A Magical Day

Saturday we took Ava to the Magic Kingdom. The weather was absolutely perfect! We could not have picked a better day to visit. The last time Ava was at Disney was about 4 months ago. It was so neat to see the difference in her reactions to everything. She loved everything about it!

I still believe her favorite ride is It's A Small World. She will ride along and point to all the different things and talk away- trying to tell us about everything. We went on most of the rides that she could actually go on. I was expecting the park to be super crowded since this was really the first super nice/slightly warm day we have had all winter. The park was crowded- isn't the Magic Kingdom ALWAYS crowded? Especially on a Saturday? but the lines weren't bad at all.

Elyse- this is for you- Ava giving Pooh some lovin'

We wanted to get a good spot for the parade and so we camped out about 45 minutes ahead of time and while Adam stood with the stroller, Ava and I walked along Main Street and shopped in all of the shops. I think she wanted to take everything home with her. I was fully prepared to walk out with an armful of stuff- but my reasoning took over and I continuously reminded myself that she had Minnie Mouse in her stroller, Mickey Mouse in the car and her Minnie and Mickey figurines in her bag- I really didn't think she needed anything else. But we did have tons of fun playing with all of the toys in the shop.

A few minutes before the parade started a man came around and gave the kids a sticker- Ava took hers off immediately and put it on her jacket.

I don't know if it is her bows that cause her to get a lot of attention or if it is because she is so small and not scared of the characters, but every parade we have been to at Disney they come up and say hey to her. Adam took pictures of most of them- I wish you could see her face- she loves it!

I wondered if she rememberd Lilo and Stitch from the Character breakfast we went to a few months back. They each came up to say hi as well- Maybe they remembered her *wink*wink*

Ava loves anything and everything to do with "Mouse" we were watching a stage show on the castle steps and she didn't want to move away from it.

She was so good and took about a 45 minute nap the entire time we were at the park and never fussed. She enjoyed the whole day. Towards the end of the day she wanted to get out of her stroller and walk around, but who wouldn't after riding all day.

I know this picture is blurry, but right before we left the park there was a light parade and put her on Adam's shoulders so she could see better. (We didn't get there early to get a good spot because we actually weren't planning on watching this one, it just happened to start right as we were leaving- so we decided to stay and let her see Mouse). This was her pointing to Mickey and Minnie as they went by on the float.

Lol- Adam looks really tired- we had made a long day of it- but he is such a great daddy for spending the day doing this with us :)

We really had a Magical day and we are going to Playhouse Disney Live this Saturday. My parents gave Ava tickets to see the show for Christmas and after seeing her reaction to the characters on Saturday I can't wait for the show. I know she is going to have a great time.

18 Months Old

Dear Ava,

At 18 months old you are turning out to be so much fun. You are to the age where you can now semi-sorta carry on a conversation. You definitely understand what we are saying and in turn we try our hardest to understand what you say. Most of the time it is a success- but there are times we end up scratching our heads trying to figure it out.

You love books and I hope you will always love books. Your favorite TV show is Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and watching your expression when you see Mickey, Minnie, and friends come alive is priceless.

You eat just about anything we put in front of you- except meat- you will eat meat, but you seem to be pickier about it. I am not going to point any fingers on where you get that from. You also love foods that I wouldn't think most 1 year would eat, such as okra and beets. As a matter of fact you will eat beets over candy or cookies.

You still wear 18 month clothes and I don't see that changing any time soon. I am guessing when the weather warms up for summer and you can wear shorts is when you will be progressing into 24 month clothes (or at least that's what I hope since we have been buying summer clothes at 24 months). You typically run 3 months longer than what the size of the clothes are. You are still in size 3 diapers and I wonder if you will ever grow out of them before you are potty trained. You were size 5 shoes. You weigh about 26-27 pounds and are 33" tall.

We are finally able to fit a hairbow in your hair without a headband, but they have to be pretty small and they usually come out pretty quick, it takes just the slightest movement for them to come loose. We typically just wear a headband, I guess we will have to wait a little bit longer for enough hair to wear a bow by itself.

People will still stop and comment on how cute you are and while I would have to agree with them, I also know you are a beautiful little girl on the inside as well- which is what truly matter to me.

You seemed to have nicknamed my dad (originally Poppa) Bapu...not sure if it will stick or not- but if it does, I know he will love it because it came from you. You are really starting to associate people's faces with names. We can look at a picture with you and ask you to find each person and you do a great job. You also introduce your Mama and Daddy to people. You will always point to each of us and say "Mama...Daddy"- I'm glad you know who you belong too :)

You seem to think that any other little kid is a baby (whether they are 6 months old or 4 years old), but you refuse to think of yourself as a baby. I am telling you now, you are my baby and you will always be my baby :)

You love being a little mommy to your babies and it is one of my favorite things to do watching you be a good little mommy. It reassures me that I am on the right tract in trying to be a good mommy myself.

You still have a hard time going to Waumba Land. I really wish you would love to go to church and I know it will eventually happen. Your teachers really love you and we all just want you to have a lot fun and look forward to going. I know it is just because you don't want to be away from Mama or Daddy, but I also know it is imporant to keep you going to Waumba Land becuase you will learn so much and also because Mama and Daddy need to have that time of worship themselves. I know you probably don't understand that right now- but trust me- one day you will.

You have really exploded in the vocabulary department. I have been making a list of words you say and understand (for the most part) now:

Duck, Baby, Daddy, Mama, Bath, Dog, Mouse, Bye, Hello, Go, Bird, Mess, Light, Ball, Eye, Mouth, Head, Bow, Kiss, Eat, Remote, Milk, Water, Ch-Ch (as in Choo-Choo), Keys, Shoes, See, Uh-Oh, Book, This, Nana, Bar (as in barbie), Moo, Meow, Baa, Arf-Arf, Bubbles, Down, Cookie, Nanna (as in Banana), Back, Gone, Me, Ear, Belly, Nose, Light....

I know there are a few I have forgotten, but as you can see, you understand quite a bit and can talk back to us when we ask you a question. I know we are going to have so many great conversations and I can't wait.

I new thing you have picked up that we all just love is to spin. You will put your hands on your head and spin in circles until you just about fall down. You are practicing to be a ballerina. You also have learned to mimic us very well. We have to becareful what we say because you have started repeating the things we say (not that we say bad words, just that we say things you shouldn't say) The other day I messed up something and said "Oh Gosh" and you repeated me verbatum and I realized I shouldn't teach you to say that.

You really are a lot of fun at this age and I can see you becoming more and more of a Daddy's girl, but also having a lot of fun doing Mother/Daughter things. However, like every stage there are challenges and you have a very strong-willed personality. I can see a little temper being exposed as well. This is the age that your daddy and I have to decide how we are going to discipline you and it is one of the hardest things I have to do, but I realize if I don't it will not be good for any of us. Most of the time you try to please us, but there are times you want what you want and will not give it up until you get it. You must understand that whatever we do- good or bad- as your parents- we are only looking out for your best interest.

I have learned so much about God's love for us since becoming a parent. I pray you grow up to know how much he loves you and how special you are to him and to us. We love you so much and are enjoying watching you grow up to be a beautiful girl- inside and out!

Traveling through Family History

Piggy-backing off of the previous post, I wanted to post these pictures so Ava would be able to see 7 generations back to what her Great-great-great-great-grandparents looked like.

Hardy Marion Nicholson

Born: March 25th, 1865

Died: September11, 1948

Martha Ann Little

Born: May 9th, 1864

Died: February 8th, 1948

Married: 1886

Daughter: Annie Belle

John Wesley Maynard

Born: April 24th, 1841

Died: November 21st, 1926

Mollie Anne Windham

Born: April 27th, 1870

Died: July 14th, 1915

Married: May 24th, 1891

*They were 29 years apart!!!!!!! She was 21 and he was 50 when they were married! This was his 2nd marriage, his first wife died 6 months earlier. I laughed because if this had happened in today's world, we would have been talking bad about them :)

Children:

John William Maynard

Nancy Maxine Maynard

Not Shown in this photo: Elbert Earl Maynard (Great-great-great-grandfather to Ava)

He was their oldest child and may have been in the service or something, hence the reason he was not in this picture.

A Piece of History

This is my Great-Great- Grandparents (Ava's Great-Great-Great-Grandparents)

Elbert Earl Maynard

Born: December 17th 1892

Died: September 25th 1973

Annie Belle Nicholson

Born: September 14th 1896

Died: November 29th 1987

Married: December 24th, 1913 (Merry Christmas- haha!!)

and this:

Was their house.

They moved to Apex, NC around 1931-32 and my Great-grandmother (Memaw) lived there for a short time before moving to Florida to get married.

When we visited NC for my cousins wedding, it was a must-do on my list. I wanted to have Ava's picture taken in front of the house that her great-great-grandmother called home and that her great-great-great-grandparents lived in for most of their lives. It sits downtown Apex (on South Salem Street) in the historic district, right across from the railroad.

It has since been turned into offices, but we are glad it is being used- that means someone is taking care of it. I would imagine it was one of the nicest houses in Apex at the time they moved into it. Nothing has changed about the house other than the standard maintenance that comes with an old house and being painted. The gingerbread along the outside and even the wrap-around porch all existed when Memaw lived there.

Back porch (I'm pretty sure motorcycles didn't exist when Memaw lived here)

I'm so glad we made the trip to visit the house. It was only 30 minutes away from where we were staying for the wedding and it was neat to be able to see a house that is a part of our family's history.

The Truth

I found this a while back and it has stuck with me ever since. I love how simple it is put and I really hope Ava will grow to embrace this as the truth. With the world throwing so many lies at girls it is important that I constantly remind her of these truths and I think the way these are worded will allow her to grasp just how special she is at a young age.

- I made her...she is different. She's unique. With love I formed her in her mother's womb. I fashioned her with great joy. I remember, with great pleasure, the day I created her.

(Psalm 139:13-16)

- I love her smile. I love her ways. I love to hear her laugh, and the silly things she says and does. She brings Me great pleasure. This is how I made her.
(Psalm 139:17)

- I made her pretty and not beautiful, because I know her heart, and she knew she would be vain...I wanted her to search out in her heart and to learn that it would be Me in her that would make her beautiful...and it would be Me in her that would draw friends to her.
(1 Peter 3:3-5)

- I made her in such a way, that she would need Me. I made her a little more lonesome than she would like to be...Only because I wanted her to turn to Me in her lonliness...Only because I need for her to depend on Me...I know her heart, I know if I had not made her like this she would go her own way and forget Me...her Creator.
(Psalm 62:5-8)

- I have given her many good and happy things...because I love her.
(Psalm 84:11, Romans 8:32)

- Because I love her, I have seen her broken heart...And the tears she's cried alone. I have cried with her, and had a broken heart, too.
(Psalm 56:8)

- Many times she has stumbled and fallen alone only because she would not hold My hand. So many lessons she's learned the hard way becasue she would not listen to My voice.

(Isaiah 53:6)

- So many times I have sat back and sadly watched her go her merry ways alone, only to watch her return to My arms, sad and broken.
(Isaiah 66:2)

- And now she is Mine again...I made her, and then I bought her...Because I love her.
(Romans 5:8)

- I have to reshape her and remould her...To renew her to what I had planned for her to be. It has not been easy for her or for Me.
(Jeremiah 29:11)

- I want her to be conformed to My image...This high goal I have set for her, because I love her.
(2 Corinthians 2:14)

Note: This is worded to girls, but applies just as well to boys/guys. I mainly spoke of girls because well, 1. I have a daughter and 2. girls are typically more concerned with self-image and the struggle to fit in and feel loved than guys. But, it is also just as true for boys.