being completely trained. We started on Tuesday and I have not put a diaper on her since. She is in pull ups only for nap and night and panties all day long. She has had a few accidents, but all in all I think she has it down. Now I need to figure out how to get her to go when we are out...she won't go unless she is on a potty seat and I am not toting one of those around in my purse! :)

Gilroy Gardens

On Saturday we headed out to Gilroy Gardens. We had never been there before, well Avery has, but Jaron and I had not. My parents bought us all season passes so it was time to start getting some use out of them. My dad came along with us...mom is in Tanzania on a mission trip until mid-August where my dad will soon join her in 2 weeks.
Anyways-what a great place! It is beautiful and so much fun for little kids. Avery again wanted to go on ride after ride. We stayed for 4 hours or so and are excited we can go back more during the summer.

Happy 4th of July!!

Beach Boardwalk

On Tuesday night we headed over the hill to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Every Monday and Tuesday night the rides are only 75 cents as well as their hot dogs, sodas, and cotton candy. Avery had such a fun time on the rides. She kept wanting more!!
After Avery went on a few rides, Jaron took a ride on the Big Dipper. He also indulged in a fried twinkie. He has always wanted to try one...it was good!

Trip to Southern Cal

After our camping trip we made our way down to Southern California. Jaron had to got to the National Athletic Training Convention in Anaheim. On Thursday while Jaron was at the convention, Avery and I headed over to Cypress to visit with Amy, Kaylin, and Trevor. We were able to see their new place and the kids had a fun time playing outside and being together again.

On Friday night our friends Mike and Zariq met us at Downtown Disney for some food and fun. I love hanging out with them as we are always just able to pick up right where we left off.

On Saturday, Derek and Amy came out to our hotel where the kids and us had a great time by the pool and a yummy dinner at Mimi's Cafe. Later that night, we had a spectacular view of the Disneyland fireworks from the parking lot of our hotel. It was so hard to be so close to Disneyland and not go. Avery really wanted to visit Mickey's house. Maybe before her 3rd birthday so we can get her in for free! :)

On our last day we went over to Mrs. Knott's Famous Chicken Restaurant for the Sunday buffet brunch. The food was so good! I kept wanting to eat and eat. After that we headed over to Kent and Liz's house for a quick visit before heading home. I had never met their little girl Abby who is 10 months old and adorable! Of course Avery loved hanging out with the boys too. We of course wish we could have spent more time catching up, but after being away from home for a week, We were ready to get back home. We are hoping they can come up for a visit later this summer. Hint hint!

Camping at Ice House

Last Sunday we left for our first camping trip of the season to Icehouse Resevoir which is a few miles east of Placerville. What a beautiful place to spend a few relaxed days.
This is about the cleanest Avery was during the entire trip. As soon as we got there she was playing in the dirt.

Probably the best thing about going camping is the campfire...and smores.

Avery warmed right up to great grandpa, and had fun exploring camp with him.

Avery really enjoyed the smores...once she saw everyone roasting marshmallows she grabbed her own stick and stuck a marshmallow on it, the stick she chose was about 4" long and 1" wide.

Did I mention Avery was dirty the whole time we were there? Here's a pic of after playing in the dirt and rubbing her eye.

Avery latched right on to Jenni's cousins, and kept asking "where's Kelsey, where's Melissa?"

Avery enjoyed riding in Great Grandpa's boat...she liked going fast, although she had a kung-fu grip on me the whole time.

Roger had a great time camping...he went swimming 3 or 4 times everyday we were there. Here he found a stick to fetch...well, it was more like a log. He became obsessed with it and kept dragging it out of the water and barking at it. Finally I had to hide it in the woods while he was swimming after another stick so he would quit barking at it.