Ava's Blog - Life with an independent thinker.

Let's Do the Time Warp

2010-02-15T18:19:00.005-05:00

(Again)

So, I stopped by Ava & Mama's today to drop off a Valentine's Day card. And it got me thinkin - you haven't seen Christmas pics! So here ya go... Christmas morning I hit the house bright and early(ish) to open Santa's gifts. Before that, we had our celebration with the G-Rents at my place. Sonya & Zo came over. Uncle Doug stopped by too. Here's the photographic evidence!

Cheers.

Christmas morning at Ava's :)

Christmas breakfast!

Mimosa's! (of course, Ava's is with sparkling grape juice, but she LOVED having the fancy glass!)

STOKED about having her ears pierced. It's the beginning of the end for Daddy's jewelry budget.

Ay yi yi -- this game is complicated! What was Santa thinking?!

Opening "knee highs" with Mama.

"Dad! Look! Uno Attack!! You're going down punk!" (And yes, she's good!)

Yep - music and books. Nice!

Sonya, OG & Uncle Doug at the table for Christmas at Daddy's.

Sharing Grandma's lap with Zoey and ripping through gifts!

Uncle Doug tattling?

I get a chance too!

Daddy: "Here, look at this cool..."
Ava: "I've moved on. Keep up."

PS - I'm moonlighting on another blog.

http://www.biggbybob.com/2010/02/guest-blog-from-twitter-handle-danmoyle.html

Guess who's back...

2010-02-13T11:17:00.003-05:00

Oy! It's been a long time. But I'm told (thanks Sonya, Steph, OG) I need to get back at it. So, altho it's Ava's Blog - here's what's new. All around.

Ava's getting close to 5 years old. She's doing well with Bread & Roses - her school/daycare. It's great. Mama and I love it. We're so glad we found it. She's writing her name, first and last. Backward sometimes, but doing well. And she asks "what does this spell" constantly! I love it. Mostly. Ha!

So as most you probably know - Mama and I split. We share Ava time well. (Except for my work schedule wreaking havoc) and work on our parenting quite a bit. We try to make it all about keeping Ava on the right track in life. I found a great church - Valley Family Church - and Ava loves the "Kidamazoo" kid's church. A lot of friends actually go there, and I'm making friends within in the congregation too.

I'm with someone, her name's Sonya & she's an amazing person. She has a daughter almost exactly a year younger than Ava. They get along great. 2 very independent, intelligent and creative only children - so while they have their moments, they're great together. Sonya & Zoey are terrific additions to our lives. They've been around since last May or so. But we just recently (well, it was me 'waiting') decided to call it more than "hanging out." (Sonya still teases me about that haha!)

Ava's very active and doing well with so much. She's into art at school; loves to read; loves music and singing; plays Uno all the time (real cards & my ipod); ice skates pretty darn well; and just brings joy to my life everyday.

So that's what I got for ya! I'll post a few pics of all of us. I'm going to try and blog, whether it's pictures or thoughts on/from Ava. Comments help encourage me to do so - if you leave it anonymously (with no email) go ahead and leave you name. I love to know who's keeping up.

So on this Valentine's weekend - Love to you all. Cheers.

Out one evening after a play date.

Matching glasses? Haha! Her's are "fashion specs" -- fake. Mine: not so fake.
Sonya & I in Vegas - at the top of the Eiffel Tower.
Look at those beautiful girls!
The 4 of us last fall at Turkeyville USA! We were on a train. It was small. I felt like a giant. (Also why I love small bottles of booze!)
So there's a quick snapshot. Hope you're doing well. Stay in touch, and I'll work on staying current with the blog.

PS - if you are on Twitter follow me - I'm @danmoyle -- or if you aren't, get on it keep up with instant pics of Ava all the time. I also post on Facebook.

2009-09-03T21:22:00.006-04:00

Aloha.

Bout once a week Ava and I visit the g'rents. That's grandparents for those not keeping up. :) On a recent visit, Grandpa got the camera out. Here's the aftermath.

We took Ava's new-ish bike over to Grandma & Grandpa's. Notice the lack of training wheels...

Off she goes down the long driveway!

Hey!

Chillin' and visitin' with Grandma.

Plotting...

I don't know what was *actually* being said here, but the conversation in my head is pretty funny.
G'ma: "You need to go off into those woods back there and live!"
Ava: "I don't THINK so!"

Cool shot G'pa!

Farmer girl :)

Enjoy the Labor Day weekend all. I'll miss camping this year. But I bet I'll find some fun.

Cheers.
xo

Summer Events

2009-09-02T04:24:00.009-04:00

Aloha.

So Ava's kept me busy, as have I. But here's one event we went to together... Rock for Kids. Ava had a good time... even getting her first face painting! Check it out...

Crafts! Ava made a cool "record" ... and a thermal coozie for daddy's drinks.

Time to paint the face!

What will it be?!

Trying to see what's on her own cheek I think :)

Is it?? Could it be???

Yup! It's Elmo :)

She even got a balloon "crown" from a clown.

So there you have it. Our time at the final festival at Arcadia. Very fun :) For now... enjoy your days and cherish your nights.

Cheers.

Some Ava-isms

2009-07-21T14:52:00.007-04:00

Aloha.

So... no pictures this time. If you come here only for photos... the picture book is on the shelf. Today I'm sharing thoughts. But don't worry, they're not mine. I need a different blog for that. I had one... where'd I put it? Oh well. It's around here somewhere. But that's neither here nor there. This blog is about Ava. And today, I'm passing along some of HER thoughts and sayings.

Let me take a detour here tho.. and speak directly to Ava. Someday she'll (hopefully) read this and get some understanding on just how much I love her. And just what she means to me...

Dearest Ava... "Little 1" ... Nene... I tell you often you're the light of my life. I like to tell you how glad I am that you choose to love me. But that doesn't even cover it. Recently I had to take a week off work with no pay. Right now, having just gone through a divorce and getting out on my own on what little I make already, losing a week's pay was a daunting, frightening prospect. So I chose a week I knew you needed me. Your school was done for the summer, and I would have the chance to spend every day with you. So I talked to mama and set it up. My furlough week would be an Ava week. I was so stoked. We had plans with friends and family, and I just knew we'd have a great time. I tell you what Lovey... you blew away any reservations I had about that unpaid week. Each morning was a joy, and by every bedtime I couldn't wait for our next adventure. From reading books and telling Lulu stories... to bowling to Gracie's birthday party, the week was amazing. Thank you for all you are Ava.

Okay, so back to the reason I'm blogging today. (well , the reasons are that I wrote with Kimmy last night and I'm inspired today... and I really don't want to work right now! haha!)

One day Ava said to me: "Daddy, I spent all my energy. I got it all out. Except a little. And it can't wait. It has to get out." (I think she wanted to play a little more before bedtime. LOL)

Another time she wanted to reassure me that she'd always listen: "I will never NOT listen to you Daddy. I will always listen to you until I die Daddy." (Ava, remember this!)

My windshield has a big crack in it like a spiderweb. I got angry one night and hit it. It was very dumb. But I did it, and can't take it back. So Ava began to ask what happened. After trying to talk around it and be ambiguous, she wasn't buying it. Instead of lying or whatever, I told her the truth. That I got angry and punched it. Time to teach: I said "That wasn't very smart was it? We should handle our anger in better ways huh?" Here's what she said: "If you are angry at someone you can give me a hug. If I'm not with you and you get angry Daddy, don't punch your windshield. Just come over and to my house and give me a hug." (what a compassionate person!!)

Ava asked me if she could play with the Legos I brought home from Grandpa and Grandma's. I said yes, of course. Ava: "You are the most wonderful Daddy I ever knew!" (I know someone loves me. Just give her Legos! j/k)

Always the safety girl: "He's definitely going over the speed limit. Are you Daddy?" (Yeah honey, a little) "You should slow down a little." (where we you when I was 18?!)

Ava: "You should come look at my room Daddy. It's trashed. It used to be clean but now it's trashed. Mama did it and I don't like it." (hahahaha!! to be fair, Mama *was* in the process of cleaning & organizing it)

One day I told her she needed to pay for something (clearly kidding) ... Ava: "I don't have any money silly." (So?!) "Little kids don't have wallets. Duh!" (so here's where I wonder.. maybe I need more wallets!)

So there's some. Hope you enjoyed. I'm off to SoCal soon... cant wait!!! Maybe I can post some pics of just me. Even thought it's "Ava's Blog." LOL

Oh, and here's a thought... I'm on Facebook and Twitter. A ton. So look for me. There's a slew of photos on the 'book. Friend me and you can see them.

Cheers.

You Are My Sunshine

2009-07-03T22:59:00.003-04:00

Aloha.

This song is Grandpa's favorite. And when I went to sing it to Ava (7-3-09) she told me it wasn't exactly right. "It's like this daddy." So I grabbed the camera to capture it. I love the high notes. This just filled me with such love and joy tonight... thought I'd share. I love you Ava. Thanks for such an amazing week.

Furlough Bowling!

2009-06-30T23:47:00.016-04:00

Aloha.

So for day 2 of my furlough week, Ava and I met my friend Gavin and his daughter Elena at the bowling alley. Ava bowled well. So did Elena. Me? Meh, not so much. The first game. The second was better. And Gavin looked like a pro. Well, you'll see.... enjoy.

Gotta wear the special shoes. Good thing they're velcro!

"Cheese! I'm goin' bowling!!"

Elena's a little older. The girls got on famously and had a great time!

Here's the wide shot... that's Gavin playing with his shoe. :)

Ava & Elena playing "puppy." It was cute! And no, it doesn't mean it's time for a puppy for Ava!

Dad & daughter.

Out of nowhere Ava came to stand by me and put her hand in mine, lacing her fingers with my fingers. It was really sweet.

So tiny!

Then she wanted to get behind the lens. Her first shot? Daddy.

Then she went for the artistic shots.

As I was capturing her on my mobile, she got me. This reminds of pictures from my dad's collection! Ha!

"Cheese!"

"Hi!"

I was apparently giving Elena my "concern" face... or something. She was telling me about her shoe bothering her foot. Ava documented it.

Getting goofy for the camera.

Posing? (Ava passed the camera to Elena)

Awwww....

Yep, there's me still.

"My turn daddy!"

Action shot!

"Ok dude, time for a pro to take over."

Here are Ava's action shots. She sat down right next to the lane.

So that was the early part of our day. I'll go through the rest of the photos from the birthday party and post those next. We're having an amazing time this week. Well, I am. I hope Ava is too.

Mahalo for stopping by. Cheers.

Furlough=no money=bad ... Unless you have Ava!!

2009-06-29T13:33:00.003-04:00

Aloha.

So when I learned that I had to take a week off, unpaid, I was worried. I quickly realized it was actually a great opportunity to spend a whole week with Ava. So today is the beginning! Well, last night was, but she got home from a camping trip with mama... you can imagine how tired she was :) But she had a great time with mama, so that's terrific. Anyway, we woke up this morning and she was lovey right away. She rolled over and said "I have never snuggled you in a long time. I wanted you! Good morning Daddy!" It was amazing. Then we had a special "brethrist" to kick off the week, at her favorite spot: Food Dance. Of course she saw one of her 2 favorite bar tenders, Ryan. Then came home and goofed off... now it's off to the pool with Nick, Samantha and Caleb. So here's a few pics from our morning goof-off!!

"Talk to the hand Daddy." j/k...we were doing close ups, and I just love the little mole on her hand. So cute.

Her ear ... I have a few pics of that little sound receiver when she was a baby. She even held her hair me!

My little brown eyed girl.

The sun framed her perfectly.

Pure, childish joy.

If this doesn't make you smile, good luck to ya :)

"Mad."

"Aw shucks dad."

"Sad."

What a little actress.

So there you have it. We're in for a great week with lots of fun planned, and some yet to be thought of... can't wait!! I'll try to post often this week, as we do stuff. I'd like to even put up some of the latest Ava-isms she's come up with. Enjoy your day, cause Ava says so.

Mahalo and Aloha wau ia 'oe.

Cheers.

Happy Father's Day

2009-06-21T21:08:00.004-04:00

Aloha.

100 years ago today somebody said "Hey, dad's are pretty cool." Thanks to whoever said that. Because of you, my little Nene (pronounced nay-nay - it's Hawaiian for goose. like silly goose - a term mama and I coined in -- sit down -- Hawai'i!!) ... rolled over this morning at about 10 minutes to 7:00 and said "Daddy, it's a special day day today. Happy Father's Day. Wanna snuggle?"

Let that sink in for a minute... she's 4! And remembered first thing this morning. *sigh* ... Love that little person.

So my day started with that. We made/had brethrist (breakfast) and watched CBS Sunday Morning. During the Barack Obama segment, Ava says "That's Barack Obama. He's the president. I want to meet him daddy." If only it were that simple. Hey Secret Service, if you eavesdrop so much, my 4 year old daughter would love to meet your boss.

So then we went to my 'rents. Where Grandpa and Grandma made us lunch - chicken on the grill with salad and pasta. Mmmm-mmmm. Then went swimming. And had dinner. Then bed.

All in all... amazing for a random Sunday. Happy Father's Day everyone.

Playing with Uncle Doug's pet gecko "Toke."

Tired out!

Bowling part 2

2009-05-30T18:38:00.009-04:00

Aloha.

So back to the bowling alley. Let's see how we're all doing...

Waiting is always better with a friend!

"What? Get that camera outta here!"

"Cheese!"

"Forget bowling. Now... We dance!" (I didn't realize my kid looked like a baseball player here! Lovely)

I was winning at one point... but it didn't last.

"Ring around the rosy..."

"...we all fall DOWN!"

Sonya says Zoey wasn't beating Ava up... you be the judge. Ha! ;-)

Looks to me like Zoey walks away ... "1 more win on my record chumps!"

Alas, we're all friends still by the end of it. Albeit I can't keep my eyes open apparently!

And for Ava's 1st bowling experience, mama even showed up! And Zoey just loved her!

"Horsey, horsey!"

So there you have it. Bowling. Thanks to Sonya and Zoey for the idea. We had a great time. I'm trying to take my camera with me wherever we go. Hopefully I'll get more pics up often. We love to go to playgrounds. Maybe I'll capture some of those moments too. Much love all.

Cheers.

Bikini, bikes... bowling!!

2009-05-28T21:46:00.012-04:00

Aloha.

The other day Ava and I went for a walk/ride in her neighborhood. She wore her bike helmet. And a bikini!

Look dad, 1 hand!

Pushing up the hill. Too much to pedal :)

Pose!

Look dad, no hands!!

So Ava had her 1st experience at a bowling alley... check this out!

You are about to meet our friends Sonya (mom) and Zoey (daughter).

Ava & Zoey figuring out the ball return...

"This one's mine? I don't think the 8# will work. I need a 12er."

Sonya teaching Zoey how to bowl. That's how she does it :)

There it goes...

...down the lane...

... such concentration!

"Okay. So, can I just walk it down the lane?"

"Look dad! I laid an egg!"

Waiting patiently. (Seriously, ever waited for a 4 year old's roll?!)

Still waiting...

So that's part 1. I'll being you more soon. I must say, it's good to be back.

Part 2 includes a surprise visitor! Much love. Cheers.

Getting ready

2009-05-21T16:32:00.003-04:00

Aloha.

So, after MONTHS AND MONTHS of silence, I'm going to try and update this blog. First of all, you may or may not know this, but Ava's mama and I are no longer married. We are still cooperative, collaborative partners as Ava's parents. And no matter what happened or what you may have heard, Becky and I are working together very hard to make Ava's life as full, stable and happy as it can be. We respect each other as parents, and our daughter is our focus. So now you know. And that's a big reason why the blog has suffered.

So with that said, I'll be organizing photos and taking more (hopefully) as I spend my time with Ava. Or you can join Facebook and see a bunch there!

Anyway, I'll work at getting pics up soon. Much love all.

Cheers.

BTW - Here's a recent video

Life

2009-01-07T22:10:00.003-05:00

Aloha.

A quick break in programming ... I found these pics waiting to be posted. These are from last fall I think :)

Cheers.

Christmas 2008

2008-12-30T12:07:00.004-05:00

Aloha.

More Christmas wishes. These photos are from our camera. Christmas Eve & Day. Uncle Doug stopped by while were watching the Jim Carrey version of "How the Grinch Stole Christmas." Then Christmas morning, we had coffee & strada. Well, mama and me. Ava skipped the java. Then we had mimosas while opening presents. All in all, a wonderful celebration of Christ. Enjoy the pics...

This is an Ava Self-Portrait.

Before Christmas, we took a couple holiday shots...

Look at the love.

And the humor.

"Aww mama, I love you."

Now pose.

What a little model.

Time for the close up.

When it gets hot at Ava's house, the windows develop condensation, Yes, she knows that word, SO how do you get rid of it? With a mop, of course. This was totally her idea.

Merry Christmas. Smile Uncle Doug!

Watchin' the movie...

Christmas morning. What a great cuddler...

Kiss me silly!

By the presents.

Mama got The Grinch! Now it can be a yearly tradition.

Cheeseball.

At the end of it all, it's time to fall asleep with a good book. On her face.

Sure hope everyone's Christmas was as pleasant and lovely as ours. Enjoy the new year! Cheers.

Merry Christmas

2008-12-27T09:16:00.010-05:00

Aloha and Season's Greetings. We've had a busy Christmas... here are a few pics from Grandma & Grandpa's...

Beatiful Christmas braids by Mama.

Time to pose! What a great outfit.

Time to open some presents with Grandma...

...and play with what we open, with Grandpa!

Bet you didn't know Grandpa was a zoo?!

"Look through my new kaleidescope! Look!!!"

Jumpin' over the new jumprope. I love the concentration :)

Dinner with Doug, me, Ava, Grandma and Crystal. Grandpa's behind the camera!

Ava helped me open this gift. As she ripped the paper, she said "I know what this is daddy. It's beer!" Yep. It is.

Opening Uncle Doug & Aunt Crystal's gift...

Ava's first guitar! She was quite dramtically ecstatic over this gift. She fell on the floor speechless. It was adorable!

My lessons aren't as good as Uncle Doug's, but I try!

A new towel, a ladybug. And apparently a superhero's outfit!

A guitar-weilding superhero!

Her songwriting has already blossomed. Great gift Doug & Crystal.

Now, I'll work at getting pics up from Christmas with Mama & Daddy soon... Merry Christmas to each and every one of you. Our love goes out with this post.

-- Ava, Daddy & Mama

More camping

2008-11-19T04:56:00.006-05:00

Aloha.

One of my favorite things with Ava right now is when she sings her bedtime prayers. Somtimes she kind of shouts them too. No matter how she delivers the prayers... I tell her God loves to hear from her. It's too cute...

So.. back to camping. Baldwin is gorgeous. A lot of wilderness... including some private lakes. So we took the girls swimming. There was even a swingset there where Ava swung one day while Samantha slept and Kendra tried to nap. Of course, we had to get there first... which takes awhile with little ones! On with the show!

Making breakfast. It's a project!

Ava playing with a walking stick bug. Not too sure...

Let's play ball!

Run girls, run!

What a kick.

Let's see... we have fresh tomatoes from our garden... mozzarella ... blue corn chips and great salsa... must be lunch time!

I love the leg-cross!

What a doll.

Aren't they adorable?!

Ready for the lake... (and yes, Rachel's due any day now... whee!)

Till next time, keep looking through that windshield!

Cheers.

Hi. My name's Dan. Welcome back!

2008-11-14T04:30:00.013-05:00

So, it's been awhile. Yeah... But I'm anticipating a "comeback." Ava's doing well. Getting ever-bigger and more joyous every day. She's becoming quite the comedienne... and a whole lotta fun. And very sweet. Here are some pictures from our annual camping trip to Baldwin. It was the best year yet. Samantha, Kendra (she's the youngest) and Ava had a ball. So did the moms & dads. Enjoy... captions may not come for awhile... but the pics are here! (if you click on the photos, they get bigger - it's a new way I'm posting)

The girls, ready for a weekend of dirt and games!

"What? I just woke up. Where's my breakfast (only, she says it 'breath-er-est')"

Cheerios & peaches. Yum!

Hi Samantha! (she's getting so big!)

The girls playing with the stroller... they rocked it all weekend!

Hi Kendra!

Ava pushes Samantha...

...Samantha pushes Kendra...

...and Ava helps!

I have plenty more camping pictures to share. Hopefully it wont's be another 4 months!

Cheers.

Too long

2008-09-05T11:32:00.002-04:00

Aloha.

Sorry it's been so long since I posted last. Life is a little crazy right now. Here's a quick update... Ava's on a TV news website. Check it out here.

And feel free to click the "recommend" button. Noone wins anything, so I can still "win."

We made it back from vacation. I'll try to post those soon. Plus we followed tradition, camping for Labor Day. And Ava had her first week at Bread & Roses "Unique Child Care" preschool. She goes a couple of half-days, and the possibility of 1 full day. Her best friend Shelby is there. And so far she loves it.

I'll try to make time soon to update pictures for you, and more stories. Meanwhile keep loving life.

Cheers.

Visiting the Yoopers (part 3)

2008-07-03T15:55:00.002-04:00

Aloha.

And Happy Independence Day.

Ava helped me make her own dinner this week. We made pita pizzas. She spread her own marinara, then put on her toppings. She even put it (mostly) in the toaster oven on her own. It was so cute. Pretty soon I'll have her cooking for us!

Back to the U.P.

My girls, the lights of my life.

Now make a face!

Ava: "Ooh look, a big round drum!"

Daddy: "Ooh look, a drummer in the family!"

Lookin' at the scenery.

Ava: "What mama?!"

I like this close up.

Stop to smell the flowers in life my friends, it's worth it.

We warned Ava to be careful about staying on the path, and treading lightly on the environment around us. She gets it. So she stretched to get to the flowers. A number of times.

Our budding photographer. Ava shot this picture all by herself.

This is the reason we went to St. Ignace. Becky designed these eyes, and taught women how to apply them. Like the runway fashions, they're a little "out there." But she's seriously on the cutting edge. She came up with the looks earlier this year. Now we're seeing similar styles in the fashion and cosmetology magazines. A coworker from the salon, Stephanie, modeled for Becky.

Becky is one of 6 people on the "Michigan Design Team." A similar team used to be a national group, but disbanded. Michigan was the first state to pick up where the national left off. Now my wife is helping shape the future of fashion. I'm VERY proud of my wife. Next time you see her, pat her on the back!

Well, I don't know what I'll blog next. I'll try to dig up some more candid shots. Kristi and the kids brought Kelci up from Oklahoma/Arizona recently. I'll round up some of those photos. Enjoy the long weekend, and celebrate responsibly!

Cheers.

Da U.P. (part 2)

2008-06-24T15:53:00.004-04:00

Aloha.

Last night I took Ava, Angel and Gage to the church near our house to ride bicycles around. So Ava on her tricycle tried to keep up with the bigger kids on their 2-wheelers (Gage has training wheels). I encouraged her, as she said "We're doing racing daddy." I told her she was doing a great job of racing. The next time she she came around, Ava said to me "You let me know when I'm doing fantastic daddy!"

It's times like that I love my life.

Now, back to our St. Ignace/Tahq Falls trip.

Ava decided to instigate a sit down protest to the deforestation of vital rain forests abroad.

Or, she was having a fit. Look at that face!

So it was daddy to the rescue.
"Get that camera out of my face!"
"Please."

I thought this was a cool sign.

Here we are at the lower falls.

Peeking over Ava's shoulder as she learns about waterfalls and minerals.

"Yes daddy, I know you're back there with the camera."

I love capturing Ava as she witnesses the world around her.
We wanted to get her on one of these rowboats, and out to an island at the lower falls. Ava wanted nothing to do with it. So we tried to coax her slowly. This was as far as we got. She sat/stood in the boat and played with the oars on the boat landing. Maybe next time.

Another nature shot. This time, the upper falls.

Still more to come. We'll talk soon.

Cheers.
-Ava's Daddy

Life is Good

2008-06-19T11:38:00.003-04:00

Aloha.

So we're back to "normal" at home. The Waterfront Film Festival is over, and I'm home once again. And we're busier than ever. Kristi, Angel and Gage are headed our way, and Ava's super excited. Becky and I are, too, but Ava's positively giddy. And when she's giddy, we laugh.

I thought I'd share something, then get to the photos. This is Ava's bedtime prayer.

Now I lay me down to sleep
I pray the Lord my soul to keep
I love go with me through the night
And wake me in the morning light.
Amen

Notice it's "I love" ... instead of "Thy love." It's really quite cute. And she says it all by herself. I'll try to help her, she'll giggle and put her hand over my mouth and say "I can do it on my own Daddy." Then she asks me to say "amen" with her. I love bedtime with Ava.

On with the show!

We took a trip to St. Ignace for a day. Becky taught a class for the Michigan Design Team on make up. It was wild. I'll share the make up later. But the gist here is: Ava and I went, so we made it a free vacation. While there, we checked out Tahquamenon Falls. And yes, Ava can say that.

Arrival at the hotel. Ava made fast friends with the staff. They loved her.

What a beautiful scene. As always, the picture doesn't do it justice.

Enough scenery, here's the real beauty!

Just look at those ladies.

I'm no Ansel Adams, but...

"Psst, Ava. Look."

"Daddy!"

"I'll show you! Gimme that camera!"

That was just the first hour. Wait till we hit the trail!

Cheers!

Random Update

2008-06-07T14:11:00.002-04:00

Aloha.

I'm "remote blogging" today. I'm the office manager for the Waterfront Film Festival office. I'm in Saugatuck. A great day for it, too! So with a few minutes, I thought I'd pop a few pics up for you.

Check out the curls.

Our little reader. From wake-up time to bed time, we love stories!

So there you go for now. We'll talk soon.

Cheers.

Fun & Friends

2008-05-26T14:17:00.005-04:00

Aloha.

Happy Memorial Day. Thanks to all those who gave their lives in service for our country. To those left behind: Thank You also. Your mom/dad husband/wife brother/sister son/daughter is part of a history of freedom, and I am grateful for their sacrifice.

Now, go grill or watch a parade - cause that's how Americans do it.

Moving on to Ava's house, we're just trying to enjoy the time. It goes too fast to deal with sometimes. There are a LOT of things going on this summer. Our schedule is already overflowing. She got to hang out with me this weekend for awhile at the Waterfront Film Festival Office. I'm the lead volunteer on the weekends. Kind of an "office manager." We also went to our friend's lake house. I met the girls there after my shift in Saugatuck. Then we hung out with Steph and Ike, and had dinner. They have a boat, but Ava wouldn't go out on the water. She liked hanging out on-shore, but as soon as we tried to shove off it was all over. Maybe next time.

So I thought I'd share some photos of times with our friends from earlier this spring. First you'll meet Shelby. Her mom works with Becky, and they're a cool family. Shelby has a younger brother, and Ava's right smack between them in age. 4,3 and 2 years old. Then we see Samantha again. She's Nick and Rachel's daughter. She's getting big. She'll be a great big sister. So, on with the show!

Ava and Shelby posing at one of our favorite meeting places - a playground!

Shelby's brother Jonas. Ava says "here, I'll help you up" as she grabs his arms. It looks like he's thinking "what is going on? Save me, please."

I was the "shark" and the girls were on the boat. They had to taunt me, scream, then run away.

Say cheese :)

"Come here, come here" Ava says as she smooshes Shelby for a cuddle.

"I'll race you!"

"Push me, push me!"

Visiting Samantha. Riding Nick's back. He wouldn't let ME on, but he took the girls for a ride.

"Regulators! Mount Up!"

"Dismount!" Just look at those bright eyes.

So friendly.

Hungry? Have a nut.

Ava's Halloween costume she refused to wear. What a cute love-bug!

Recent "activities" for us included a trip to St. Ignace and Tahquamenon Falls. The U.P. is gorgeous! I'll post those pics soon. And just the usual hometown fun, too.

We'll see each other soon.

Cheers.

Check, check, checking in

2008-05-08T14:30:00.005-04:00

Aloha.

Glad you're sticking with me, even though I don't update as often as you'd like. But the good news: I have new pics now. :) Enjoy.

Every year we're putting Ava in this dress. We'll watch her "fill it out" as she grows up. Interesting. And scary.

Beautiful.

In this one, I can picture her at 16. ~chokes me up~

Dancing with Daddy in the kitchen. Kind of a switch for me to be in front of the lens.

Cuddling with Ava is our favorite thing about waking up.

I just called, to say, I love you!

This is our Borgess Run for the Health Of It! run camp team. I ran the 5K. (in 25 minutes, 23 seconds) Not bad for a former "fatty daddy" who's never run more than a sprint in football.
(Ava was in the stroller, but decided the paparazzi was too 'in her face' - she's off and running WAY to the right!)

Action shot!

That's it for now. Ava's getting big. We're all having a great time and really looking forward to the spring. We planted part of our garden, and can't wait to harvest our produce.

And here's a funny story to share. This morning I was shaving. Ava said "shave off your beard daddy." To which I replied "no thanks." She asked "why?" like she does. I said "mommy likes it, and I like to look good for mommy." Ava's reasoning skills kicked in "Well, when mommy dies you can shave it. That would be good for me."

Cheers!

Impending Update

2008-05-05T11:43:00.001-04:00

Like the rumbling of the Chilean volcano which erupted this weekend for the first time in a thousand years, you're about to witness an event. And it just might change your world.

I've prepared photos to upload, and will do so shortly. Which means you'll have an Ava update to peruse shortly!

Cheers.

Changes

2008-04-10T08:38:00.003-04:00

Aloha.

You'll notice the layout is new. The pink is gone. So is the "welcome picture." I'm still tinkering with the layout, but I needed to upgrade the template to jive with the latest Internet Explorer upgrade. A few of you told me the problems you were having, and I experienced it as well. So for now this is the new layout. I'll be getting to pictures soon I hope. I have to lock myself in my new "home office" and go through pictures. Meanwhile, enjoy the outdoors! It's spring :)

And here's a blast from the past... about 60 pounds ago!

Cheers.

The Great White Adventure

2008-04-07T15:58:00.005-04:00

No, not how pasty and pale I am. I'm talking about winter.

Aloha.

It's warmed up now at home, and we're out in the yard. But I'm behind when it comes to blogging. Maybe I can catch up soon and get you up to speed. Ava turned 3 years old yesterday. I'll have to get those pictures up soon.

But first: sledding!

We last left our happy family in the middle of another winter. They were making the best of it when Ava tumbled in the tundra. This is where they were headed...

More monkey bars and slides!

Up... up... got to... make it.... to the top....

Tunnel!

From behind...

... to the front!

Hey!

I wonder if it's slippery?

Let's try this again...

Bah. I'll just follow directions.

That's better! (it's what we call a "snow moustache" in our neck of the woods)

Come on Mama!

I can't push the snow as far. You're 4 times my size!

Maybe I can beat Daddy.

Ha ha!

Let's have tea time... if it's not frozen already!

What do you want to talk about?

How about the effects of China's prolonged policy on ignoring human rights and what that will mean for this summer's games? Do you think people wil protest the torch relay?

Ahh, who are we kidding? That won't happen. Let's talk about the snow!

Well that's the winter. Now I'll try and prep the next batch. If you'd like more baby banter, check out our friends Rachel and Nick. Samantha is now more than 1 year old. They're having a blast.

Click here for Samantha's blog

Cheers!

Wild Winter Fun

2008-03-21T10:50:00.002-04:00

Aloha.

It's a little ironic that I'm blogging about sledding today. Most of our snow is gone, but we're getting hit again today. We're expecting anywhere from 3 inches to a foot of snow. Just in time for Easter!

So we had so much fun sledding the first time (despite my grabbing Ava and shooting down the hill, to which she paid me back by not speaking to me for 30 minutes, not even coming near me) that we decided to keep doing it. On this day, the sun was out and the temps were climbing. It was fantastic, a perfect day for sledding. Or playing.

Enjoy!

1,2,3...

...go!

Say "snow!"

Who needs the hill when you have the slide?

Ready?

Who's having more fun?

Time to catch Ava!

Almost...

Gotcha!

"I don't need summer to swing."

"Here I come. Watch out Daddy!"

"Almost got you!"

"The swing has grown tiresome. Time for an adventure. I'm crossing the great frozen tundra of Siberia..."

".. darn these hulky boots!"

"What happened to my dogsled team? Those mutts... no kibble for you!"

"Methinks I've gone snowblind."

You'll have to wait and see where we headed... next time!

Cheers!

Hold on tight...

2008-03-14T15:20:00.004-04:00

Aloha!

Since we're in the Great White North, we might as well enjoy the white, yeah? Becky and I grew up playing in the snow. Sledding, skiing... you name it. But in adulthood, people look at you funny if you sled with no kids. And skiing kind of falls off the radar. But we're back Old Man Winter. Did you miss us?

This year we took Ava sledding for the first time. She's ridden sleds before. Around the yard, down our little hill. But this time... it was for real. Wheeee!!!

"I'm going down that?! You're crazy."

"Mwa-ha-ha... I'll take you no matter what!" (Seriously, I did that. She wouldn't talk to me or come near me for 30 minutes.)

Does she look worried? She should! Woman at the helm, look out! (It's funny, cause they're both female!)

Oops! Wrong turn.

"I'm so outta here."

"Come on mama, faster!"

No words necessary.

"Here mama, I'll help."

"Or I'll sit here so you're not alone."

"It's okay mama, come with me."

"Okay mama, you go..."

"... and I'll race you down the hill."

"Too fast mama!"

"Fine, I'll just sit here. And chill. Seriously, it's cold. What's the matter with you guys!? Take me to the beach." (Okay, Ava didn't say that, I did)

"Daddy, my snow pants are faster than your sled."

"Wait, maybe it was my belly?"

"Oh, is that where we are? Thanks, I couldn't see."

And now, the close ups.

Look at those rosy cheeks. Go ahead, scroll back up, they're cute.

And here's the family photo to top it all off.

Next time, another day of sledding. This time: sunshine! As always, mahalo for stopping by and seeing my 'ohana.

Spring is springing... enjoy the day :)

Cheers.

The Joys of Multiple Families

2008-02-28T14:07:00.003-05:00

Aloha.

Hope you're staying warm. I'm ready for a solid week of sunshine. You?

So Christmas lasts awhile, doesn't it? After our quiet morning it was time to visit Becky's grandparents. So we packed up and hit the road. (It's only 15 minutes away!)

Ava and Nikki plyed in a room of balloons. Doesn't seem real Christmassy, but it's really all about the joy, yeah?

See? Joy!

"Now what we do is get a balloon..."

"Let me go find one..."

"There are so many!"

"Okay, but you have to grab 1 at least..."

"Got it! Now we pop them!"

Many thanks to Nikki for playing with Ava. The girls sat on balloons for a long time, popping dozens of them. What a "blast" !!!

Now, to Becky's folks. We celebrated with them after they got back from vacation. Christmas lasted weeks at our house this year!

Ava needed a little "support" for some of her presents this year!

Nani, will you help me?

She's still at an age where clothes are exciting!

Papa behind the camera...

...he'll do almost ANYthing for a photo op!

Seriously, I love this kid's smile.

Oven mitts for the kitchen! Time to put this kid to work.

"You put this hand in here..." "Mm-hmmm..."

So that's the holiday. Season's greetings. Oh yeah, and Merry Christmas. :)

Next time you can see why I'm learning to enjoy winter all over again.

Smile.

Cheers.

Christmas Morning

2008-02-20T16:16:00.003-05:00

Aloha.

Now to the big morning. Our Christmas is a little non-traditional (like us!). We have a palm tree for our Christmas tree. So we piled up presents around the fireplace with our stockings.

First: an update to the castle. We've spent a lot of time decorating it. It's a family affair. Check it out. (Yes, mama and daddy color, too. I forgot how much fun it is!)

So exciting!

No shirt, no shoes, no worries!

Whipped cream for the lattes!

The aftermath.

Well, a shorter post than I thought it would be. But I need to break it up a little. In my next post I'll take you to the other side of the family.

Cheers!

Christmas Continues

2008-02-15T15:00:00.003-05:00

Aloha.

The nice thing about different sides to a family is that holidays sometimes take weeks to get through. Today we'll look at more Christmas memories. This time it's the nuclear family. Or as W says, nucular.

"So Ava, you push the snow onto the shovel, then toss it over the snow bank. Like this."

"Like this daddy?"
"Yep, that's right."

~Sweet, I can let her do the work, then take the credit.~

"You're not going to help me? I'm out of here."

"No really. I'm out. If I olnly had the keys..."

And so ends the "teach Ava to shovel" idea. Now I'm back to doing it myself!

Christmas Eve Dinner. Portabella mushroom dressing. Baked Potatoes. Brussel sprouts. Red wine. Venison tenderloins. (thanks Al!) Amazing.

And now... WE DANCE!

"Wait for me mama!"

Look at those pinchable cheeks. Wait, bottomless dancing.... Ava!!!!!!!!!!!

"You want me to twirl how?!?!"

"Oh! Like this. Okay!"

Still to come on Ava's blog: Christmas morning!

Keep on spreading the joy and love.

Cheers.

Christmas Take 1

2008-02-11T15:37:00.000-05:00

Aloha.

It's cold. Really cold. Like dangerous, mind numbing, take-off-your-gloves-and-get-frostbite cold. Seriously. I took off my gloves yesterday (0 degrees with -20 wind chill) after shoveling and in about 5 minutes or less my fingers went numb. Crazy. But that's not why you're here.

After vacation, it was time for Christmas! Being Ava's second Christmas, we were excited that she's more aware of what it means. Plus she gets what presents are now, and loves to help open everyone's. First up: my folks, and Doug & Crystal. We had the whole group over for an afternoon of snacks and season's greetings.

A little quality time with Grandpa. Ava was very cuddly that afternoon. And it's not often Grandpa gets the spoils.

Laughing it up with Grandma

Goofing it up with Uncle Doug.

Dora stickers with Aunt Crystal.

A gift from an artist. Look at which hand that is!!!

A gorgeous necklace.

What a roomful!

The always-helpful Ava.

Smile!

Doug & Crystal gave Ava this castle. It's cardboard and you can color it.

Like this.

"Ava?!" "What? Can't you see I'm creating!"

Look at that blonde lion. What a "family" crest!

Next: teaching Ava the joys of winter.

Cheers.

Part 6... The Final Chapter

2008-01-31T15:53:00.000-05:00

Aloha.

The time has come to say goodbye. To California, I'm not going anywhere. Gotcha! The final days of vacation are always bittersweet. We had a great time in SoCal. We spent our last couple of days with family. And it was great. Thanks Borah and Jim for having us (as if any of us had a choice!). It was a pleasure to meet the other side of ya'll's family. I leave you all with our final days, and a couple of my favorite "scenic" shots. And I bid you adieu.

Ava got a chance to meet Christian, his brother Jacob, and "big" Eva (pronouced just like our Ava).

Chase!

I love the raw, unadultered glee!

Pose for a picture! Think they're all used to the camera or what?

Once again thanks to Jim and Borah for so much fun. And to Eva and the boys for playing so well with my little one. She had a great time, as you can tell.

This was the night before we left. Ava zonked out on the fold-out couch so mama and daddy could pack. And not sleep. But then we fell asleep and almost missed our flight. You know, looking back, that might not have been so bad.

Perfection.

Nothing beats a surf-side sunset.

So I bid you fare-the-well Southern California. Until next time. Thanks for the mammaries. Memories. Whoops-a-daisies.

It's back to Life as We Know It now. Next time: Christmas photos. After all, once vacation was over it was that time.

Cheers.

Part 5... 1 if by Land... 2 if by Sea (Land and Sea Adventures)

2008-01-21T15:42:00.000-05:00

Aloha.

Guess what, it's still cold. And Ava's sick, so we spent the weekend in bed. Seriously. I read 3 books and relaxed and rested. Besides her hacking and not feeling well (which oddly enough makes ME fell like crap)... we had a nice, quiet weekend.

So, back to the sun & surf. This time around we visit the crew of the SS Vacation as they explore sea cliffs and Sea World. Will they ever get off the island?

Walking the cliffs at Point Loma. Who's holding up whom?

Our own little Magellan.

Cringing or smiling? Eh, it's a cute face she's making either way.

Maybe the sign worried her. Oops.

We were looking for tide pools here, but we think it was a) too cold and b) too late into the tide. But it was still gorgeous.

Time to switch gears. Our heroes move from the bluffs to the sea. Grab your life jackets and water-proof cameras. Here comes Shamu!

Intent on the show...

3 dolphins! This was the coolest show. The behaviors exhibited by these animals were amazing. I wanted to do a "dolphin experience" but it was $150 for an hour of "wading" or like $500 for a full session. Someday.

A hurdle champ!

Photo op in front of a garden. Beautiful.

Feeding the sea lions with sushi. Ava actually grabbed the fish and tossed them. No weak stomachs here.

3 classic Shamu moments.

Back to the dolphins. We missed this exhibit earlier in the day, which was too bad. You can pet and feed the dolphins. I got a chance to touch 1 briefly, but Ava missed out. It was the end of the day and they were tired and picky I think. But it was still amazing.

Speaking of tired...

Well, we're nearing the end of our vacation. In photos. 1 or 2 more posts, depending on how I structure them. I sure hope everyone enjoys. Someone recently told me how impressed they were with this blog. And asked why I keep doing it. First and foremost it's for Ava.

Ava, someday you'll see this and know how much I (and your mama) loved you and enjoyed our time with you. Hopefully we can keep telling you that, but this will show you in pictures. And "witty" commentary. I keep telling you I'm my own biggest fan. Your blog will prove it.

Also, I do it because I know that for every comment I get online or otherwise, many others enjoy this slice of our life with Ava. Hopefully I keep you coming back each week with the photos and fun. And maybe someday you'll be able to watch a show I wrote on or created, and say "I used to read his blog."

So that's why I keep doing this. And I truly hope you all enjoy reading it. Take care of yourselves and your slice of the world. After all, it's not ours, it's on loan from our children.

Cheers.

Part 4... What is Cold?

2008-01-18T06:13:00.000-05:00

Aloha.

We're expecting 0 degrees this weekend. 0. As in zero. Nothing. Nada. And that's not Celsius... that's Fahrenheit. 0.

So when I think back to "cold" from vacation... I laugh. Because while it may have been chilly enough to don our Northface jackets and a stocking cap, we also got a chance to do this...

Time to go to the pool.

Not one for careless, whimsical activity, Ava sheds her shyness for gleeful pool paddling.

Basking in the glow...

...of the California Sun.

The "Blonde Bombshell" convention was in town. We caught up with the poster-child and her dad. And "Carlsbad Boulevard," one of 3 pet dolphins. Denny and Carlsbad Boulevard, junior are the other 2. That Ava is quite creative - they're all her names. Okay, maybe I kind of helped.

Just a little taste of California to sate my hunger for sun and warmth. And maybe yours. Hope the wind chill doesn't chap your britches this weekend (if you're near us anyway)... and may the sun break through your clouds today. Live "better than you deserve." And smile, it could always be worse!
(can you tell I'm on the Stuart Smalley Daily Affirmation kick? Google it!)

Cheers.

Part 3... a Christmas Palm Tree

2008-01-02T13:54:00.001-05:00

Aloha. From the land of 14-plus inches of snow. The drifts are taller than me.

Oh yeah. Happy New Year.

These pictures take me back and bring a ray of sunshine to the land of gray and white. And that has nothing to do with the aging aryan population. Mostly.

In this round, you'll see our adventure on the Coaster. You can catch a ride at about a half-dozen different stations in North County (San Diego county) all the way into downtown. It saves on driving and pollution. It's a cool deal. So we took off down into San Diego for a day of shopping and a local holiday celebration. "December Nights at Balboa Park." Or something like that. It was a festival with Christmas trees, carols and food. It was lovely. And not snowy. We were able to take advantage of public transport (bus and train) all day. Enjoy the pics!

Pose for a pic on the Coaster!

Shopping at the downtown Horton Plaza. It's all outdoor walkways. So when it rains like it did that morning, the floors are wet. And Ava likes to mess with people by moving the Wet Sign to a dry spot. I didn't teach her that.

2,500 miles from home to see an ice rink. This little rink is by the mall in downtown San Diego. To your right is the S.D. NBC building.

"Hmm, who's cuter than me? Not you!" This outfit (the shirt anyway) is from our friend Gail and her daughter Riley. Ava loves them, and the shirt.

Balboa park at Christmas. Behind the girls is a choir singing Silent Night.

"Cold" is a relative term.

Never fear, more to come. Next time I'll explore the relative theory of temperature. From sweatshirts and fleeces... to swimsuits and tanning.

Cheers.

Part 2... off to the Zoo!

2007-12-27T14:47:00.000-05:00

Aloha.

While I lived in San Diego for a short time SO long ago, I was living there. So I didn't do the tourist bits. This trip, I got to be a tourist. We tried to balance the busy with the relaxing, while seeing our family. Here's what happened when we headed to Balboa park -- the San Diego Zoo!

Posing for a pic at a koi pond. These fish were HUGE!

Ava in the car with a monkey and other animals. No, not mama and daddy!

Look at the very hungry caterpillar and the beautiful butterfly!

Ava couldn't decide whether she liked the sky-tram ride. But at least she didn't push me out.

Asleep at the wheel. Man, we wear her out!

See? We were there!

And then Aunt Kimmy stopped by. Yep, she drinks when she's with me. Weird.

So on one of those days where we wanted to do something specifically for Ava (cause she's so good at doing what we say, mostly) ... we tried for a children's museum that's supposed to be just down the road from where we stayed. We found the Coyote Grill (karaoke) and Starbucks. We found surf shops and Fish House Vera Cruz. We even found the sewing shop where the museum is supposed to be. But no museum. But Ava managed to take it all in stride...

Searching high and low for the children's museum...

Look at that "shaka." Hang loose baby, no worries.

Since it wasn't high, low or in-between, we took little one to a playground. And yep, it was chilly. This was the first day of the high winds and rain. But it's still warmer than a snowdrift.

Throw that leg over the saddle girl!

Just-a-swingin'!!

Daredevil. Not the bad movie, the fun 2-year-old.

And that's the payoff. "Whoosh!"

I love's it

Let's end the post the way we ended most of our days. A sunset on the ocean. And people wonder why I'm obsessed.

Next time: our trip downtown to a local Christmas celebration... and enjoying the season. With pool toys.

Cheers.

California Dreamin'

2007-12-19T11:00:00.000-05:00

Aloha.

So we're back from a 2 week vacation to San Diego, California. I can still feel the sun. Oh wait, maybe that's the frostbite from our welcome home present: snow. We spent 2 weeks in Carlsbad, at a time share courtesy of Becky's folks. It was a cute 1 bedroom unit with an ocean view, right on Highway 101, Coast Highway. And just down the (outside) hallway was the sunset. It was perfect. Oh, Starbucks was across the street. Nice.

So I'll share pictures with you now, leading up to Christmas. I have about 60 to get through, so this will come in a few installments. Here's round 1.

Keeping a 2-year-old busy on a plane is a task. Mama did a fantastic job with the "presents."

San Diego Airport! Ava's taking a rest. She took her carry-on there (it's Dora) and went around a column from us.

She sat there people-watching. It was too cute.

Then she promptly fell asleep. You may notice a pattern in the blogs to come. This is on the drive from the airport to our condo in Carlsbad. We rented a Chevy HHR.

Here's a pic of the car, not from my camera.

This is the view from our room. Yep, the ocean is across the street from us. The sun set just behind the building, but we could see it from the end of our floor. We stayed at the Carlsbad Inn Beach Resort.

One of our first trips was down to La Jolla (luh HOY-uh). The walkway was right above the water.

Side note here. When we pulled up, one of the local news stations was there doing a live shot for a newscast. They were reporting on the HUGE surf coming in the next couple of days. A storm in the north Pacific brought 10-20 foot swells and bigger to the area. I got to meet the photojournalist. It was cool. Back to the pictures, I know.

It's a beautiful area, with this cool park. Enough room for mama and Ava to CHASE! (it's Ava's favorite)

Look at the glee. I love the unbridled giggle from the pure joy of being alive. It reminds to "let it go" and live. Maybe that's the lesson...

Time to rest, or frustrated? You decide.

In La Jolla there are a lot of beaches to explore. This little piece of paradise we're at was made by people. They put up a sea wall, making a nice little cove for the kids. It was donated by the Scripps family. It's called Children's Pool.

Only now the children who play there are sea lions. It's a topic of great controversy. Google it, you'll see what I mean.

In fact right after I took this picture...

... a Canadian journalist interviewed Becky on her thoughts of the situation. The sea lions now call the beach home, and people can't go on the beach. But some people want to kick the animals off the beach. Environmentalists (and people like Becky and me) want to leave it, as a preserve for these beautiful creatures. Again, Google it and you'll see what I mean. We think it's very interesting.

I mean come on, doesn't this face deserve a home?!

There are plenty of beaches to play on, we found this beach 20 feet away. And Ava discovered seaweed!

My budding artist.

She made this design on her own. I thought it was beautiful. Then she destroyed it. Hey, she's 2!

I hope you enjoyed. I'll try to post more soon. If not, have a Merry Christmas.

Next time: Ava in a car with a giraffe and monkey, and two ladies turn into insects. Trust me, you'll "loves" it. Every delicious, delectable moment of it. (that's an ode to Aunt Kimmy)

Cheers.

Summer in Saugatuck

2007-11-21T16:47:00.000-05:00

Aloha.

Here's a few more...

We spent many a weekend in Saugatuck this summer. This is the weekend we discovered our little get-away spot. This is the harbor at the Kalamazoo River leading into Lake Michigan.

Ava's favorite playground.

The reason we found this town. Waterfront Film Festival;

Heading downtown for more films and exploring.

Back to the playground! This zip line occupies us for hours!

Worn out!

At nearby Douglas Beach.

Pinchable little cheeks!

We hope everyone has a happy and safe Thanksgiving. Love to all!

Cheers.

No, I'm not on Strike

2007-11-13T15:30:00.000-05:00

Aloha all,

Although the Writers Guild of America is on strike for very important reasons, I'm not a member. Nor am I walking a picket line. Yet. I'm just not good about updating Ava's blog. So here's a quick set of pictures to round out the last installment I posted. No captions, but the photos are pretty self explanatory. This should wrap up the summer vacation. I'll spend some time on my computer and get more photos ready to post. Hopefully that's coming soon. Meanwhile enjoy!
Cheers.

Yep, we're THAT family! This is from St. Louis where we visited Becky's Uncle David and Aunt Connie. We went to the Zoo, where they so generously bought us these far-out souvenirs. It's really quite adorable.

So that's our Summer Vacation. Next time, my future "summer home." Hint: Borah loves to go there. (you'll only guess if you've been there with her!)

Cheers!

A Break from Ava

2007-10-02T14:56:00.000-04:00

Not too long ago I took a 2 1/2 day trip away from Ava and Becky on business. Here's the story:

I recently took part in a project with Kim Moffat of 0323 Productions (and my beloved cousin!) where we visited NYC for the "Tunnel to Towers Run." The story of Stephen Siller is below, as is the run information. I was so inspired by this event and the spirit of NYC, that I plan to run in next years race to raise money for these great people. I'd like to give everyone a heads up now, that I'll be taking pledges and/or straight donations for this race.

I plan to pay for the trip on my own (or take a separate donation), but any money I raise will go to the Stephen Siller “Let Us Do Good” Children’s Foundation. This foundation helps fund amazing organizations like a top notch burn center, a place for kids whose firefighter parents died in the line of duty, and other non profits. This year they donated to firefighters in New Orleans. Even when the guys and women in NYC could use this money, they pay it forward to someone else in the brotherhood. It's an amazing thing. So keep this in mind, and think about what you'd like to do. Any donation or help in the trip could be a Christmas, birthday or other gift. I would imagine it's also tax deductible if that's important to you. I'll get back in touch later in the year with a kind reminder. Of course, anyone you can think to pass this along to would be appreciated as well. Take of of each other.

Click here for the "Tunnel to Towers" Run.

I'll let you know when you can see more on Kim's project. It should (will) be amazing.

I'll have more through the year via email or on the blog. Cheers.

More from the Sooner State

2007-09-20T15:12:00.000-04:00

Aloha all. Hope you're doing well. We're anticipating an interesting month ahead. We'll be blessed with a guest for most of October. Kimmy's coming to town! Ava's real excited, and we're looking forward to her time in Michigan. If you didn't know, Kim's from the San Diego area. As in California. So we're pretty pumped.

Well, here's more from our summer trip to Oklahoma. Again, we had a great time with Kristi, Dan, Angel and Gage.

Ava chasing a boy already! Gage ran too fast to catch. But I'm sure my daughter will speed up. Maybe I can slow her down with heavy shoes...

The younger ones loved playing catch with me.

Does it get much cuter?

Yes. Yes it does.

This children's pool was so much fun. Look at that cute swimsuit!

Hat? Check. Floatie? Check, check and check. Shirt to protect my fair skin? Check. Here we go!

A good long shot of the pool. What a cool place. We need one of these in town.

Here I go chasing down Angel. We swam and swam and swam.

There's my girls!

Maybe I should have a check list like Gage. Look at that pink skin!

Enjoying the pool. (couldn't think of a funny comment. other than one about peeing in the pool. but I didn't think it was appropriate. oops. there it is.)

"Swing us, swing us!"

Playing dress up. This kid is her mother's daughter. Already a shoe expert!

And pushing a stroller!

Thanks for being so fun Angel!

After that marathon post, you'd think I'd be finished. You'd be wrong though! A few more to come next time, plus the trip home. Here's a preview: we saw a family with matching outfits!

Cheers.

Edited Post

2007-09-11T15:43:00.000-04:00

Aloha to my adoring fans...

The good news: I love my home life. A great daughter and amazing wife.
The bad news has been edited as I try to keep my personal life separate from other facets. So this post is now a little different.

Anyway... moving on. We had a great summer. 1 of the things that made it great was our visit to Oklahoma. Here's a peek...

Ava running through Dan & Kristi's giant home. Very nice place, built by the homeowners!

We got there just in time for Angel's birthday. This is Ava's first admirer. The older boy had a crush on a girl who apparently looked just like Ava, so he played with her at the party. He was sweet. (I kept my eye on him)

The genesis of a bad influence... "Like this Ava!"

"See, it's easy!"

And there it is!

We also arrived just in time for Ava to get Big Girl Panties!

Mama went shopping...

Surprise!

This better be the only photo I ever see of this! Ava has done well with learning to use the toilet. This is her first real pair of Big Girl Panties. So cute!

Well, there's more... but I have to run. I'm actually at work, and had a short break. I'll post more when I can. Sorry it's been so long.

Cheers.

Life at Home

2007-07-27T07:43:00.000-04:00

Aloha.

Living the American Dream friends... Living the dream. So life is good. Outside of work. Thought I'd share some peeks inside life at Ava's house.

Ava looking for music. This time, she picked out Green Day. Good taste.

Grab that camera! Cute smudges of black berries on her mouth.

Dinner party. Funny how life goes from bar hopping, bonfire beer drinking... to high chairs and nap times.

Little Samantha enjoying dinner on the patio. So cute :)

See-food!!!!

Next time... our trip to the Sooner State! Stay with us... oh wait, I'm not at work.

Cheers.

Family Milestones

2007-07-12T07:41:00.000-04:00

Aloha.

So we (read: I) celebrate a couple of milestones this year. We've passed the "7 Year Itch" time! Working now on our 8th year of marriage. I turned 30, and graduated from college (finally). So my amazing wife made a fuss over me earlier this year. She threw a surprise party for the birthday/college bit at Zazio's. I blogged about that earlier. Then she took me on a surprise trip to Chicago. We stayed just off the Magnificent Mile downtown, and really enjoyed our first vacation as a family. These pictures are from that trip. Enjoy!

(The best part of this entry, is that my in laws will read it. Trust me, it's funny. I hope they love me and my twisted sense of humor! Love you two!)

On the train to Chi-town. Ava's first train ride. At first she didn't want to get on, but she loved it! We had a couple of young kids behind our seats with whom she played peek-a-boo. For only being 2, she was unbelievably well behaved.

Admiring the passing scenery.

"Yep, I'm a big girl. What's it to you?"

This is how we break in a hotel bed now.

Enjoying the view from our 6th storey window.

Stylin' on Navy Pier. It was quite windy and a little cool. But the day was beautiful. Navy Pier is cool...Becky even bought a bag of cinnamon roasted nuts.

This is the most amazing thing...A free zoo right in the middle of a large city! It was so neat. And the park right outside Lincoln Park Zoo is very cool, too. Gorgeous green grass.

Once again, worn out! Ava fell asleep as we were finishing up our last meal in Chicago. We went to a pizza joint (*gasp* pizza?!) before we had to catch our train.

Well, that was my birthday trip. Thanks Becky, and Ava. My 30th couldn't have been any better. (well, we could have broken in that hotel bed differently...)

Cheers.

We Interrupt Your Regularly Scheduled Broadcast

2007-07-06T05:20:00.000-04:00

Live. Local. Breaking News.

We have reached a new milestone in the house. Ava has her own bed. She even kicked everyone out the first night when it was time to go to sleep. Here it is.

Becky and Kristi made the bed, I helped finish it structurally, and they painted it. That's "Hibiscus Pink" in case you were wondering, and stamps of a palm tree and plumeria. And the room now matches it. Now, go about your day with a little Aloha Spirit. It's catching. Cheers.

Busy Little Bees

2007-06-29T07:12:00.000-04:00

Aloha my cyber-ohana.

We're staying quite busy at home. Besides trying to keep up with Ava, we've been in and out of the state, and we've welcomed guests to our home. Plus I try to catch a z or two where I can and tend to our garden. But hey...that's life, yeah? Trust everyone is doing well. I must apologize: I've meant to get some pictures mailed out from Ava's 2 year old session, but it's just not happening. I can't seem to find the time. But I can tell you a little about how our summer is going so far...in pictures!

Putting Ava's little pool to good use. This day, Uncle Nick and Samantha came over for a dad/daughter day.

Samantha was loving it, but it takes Ava a little while to warm up to the action.

"Daddy, just let me go down the slide. I got this!"

Say cheese! (You'll notice, Ava has not moved from that spot)

Playing "ball" with Grampa. Look at the glee in those eyes.

"Again!"

Time with the grandparents.

We always seem to where her out.

Well that's the latest on the "Ava front." There's a lot going on at work, as my friend and colleague, our morning anchor of 6+ years has been replaced. I wish Mike, Kenna and Michael all the best in the future. We know who's getting the better end of that deal. Thanks for all you've taught me Mike. I write good because of you.

Still to come: how to turn 30 with a loving wife.

Cheers.

Home Again, Home Again

2007-06-04T07:21:00.000-04:00

Aloha.

Well, we made it back from Oklahoma. And St. Louis. For an active 2 year old, Ava traveled remarkably well. I wouldn't want to be strapped into a car seat like that for 8 hours. Two days in a row. But she did great. Becky and I (and Ava) had a terrific time in St. Louis with David and Connie on either end of the week. Plus a wonderful time in Oklahoma for the week. Can't wait for the upcoming 2nd half!! Anyway, back to the pictures. I'll finish up this last era, and move onto more photos. Though I'm not sure where they will fall chronologically. It's a surprise. For you. And me. Uh...Enjoy!

As promised, the day after Ava's birthday. You'll notice the cup in her arms. That's from Nick and Rachel and Samantha. It's a sippy cup with a spill proof straw. They're Ava's cups of choice most days. It helps that Dora graces the decor.

Aunt Kimmy sent a box full of great gifts. Bubble wrap. Oh, and some toys or something. We ran up and down these paths of bubbles for a long time, chasing Ava as she giggled and ran. Very fun.

Sylin' baby! These fancy dress (play) gloves came in Ava's Easter basket from Gramma and Gampa. Very nice.

This towel/blanket bar used to be Mama's. She used to swing on it like Ava.

Our little Anna Pavlova.

Our little Fido. :^) This is how we eat pasta at home.

She just looks so grown up here. I'm in trouble, wouldn't you say?!

Oh what a look.

I love this outfit. Our friends have such classic taste. This is at my recent graduation.

See? Gown, cap and everything! Kidding aside, it was amazing to have my wife and daughter there as I received my degree. What an amazing moment to share with Becky and Ava. Without their love and support, it wouldn't have been possible. I cried a little when I looked up and saw them. Then I threw the "shaka" up, and Ava threw it right back at me. Amazing. Plus, my folks and Becky's came. What a great support system. I love you all. (Even those who weren't there. I know you're there for me in love, thoughts and prayers.)

Alright, enough sap. Ya'll get out there and enjoy the day. It's a Wonderful World.

Cheers.

A Wonderful Wife

2007-05-16T07:42:00.000-04:00

Aloha.

So Becky surprised me. Again. I was clueless. Again. (I hope this isn't a pattern of her "lying" and me not knowing!) We went on a whirlwind weekend trip to Chicago for my 30th. Dinner and lunch out, a train ride, the Lincoln Park Zoo, Navy Pier... It was very cool. Ava had a great time, and I'm here to tell you she's the best-behaved 2 year old I've ever known. From the 2 hour train ride to the restaurants, to staying in a medium sized hotel room (suite), she was terrific. We had so much fun just the three of us. I can't wait till we get 2 whole weeks in Carlsbad later this year!

So, Ava is doing well. We get lots of time together now that I'm a college graduate. So far this spring we've planted a garden and taken quite a few bicycle rides. Being outside this spring has been picture perfect. And now the farmer's market is open... Very exciting. So, here are a few pictures over the last month or so.

Cheers.

Look at that kid reading away. Wait...Look closer...What is that they're reading??

My kid's so smart, regular books with pictures bore her. She's moved on to beefing up her resume to work for the Bush Administration. "I'll show you phone tapping, old school."

Shopping for a new Ava.

For her 2nd birthday, Papa took Ava to the dark side. "You won't regret it."

Ava playing with her Great-Grandpa. And static electricity. We call him Grandpa Science.

Here we are with Ava's hippie cake. Peanut butter bar with a natural cream cheese based filling. These are awesome. We may market them. And take over the world. Watch out granola heads, here we come!

GG and Poppy made it back from Florida just in time!

Cuddling with Gamma.

Giving kisses to the "Greats."

Uncle Douger found time to stop by.

Sitting with Mama at Zazio's.

Winkin' with Daddy. *cluck*

The nice host was gracious enough to take a picture of the crazy family.

Next time: the day after. I'll show you what really made Ava's birthday top ten gift list! Here's a hint: nope, just kidding. Cheers.

She's 2!

2007-05-11T04:43:00.000-04:00

Aloha :)

Can you believe it?! On April 6th Ava turned 2. We had a little gathering at our house for her, and took her to our favorite place. It's her favorite word to say. Zazio's. Then on Saturday we went for her official 2 year old pictures. We've used JC Penney for all her photos. They've nearly all turned out fantastic. The hippie outfit she's in is from Uncle Doug and Aunt Crystal from last year. It fits! And the tea set is from Becky's Nana and Grandpa. So enjoy the thumbnails.

Here are a few of the highlights over the last year, since I got away from blogging. Ava now sings. It's so cute. Her favorites are "Itsy Bitsy Spider" and "Baa Baa Black Sheep." She's good, too. She knows most of the words. And she counts. I think she gets to 10 most days, even 11. Obviously she talks. The other day she picked up her toy phone. Here's about what she said. "Hello. Hi, it's me. I'm at home. Yep. Nana not here yet. Coming over soon." It was too cute. And she said the other day "I don't know about that." I forget what it referenced, but it was pretty funny.

So, enjoy the weekend everyone. Hope it's sunny and pleasant. And keep the comments coming. Seriously.

Cheers.

First, the family photos.

Daddy's girl.

My girls. Having a spot of tea.

Without the tea.

Time for Ava's solo career!

You can really see the flowers and designs here.

It's been since before we were married since Becky and I had photos.

Oh yeah, I'm old now. Cheers.

Whew!

2007-05-01T07:56:00.000-04:00

Aloha.

Well that's it. Or, as Ava says it "Dat's it!" I've graduated. I wanted to post a quick entry, and I'll start doing regular postings on what's going on and what has been happening over the last year or so. It's an amazing life, and I just hafta share it! My graduation weekend was simply amazing. Having Becky and Ava at the ceremony, after all the love and support and extra work, and no time wirth me that they went through, it choked me up to know how proud they are of me. \m/

Plus, she planned a surprise party for my graduation/30th. Pretty amazing woman.

So, on with the photos.

Fashion Queen

Chillin' with Dada

We went to the Nature Center's Maple Sugar Fest. It was sunny. And sweet.

There's an old colonial home there.

Listening. Intently.

Hopefully you all enjoyed the photos. I will try to update often now, maybe once a week. (?) Let me know how I'm doing, I love all the comments. Cheers.

No, You Aren't Hallucinating

2007-03-26T08:31:00.000-04:00

Aloha! Long time no see. I thought I'd take time to post real quick. Someone (OG) prodded me a little recently that some of you may have forgotten what little Ava looks like. Well, that and she's growing up so fast, she's changing every week! We've been quite busy, as I wrap up my college career (for now), and deal with a LOT of changes at work. But life is good, mostly. Especially when it comes to being "Ava's Daddy." So, here are a few recent photos. Enjoy.

Someday this will embarrass the pants off this little girl. Oh wait, they're off already! Well, until then, she's very happy to share her bathroom activities. Ava's working on toilet learning, and doing a fantastic job.

Making faces.

Sometimes we bird-sit for a coworker of mine. This time, Ava welcomed Chloe and Stella to her shoulder. Now she talks about pretend birds on her arms. Very imaginative.

Like Mama, like daughter. Ava often strikes the same pose as us when we're sleeping.

This winter we went sledding a few times. This is what happens when we "wear her out." Yep, she's actually asleep here!

Well I hope you enjoyed the update. I'll try for a few more pics soon. But it'll be iffy. I graduate April 29th. After that I should be able to blog more often.

Cheers.

Season's Greetings

2006-12-28T19:05:00.000-05:00

Well it's the holiday rush, and it's kept me away from picture-organizing for far too long. Plus work has me in a whirlwind with all kinds of changes. It looks like my updates will be few and far between for awhile. I'm sorry for that, to all who check back so often. I will try to update where I can, but classes start up again soon as well. When I update, I will email everyone. So I guess call it a hiatus. Till next time, warmest aloha.

My Apologies

2006-11-27T05:33:00.000-05:00

Sorry it's been so long since my last post. We've been busy at home making improvements, that my computer is down. So I haven't been able to upload pictures. I'll get on it as soon as I can. We're doing pretty well, we went up north this weekend and had a wonderful time with "Unk" and "Grant." Ava was so funny, running around the house saying "unk, unk, unk." (That's short for Uncle, and Grant is great-aunt.) So I'll try for those photos from Halloween and beyond real soon. Happy Birthday to mama. Becky celebrated her 20-blank-th birthday Saturday. All I'll say is the year she was born, the Susan B. Anthony silver dollar was introduced into circulation. That year is also the name of a song by The Smashing Pumpkins. So Happy Birthday honey :)

Take csre to everyone, hope Thanksgiving was happy for everyone. Warmest Aloha.

The Snotty Truth

2006-11-13T07:20:00.000-05:00

It's amazing how resilient kids are, and what big bags of pansy adults can be. At least me, anyway. I spent almost the entire weekend either in bed, on my way to bed, or thinking about bed as I battled a cold. Ava on the other hand, has had the cold about 2 days longer than me, and she's kicking my butt all over the house. I'm such a wuss. But we're on the mend finally. I'm back to work today, so I guess I'm okay. The problem with tv news, is that November is one of 3 months during the year we call "book," or "sweeps." In entertainment, all your prime time favorites have their big shows this month. In news, we do special projects we think our viewers (and those we hope to convert to ours) will tune in for, then stay and remember us when it comes time to send out the surveys on who their favorite station is. So November is a "no time off" month. No vacations, and if you can help it, no sick time. There are those who forget that rule, but I've been "blessed" with a pretty strict work ethic. Thanks mom and dad :) So I'm feeling a little better, and back to work. I thought I would take a moment to blog, so here you go. Lucky you. Other than the cold/sickness, we're doing well. We unfortunately had to miss a holiday celebration on my dad's side because of the colds, but I figured 1) better not to get everyone there sick and 2) better to get little Ava better ASAP. Some notes of progress for you: Ava now says her "K's." Milk used to be "milt." Now she says milk. So her vocabulary gets better all the time. Plus her memory is really good. She'll tell me what she did during the day. She also asks about 'Mantha almost every day. Nick and Rachel were out of town this weekend, and Ava said Rach and Mantha a few times each day. She wants to visit, but we've kept her away. And she's developed quite an imagination. She'll go to the door, put on mama's shoes, and say "bye." You ask her where she's going, she'll say "gramma." Very cute. Oh, and she's taken to dropping the "a" from mama, much to Becky's dismay. At only 19 months, mama has become mom. She's too young for that!!!

Well, on with the photos. I think I need to get the most recent uploaded soon. These may be the last of the pics I recently did, which means they're a couple of weeks old. I'll get on it!

"Buddy. Gallop. Fast." Buddy is her horse, she loves to gallop. Fast.
~side note: check out the green leaves behind Ava. They're all gone now, as fall is winding down. :^(

Get that lip!

Uncle Doug and Aunt Crystal went to Mexico for their honeymoon, and brought Ava a flute/recorder and an authentic maraca.

Meet Samantha. Ava's first playbuddy.

She's so excited to meet 'Mantha!

Ava's Hair Fashion

2006-11-06T03:17:00.000-05:00

Becky and I were walking through Babies R Us one day, and I was so excited to buy dresses and shoes and pink stuff. I guess that's why having a little girl is so fun, I get to be girly for her! Another plus, all the hairstyles. Mine is just short, and messy for style. With a girl, it's infinite. And we're already starting! Check out these photos, as I've dubbed today's post "Ava's Hair Fashion."

One of my favotires. She's so blasted cute in pig tails.

Though her pony tail is cute, too. Especially when she comes up to you and goes "Pony. Pony."

Then there's the "clip." It's a bobby pin that we started with. It was all Becky had at her disposal the one day.

This is the front shot of the "clip." It shows her hair pulled back, almost looking short again. It's one of my favorite recent photos, with her smile and the way it's a little off center.

Next time: Meet Samantha!

Back to Normal

2006-11-02T07:18:00.000-05:00

We had a pretty good Halloween. I'll get to those photos pretty soon. Today I thought I'd take a look at some of the things going on since we've been back to life as normal.

A candid shot to show Ava's ever-growing-up features.

A favorite: Melon! She's good at sharing, so she won't stab you with that fork like I would. Ava loves to feed other people.

Two things going on here. 1) When you tell Ava to smile, this is what you get. A very cute, open-mouth pose. 2) She loves cows right now. This cow is at Binder Park Zoo. We went there with Aunt Kimmy to see the giraffes. Unfortunately it rained...

...But that did mean puddle time!

So I'm a "bad influence" on Aunt Kimmy, but here's proof that I'm getting a payback. Ava's pointing out her tattoo. This was after Kim left. Ava has a good memory.

And we recently watched these two parakeets for a friend. Stella and Chloe. Ava loved playing with the birds, but wasn't real keen on having them on her shoulder.

But she did love it when dada or mama had them.

Coming up next time, Ava's ever changing hair styles! Warmest Aloha.

Uncle Dougie is "All Growed Up"

2006-10-30T02:32:00.000-05:00

Ava's Uncle Doug got married a couple of weeks ago. Aunt Crystal joined the family October 7th. It was a beautiful affair at our parents house. Since they couldn't make it to the beach like they wanted, we brought a little beach flavor to the wedding. Us in the wedding party went barefoot. It was really neat. And as you'll see, Crystal was a beautiful bride. Special thanks on this post to Papa C. He was the camera man, as I was busy with being the best man and all. Enjoy!

"Welcome to the family." Now picture that with a Brando voice...

Nani brought Ava over to Uncle Doug for a "good luck" kiss.

Last minute questions and advice from Pastor Kevin. (he's also our uncle, and he married Becky and myself)

Beautiful blushing barefoot bride!

No title necessary.

Here's the set up. My folks (and their volunteer crew) worked all week. Dad actually worked all summer on some of this. It was a picturesque setting.

Grammy taking Ava on the rounds :)

"You married who?!?!"

What a big girl!

I have this as my desktop at work.

Catering by "Q It Up" was amazing. Doug and Crystal went with a semi-Mexican flare. I tried to link a website, but it looks like they don't have one. You can Google them to find a phone number in our area. I'd suggest them for any event. It was awesome.

Wouldn't be a celebration without a Harley ride.

Ava playing with her cousins.

Look! The paparazzi trying to get in on the action!

Well I hope everyone enjoys Halloween. I still can;t figure out why I have to buy candy (that we normally would not buy) to give away when someone knocks on our door, when America is facing such an obesity problem. And if I handed out a healthy alternative, I'd get "tricked" for having no "treats." It just doesn't seem fair for a hippie like me. Oh well, I guess we'll just have to enjoy the kids and costumes! Stay safe, warmest Aloha.

The Big Plunge

2006-10-27T07:34:00.000-04:00

So I figured that before Doug took the Plunge wit hCrystal, I wanted to do 2 things. 1: Celebrate this next, amazing chapter in their life together by giving him a weekend he could always look back on with amazing memories. And 2: Show him how scary such a big step could be, but also that it's worth the risk. So, dad and I took him skydiving. The weather dampened the day that Saturday, but Sunday's rescheduled jump was on a perfect day for it. So we 3, plus Doug's good friend Rory, and Matt (& Colleen) all showed up at the skydive site. Here the photos from the day.

"We will not sue, we will not sue, we will not sue."

Doug put his life in Bill's hands. It was the right choice. (Any of those guys would be the right choice, really)

"Here's what NOT to do..." Bill giving Doug instructions.

I heard a similar lecture. Ed told me what to do if I needed to jump out of the plane, but he never did cover how to land. Guess he figured I'd wing it, or be scared ....Less if it happened and faint. Either way, I was okay.

Pose one last time!

Here we go. Bill told Doug about a myth. The saying goes, "Why would you jump out of a perfectly good airplane?" The answer: There's no such thing as a perfectly good airplane. They're all ready to fall out of the sky, we just have to beat them to it.

"This is how you wave at the camera."

Taking off...

...And coming down.

Perma-smile.

"Yes mom, I made it." Look at that smile.

I love you bro, I hope it was unforgettable.

The guys at Skydive Plainwell did a tremendous job. Anyone considering, even remotely considering a jump, I'd say talk to them. They were professional, knowledgeable and fun as... Well, you get the idea. Just click on the link above for their website and get ahold of them.

Hopefully Doug enjoyed the jump, it was pretty amazing to see him fall from the plane, as the pilot bank and I got a bird's eye view of the landscape below and Doug & Bill's canopy. Next time: the other Big Plunge. Warmest Alohas.

Back to the Mainland...

2006-10-25T05:30:00.000-04:00

Aloha and welcome back to the mainland. Haole's. (that means "new to Hawai'i," what all tourists and most recent transplants are - what I would be if I moved there next year) Hopefully everyone is well, and enjoying the weather. It's been COLD here, which isn't normal quite this early in the season. But, that's what you get, right? Anyway, we're doing pretty well. Getting back to everyday things and pictures, Ava's final tooth is almost in. We can see the white of it almost poking through. And she's really expanding her vocabulary. These photos are from when we got back from vacation. Enjoy.

The person being influenced by me, is none other than Auntie Kimmy! She took a piece of Michigan home with her. So she got inked by Dream, with a lightning bug, a memory from her times with the Michigan family. It turned out very cool. Here she is right before the pain :)

"Hi guys!" I love this shot.

"Ha ha ha! Good one!"

One of Ava's favorite side dishes. She makes it a main dish sometimes... Guacamole!!!

"What's that Ava?" "'Mole, dada. Want some?"

"Write dada, write." She loves sidewalk chalk. She spent many days outside writing. (I did some, too)

She found balloons with Papa.

Ava's good at cracking up Grammy and Gampa.

Sheww, thirsty! Our little double fister can't get enough of that water.

I think Ava's obsessed with Hawai'i. What do you think?

Just like her dada. Notice the matching gaping mouths, snoring away.

Our little puddle splasher. Looking like a jedi knight with her mama's shirt as a robe.

Much more flattering than the one back there with me. Ava and mama looking pretty.

Still to come: Doug takes the big plunge! (Can you tell I'm in tv, with my teases?) Warmest Alohas.

I almost forgot: check out Nick & Rachel's Blog for some cool pictures of Ava meeting Samantha. I'll post some eventually also, but Nick has some great ones.

Time to Go Home

2006-10-20T03:56:00.000-04:00

So I've been pretty regular over the last month.

As far as the blog goes :) Anyway, if you're not sure whether you've seen all of the Hawai'i posts, scroll on down and check them out. I've posted a LOT on our Maui trip. Hopefully no one got too bored. Today's photos are from our last days on the island.

Ava learned how to stack things. Before this she only knocked them down. It's more of a 2 year old skill, but she learned it at 16 months :)

Our last breakfast on the lanai. If you look closely, you can see my favorite souvenir.

This is where we got those souvenirs!

A refresher on what those would be...

Now this is a Christmas card photo!

Even as our hearts were breaking at the airport on the way out, Ava kept us smiling.

Yep, I'm a threat to national security. I was searched by this nice man because I beeped through the metal detector. Twice. It ended up being a drink packet with foil in it. Silly. But this was the weekend when the "no liquid or gel" confusion had just begun. All the TSA folks and staff at the Kahului Airport were great.

Oh look, she's out!

Ava made a friend, who she ended up hanging out with on the flight about 10 rows back. If I remember right, her name is Kayla or something like that. She was really cool.

Not afraid to make friends!

And here we are back home!

Well I hope you enjoyed the Aloha adventure of Hawai'i. The trip really changed me, made me realize how much I miss the ocean. First Oceanside, now Maui. It's hard being this far away from the Pacific. Maybe I'll see it again soon. Enjoy the day, and the weekend everyone. Warmest Aloha, and mahalo for stopping by.

Oh, here's two photos I found, to show the profound influence I have on my family. I'll let you in on the story later...

Before.

After.

Upcountry and Sunrise on a Volcano Crater

2006-10-19T07:17:00.000-04:00

Aloha. It's hard to say that when it's 40 degrees and rainy, but hey, it's the Aloha Spirit, and it's in your heart, not the environment. I've been reading up on the Hawaiian artist Israel Kamakawiwo'ole lately. Google him if you don't know who he is. You probably know his music from commercials, tv or movies. He sings "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" with 'ukelele that you may hear from time to time. An amazing talent that was taken from us too early. He died in 1997, he was greatly obese and that made life hard on his body. Anyway, I'm doing a presentation on him for my History of Rock and Roll class (I've gone back to school to finish my degree), plus if you haven't guessed, I'm obsessed with Hawai'i now. Anyway, if you get a chance, I'd suggest listening to Bruddah Iz's music.

Now, on with the show. Just a couple more posts of Maui and the pictures are done. Towards the end of our trip we were blessed to be able to spend time in upcountry. It's a part of the island removed from the tourist ideal. There are ranches and orchards and beautiful scenery there. We stayed with Murray and Elaine Gildersleeve. They have a gorgeous home where they rent out rooms to travelers. They also go to the Seventh Day Adventist church in Lahaina where we went. They used to live in Alaska on a floating town. Very interesting people. From there we went up Haleakala, the summit on Maui. It means "House of the Sun." So, on with the photos from that leg of our journey.

Sunset from the lanai, looking at the West Maui Mountains.

At the end of this lanai is our room. This was all built by Murray.

Remember the coconut grove? Here's how you get into one.

That's Murray enjoying fresh coconut with us.

Shaka baby.

A picture of Murray & Elaine's. What a beautiful house.

They are wonderful people who treated us like family. Mahalo for taking us into your home Murray, Elaine.

This is what sunrise at the top of the world looks like. From its base (in the ocean) Haleakala is taller than Mount Everest. But it's about 10,000 feet above sea level. It was breathtaking.

A few minutes later... Looks like another world, yeah?

Ava enjoyed the view.

Yep, I was there, too.

As with nearly every other event, Ava takes a break :) That's a silversword behind Becky. They only grow on this summit. Each plant grows for years and years, blooms and dies. They're amazing. And protected, as people tend to tample them by being careless. Though they are making a comeback.

See, it's high!

Here's another Ali'i Kula Lavendar Farm pic.

Well, as with all good things, they seem to eventually come to an end: probably only two more posts left for our Maui adventure. Then it's back to the grind :) Ava met Samantha for the first time yesterday. She was SO cute! I'll get to those photos pretty soon. Meantime, head to Rachel & Nick's blog to see the first photos of Samantha. She's a real peach! Warmest Aloha to you all.

Shake Rattle and Roll!

2006-10-16T08:04:00.000-04:00

Warmest aloha to you. Keep the islanders and visitors (haole) in mind as they pick up the pieces today. The earthquakes Sunday really did a number on Maui and the Big Island. Luckily no serious injuries seem to have happened.

So, we last left off at the snorkeling drop off point. We headed to the southern part of Maui and met up with Chris. He's from the mainland, but moved to the island a long time ago. Now a big part of his family lives there. Hmm....

Getting ready for my first time in a kayak. We had to have life vests on for the launch...

...But we could take them off as we got out in the water. We were the first to do so. Rebels.

Ava was glad to see us go. What do you suppose that means?

Here we are coming back in. We saw LOTS of fish, swam with the honu, saw eels. It was way cool.

Oh yeah, here's Chris. Shaka.

This is how they harvest sugar cane. They burn it. Which actually created a problem this past weekend on Maui, as the winds in Kihei died to nothing, literally. The stagnant air let the soot drift into town, fall, and coat everything with a black snow. One resident said the wind even created drifts across the road. See, all is not perfect in paradise. (Where have I heard that before...)

Here we are heading off onto Hana Highway. It's just beautiful.

We found a nice couple to snap our photo. If you look, you can see the valley behind us.

There's a black sand beach down there you can see. We wanted to get closer.

So we did.

Here's a cool one of Ava with goats at a local farm. She loves animals.

Next: Our upcountry experience. There's two worlds (or more) on Maui. You'll see one that not many visitors make the trip to see. It's a real treat.

Here's the latest on us:
We're doing well. Ava's quite the chatterbox. Some of the things she says on a daily basis cracks us up. She's putting multiple words together now, into small sentences. What else... We're bird sitting for a coworker. 2 parakeets. Ava's having fun with them. Plus we have her new fish. We're up to 6 now in her aquarium. That's probably the limit, we'll see. Oh yeah, Nick and Rachel welcomed Samantha Elizabeth into the lives this weekend. A beautiful baby girl born Saturday morning, 19 1/2 inches long and 6lbs 12 oz. Very healthy. Keep an eye on their blog for the latest there.

Aloha!

Why We Now Have Fish

2006-10-13T04:21:00.000-04:00

We now have a fish bowl with four fish. 2 tetras, and 2 mollies. Ask Ava what a fish does, and she can tell you. Whether it was the koi pond at the Grand, or our next stop, we may never know. What we do know, is that Ava likes fish, so who are we to deprive her of a pet experience? Yeah?

By the way, I really do hope everyone is enjoying the blog this month. I know it's all about Hawai'i, which some may not get. All I can say is I have a new obsession. Hopefully the photos and breakdowns aren't too boring. Soon I'll move on, and maybe even post some wedding photos of Doug, Crystal and Ava!

On with the show!

Here we are at the Maui Ocean Center.

Yep, it really is us :)

Teaching Ava the wonders of the sea.

This huge aquarium had sharks, rays and all kinds of fish in it. Oh yeah, and some guy feeding them. He spoke to the crowd all the while, which was VERY cool.

Plus there was this tunnel that goes under the aquarium. You can see all the fish from underneath. It's way cool, too.

So cool in fact, it wore Ava right out!

While in the gift shop, we met this artist and got Ava's Hawaiian name. EIWA is the phonetic spelling. It means a couple of things: without bounds, and also kindness.

The fish really captured her attention.

I love the excitement.

We went to the touch pool, and got to feel sea cucumbers, urchins and starfish.

Here's a pair of honu swimming. I still can't believe how many we snorkeled with!

Even the phone booths are flowered!

Still to come: Makena for snorkeling, Ali'i Kula Lavendar, Hana...ugh, I miss Maui :) Aloha.

Through Ava's Eyes

2006-10-10T07:35:00.000-04:00

Since it is Ava's blog and all, I'll try to concentrate on sharing Ava's activities in this post.

But first: my "little" brother made the leap this weekend. He leapt from a plane last weekend in preparation, but then said his "I Do's" with Crystal this weekend. It was a beautiful ceremony. Crystal was a breathtaking bride, and Doug was quite handsome. The coolest thing was that it was laid back, with a barefoot wedding party and a barbecue reception. Now they're off to Mexico on their honeymoon. Welcome to the family Crystal.

So, onto Ava's Hawai'i...

Chilling on the beach (of rocks).

"So big" doing the hula. This was at the Grand Wailea resort. Ava loved the fancy carpet and all the colors.

Feeding the fish with Nani. Because of the koi pond, Ava now has her own pet fish. Two for now, more to come. Ask her what a fish does. It's cute.

"When do we get to go kayaking?"

The paparazzi got this shot from below our balcony!

"Do you think they'll find me behind this tree?!"

Look at the wind blow those beautiful locks!

"Here we go!"

Enjoying Maui Taco fish tacos. Mmm good! (yes, better than Rubio's)

Naked coconut time! (heavy!)

My little coffee drinker. Takes after her dada. (it's really an empty cup. do you really think parents who say no to sugar and such would allow even a drop of coffee!)

Getting ready to help out at the Ali'i Kula Lavender Farm.

From Church to Moloka'i, It's a Moving Experience

2006-10-04T04:25:00.000-04:00

Here's a couple snorkeling in Honolua Bay. This is from the last batch, I almost forgot. You can see a big honu (sea turtle) swimming with them. We saw a bunch of honu when we snorkeled, too.

The view across Honolua Bay. What a cool boat!

We went to a service at a Seventh Day Adventist Church in Lahaina. It's where Murray and Elaine (where we stayed in upcountry, that's coming later) go to church. SDA parishioners are typically vegetarian, so the potluck after the service is very good, and quite healthy. It fits into our new way of eating. And the service was very good, and friendly.

Ava making friends by sharing plumeria blossoms from the grass.

Quite contemplative for so young, yeah?!

Playing with Mama in the condo's kitchen.

Ava's always exploring stuff, very inquisitive.

Here we are off to Moloka'i. You take a ferry across the channel. It's about a two hour trip. Some people do this trip every day!

This is the Kaluapapa National Park. It's where patients suffering from Hansen's Disease (lepers) were sent to die years ago. If you ever get time, research the peninsula and Father Damien. A very sobering tale from Hawai'i's history. The area is just amazing visually.

This is one of a couple of churches built by Father Damien in the 1800's. If you turn 180 degrees...

...The ocean is right across the street. Absolutely amazing.

This is the Papohaku State Park Beach. It's about 3 miles, and completely deserted. Becky and I were literally the only people there. There are no words to describe the feeling of peace she and I had there.

There's a coconut grove on Moloka'i. We stopped. Becky risked her life. (Falling coconuts can really hurt you, even be deadly. We found that out later) But we ended up with 4 coconuts, fresh off the trees. Later, you'll see Murray teach me how to get into one.

Here we are at the end of the road on Moloka'i. It's as far as we got before we had to return the rental car. The scenery on the island is awesome. It's a very natural island, with very little tourist stuff there.

Alright. That's that for now. Later, we'll take a look at some of the fun Ava had on Maui. After all, it's "Ava's Blog," yeah? Warm Aloha :^)

The Countdown

2006-10-02T07:14:00.000-04:00

...is on for Doug and Crystal. My "little" brother is entering the world of marriage this week. I'm so proud of him, and am looking forward to Saturday. We had his bachelor party this weekend, part of which our dad and myself took him skydiving. It was pretty amazing, I hope all involved enjoyed themselves. And hopefully it really kicked off a great chapter in Doug and Crystal's life.

So, back to Maui... When we last met, I was sharing Pa'ia with you. Sit back, put on the lei, and let's roll back into the hippie town. Aloha.

Ava kickin' it at the bead shop.

Making friends.

Pa'ia is where Becky and I got our tattoos, this is how we did it. We used an ink pad to take imprints of Ava's feet. Matt E then turned the paper image into flash, and voila.

A new dress for Ava.

Which she promptly put to use in a beautiful Hula dance for us.

On another side of the island, we took the highway around the "ear," which is on the north side. Very beautiful drive. This spot right off the road was at Honolua Bay.

To show the difference in climates, here's a cactus.

Just gorgeous. Nice scenery, too. :)

Becky took our rental car down this dirt road (the previous picture is on a cliff at the end of the road) that was unmarked and isolated.

This blowhole was HUGE. The hole itself was about the size of a manhole cover. Pretty amazing stuff. This photo was from a ways back. I got down closer, and the water shot up a long way.

The highway we were on was one lane in many spots. Check out this horse just chilling by the road, ON A CLIFF!!!

Here's a random shot of us in the pool at the condo. Man I miss that pool right now. It's storming this morning here. And a rather chilly 55 degrees or so.

Get your ferry passes ready, next time is our Moloka'i trip and more. We'll have to step off the island of Maui, but Moloka'i has the Kaluapapa peninsula, a coconut grove and the sinlge most breathtaking beach we've ever seen. Enjoy the day, and warm aloha to you.

Surf, Pool and Pa'ia

2006-09-27T07:18:00.000-04:00

So here's more for ya. Life at home is good. Ava has one of those horses on springs now. And she can get up on it on her own. She loves to trot and gallop on it, quite the little daredevil. Her vocabulary is more amazing every day. The other day she turned "loesh-loesh" to lotion for the first time. And she can do one or two word sentences. So she's doing well. We're looking forward to Doug and Crystal's wedding, and seeing family coming in from out of town. (Hi Borah, Kim, McGuire's, Curry's...etc!!)

Now, on with the show!

Hamming it up for the camera.

The Kihei public pool. It was built by a resident who then donated the entire set up. Which includes a very cool kiddy pool, a warm up pool and two Olympic lap pools. And it's free for everyone.

So big!

Ava's always looking to help out.

And always on the phone!

This is Ho'okipa Beach, a very famous beach for windsurfers. The day we were there it wasn't super windy, but there were quite a few surfers out. Very beautiful place.

A couple of memorials down on the rocks. The surfing community seems real tight. Very peaceful place where I climbed down to see these.

Since Ava was sleeping at this point in the trip, Becky and I had to see the sights in shifts.

The sign says it all. Only I ignored for the photos earlier of the water and memorials. :)

On to Pa'ia. A very cool little hippie town. They say it's a town that became a tourist stop, simply because it's there and has character. There were cool shops there, a very "peace and love" attitude, and terrific food.

Posing for a pic in Pa'ia.

Just outside of Pa'ia is "Down to Earth" natural foods. A great place for natural/whole foods. Plus they have a great pair of food bars and deli. We had lunch there one day.

Good food at Down to Earth, and a cool view. Here's a restaurant that even Ava can partake in the food!

This is the bead shop where I made a cool coconut bead necklace for me, with a surfboard. And Becky made Ava a beautiful necklace and bracelet. The shop was awesome, and the woman there helped us tremendously, and was very cool.

I'll post more from our Pa'ia trip, and much, much more. Pa'ia is where the Hana Highway starts. That's coming up, too. Aloha, and mahalo for checking in. Shaka. (that's what the hang loose sign is called)

More Maui

2006-09-25T04:24:00.000-04:00

So while most vacationers head out for all their meals, we like to eat in. But don't fret, we eat well. We actually brought some fresh produce from home. Nothing like having fresh tomatoes and onions from your own Michigan garden. Or blueberries from the local blueberry patch! So on with the photos...

This is our typical breakfast. A scramble with fresh veggies, an amazing FRESH fruit plate, almond spread and fruit preserves. Oh yeah, great Maui coffee, too.

Here we are getting ready to go down.

I just thought this was a cool shot. We love to hold Ava's hands and go for walks. Soon she'll be asking to swing!

So many sub-par jokes come to mind... This was the first time Becky and I (and Dad) went on a sub. We got to see the reef and life under the ocean in a really cool way. Even saw a sunken (on purpose) ship. Very cool.

Hope Becky's not claustrophobic!

Going down!

Under the old banyan tree. If you've never heard of it, Google it.

Tree-climbing!

Sending mom & dad off to a lu'au.

Hawaiians call it "imu." Michiganders call it "pig roast." I call it damn-good eatin' !!

I had a hot date. So did my wife. We ditched them for a picture.

Meanwhile, Ava chased waves with Nani.

I still don't know why we weren't smiling. I mean, come on, a coconut bra for crying out loud!

Mahalo for checking in. More to come still. The countdown is on for my brother. Two weeks to go. Welcome to the family Crystal!

Aloha Part 2

2006-09-20T04:39:00.000-04:00

If you liked the last post, you're in for more tropical fun!

Ahhh, a refreshing shower after a long day!

Awww...

We had grills near the pool at the condo. Of course we grilled. This night it was kebabs with pineapple and grilled salmon. Very good. Ava's excited, can you tell?

Ava says, "Hey, look how cool we are!"

This was the first beach we went to. It was so beautiful, and not very crowded. Oh, I miss the ocean.

Ava loved playing at the beach.

"You mean it's okay that I'm playing in this water?" Every beach has public showers to rinse off the salt water and sand. Very cool.

Here's the view from a walkway looking at the Grand Wailea Resort. It's one of the premier spots to dtay, very expensive. We walked th beach and then into the shops there. You'll see a photo of Ava there later, from a different day. What a view, yeah?!

Man this girl naps a lot!

This is one of our dinners out. This restaurant offered a great early bird special, so we tried it. Turns out, the food was terrific. I had fish almost every day that first week. Including raw ahi! (That's not what we had here, but it was still great food, and a lot of fun!)

This is from our first adventure on Maui. We left the island for it! It's the view from the raft we took around Lana'i. We snorkeled three times, landed on Lana'i, and just had a terrific time.

The sunsets are just so romantic...awww!

More to come later :)

Whew, 4,000 photos!

2006-09-18T05:13:00.000-04:00

So it's been awhile since my last post. My apologies. There's been a lot going on at home, and it's been difficult to get through the pictures. But I've paired them down to tell the story of Hawai'i. So here goes.

You'd think we were moving to the islands! (Not yet, but wouldn't it be nice?!)

Hanging out in Atlanta, wating for the connecting flight.

Too cool for words!

Styling in dada's new hat.

It's hard work getting ready for fun.

Aloha! We've arrived.

You gotta have a convertible in paradise!

Having fun in the condo.

Walking with dada at the resort. Look how carved those bushes are. Just beautiful.

Papa showing Ava what a date palm is.

Kite surfers...just awesome to watch.

Nani like puzzles on vacaiton. Maybe Ava will pick up the hobby!

So that's it for now, I'll keep posting. I'm on the overnight shift now, so I think I'll have more time for blogging. Keep checking.

Oh yeah, for a couple of cameo appearances on Nick and Rachel's blog, check out
the blog here.

A Great Souvenir

2006-08-18T06:31:00.000-04:00

So we went to Hawai'i, and the rebels we are we brought home some interesting souvenirs. When we were there, the "Aloha Spirit" really immpressed us. If you've never been, it's the idea that things like the sunset on ocean are more important than the hustle and bustle of every day life. Many Hawaiians take that time to stop, turn west, and just let the day go. "Aloha..." And that's just one example. So Becky and I wanted to bring that, along with the wonderful feeling of vacation and Maui home with us. So here's what we did:

Before...(it's Becky's first time with one this involved, she had to have a little pain killer)

Before...

...After.

The foot is Ava's, at the exact she was while in Hawai'i. It was a stamp taken actually on her 16 month day, August 6th. The hibiscus is a flower found all over Hawai'i, so it's very symbolic of that. Becky has her left foot with a pinkish flower, I have her right with red-orange. And I can't believe the number of positive comments we got from the wide variety of people on our way home from Maui. So we're very excited about them. Matt E from Island Ink Tattoo in Pa'ia, Maui did the art work for us. Thanks Matt!

Aloha!

2006-08-05T03:28:00.000-04:00

Mahalo for taking time to check in. We're in Maui enjoying the aloha spirit. So far the week has flown by, but we've really experienced a lot. From a gecko in our room the first evening, to the coll little hippie town of Pa'ia. Plus sea turtles, an eel, a submarine... too much to list right now. I'll try and post a few pics...

Here's the plane...we've arrived!

The sunset from our lanai.

Aloha style, so relaxed she's nude!

Heading to the pool.

We took this raft around Lana'i. Few tourists do this, we snorkeled 3 times, visited a Lana'i beach, got to see Moloka'i and shipwreck beach. Just a great day trip.

Looking out at some windsurfers and an amzing view.

So look for more after we get home. I'll miss the ocean...

Aloha!

Getting Close to Departure...

2006-07-26T06:02:00.000-04:00

One thing I love about Ava, is that we're able to recapture that excitement about life. Trips become such an adventure in experience, from the ocean to woods to picking berries, everything is new to her. Awhile back we went up north to visit Becky's Aunt Margaret and Uncle Ev. It's so much fun cause they have woods around them, a pond with fish and frogs, miniature horses... A lot for Ava to explore. Plus, we've been going fruit picking this summer quite a bit. 40 pounds each (at least) of cherries and blueberries. And we have a mulberry bush near our yard. So with all that, we're really looking forward to exploring Hawai'i with her, for us and her! So here's some pictures of what I just described. Enjoy!

It's so exciting looking for birds! There are feeder right outside the window.

Shhh....Here they come!

I just love the excitement!

"If I stare, he'll look eventually."

Little Miss Daredevil. Yes, that's a normal sized ladder.

"Who, me?"

Off to the beach!

She's just so cute.

This is the mulberry series.

Think she likes them? She looks inebriated!
Enjoy the rest of your week. Mine is still very long as we wait...

More Photo Phun

2006-07-21T07:42:00.000-04:00

Hi all. Hope the weather's good wherever you are. It's set to be perfect here for July, 79/80 degrees all weekend. Not too bad. We've been keeping pretty busy. We have about 7 1/2 days until vacation, we're about to say "aloha" to the mainland and "aloha" to the islands. We're off to Hawai'i for 2 weeks. I can't believe I'll be on an island. We're staying on Maui, and plan a day trip to Molokai to see the cliffs and history there. I plan on investigating whether I can post from there, if I have access to a computer and time. So stay tuned. Meanwhile, I have some good stuff today. Enjoy, and aloha!

Exploring the insect world with Gramps.(We had gone to Great-Grandma's for dinner)

Making eyes at Uncle Ken from Florida.

Eating, or wearing, mango. Getting ready for Hawai'i.

Hanging out with cousin Ansel.

Ava loves our pool. And now, she goes without the float suit and just runs around the pool. By the end of the summer she'll be swimming!

Oh man is she walking. Now say "git, git" and then almost run. She loves to play chase and tickle.

Here's a cool shot of my folks on The Tail of the Dragon. They went there this spring. 318 curves in 11 miles make it a bikers dream. There was a company there snapping photos of bikes, then they sell them online. Pretty cool.

And here's a few from our 15 month photo session.

Happy 230th, America!

2006-07-04T11:32:00.000-04:00

As Ava readies herself for 15 months, the U.S. celebrates 230 years!

Moving on, what better way to spend a holiday than at work! Oh yeah, at the beach... Well we're headed there once I get out, but today I thought I'd share some photos of another beach trip we took awhile back. Enjoy!

"What" Cold? Nah. My chin's shiverin' 'cause I'm happy!"

"Aahhh... Sitting in the sun, getting a tan... Wait, what's this big thing above me?!"

"Maybe they aren't looking... I can get away..."

"Raahhh! I'm the big monster of the Sahara!"

"What?!"

Stylin' baby!

Happy 4th of July!

New Tooth!

2006-06-28T07:00:00.000-04:00

Tooth #9, her first molar, has popped through.

So, we're doing well. The summer is slowly slipping through our fingers, but we're trying to make the best of it. Last night (Tuesday) Ava and I were outside in the evening waiting for Becky to get home, and we were playing in the front yard. She swung a little, then wanted down. She was SO cute... We laid down and looked up into the tree, looking for the birds we could hear. She had her little head on my arm. She was there for a long 5 minutes, Then when she sat up, she got all excited (you'd have see it, her eyes get all big, then she squints and her shoulders hunch and she makes these sounds) "Birds" she says, and points up at the power lines. Sure 'nough, there's two birds on the line. She's so smart and cute, it's almost too much to take.

So life's good. I'm riding my bicycle to work everyday (4 miles round trip) and we're family riding when we can. Ava loves to be in the child seat on the back of the bike. It's so good to be outdoors and active, I can't believe how good I feel.

We started out summer with visitors. The Oklahoma crew paid us a visit. It's quite a change to go from a single one-year-old, to three kids, 1, almost 2 and 5! But we had a great time.

Gage being a bad influence on my daughter. Oh wait, she probably showed him how to do this. It's one of her favorite places to be!

Gage and Angel playing in the water on our back patio. She's such a bundle of energy. We had a great time.

Buddies!

Ava's problem is that when there's activity, she won't give it up and nap. So I took her to her swing in front, and she cashed out. Now it's a great place to get her to relax!

Talk about health nuts... We planted (Becky and Kristi) a garden. This is the initial planting. I'll get pictures of how well it's doing hopefully soon. We eat the onions regularly. There's onions, bell peppers, tomatoes and strawberries. If it goes well, we'll add more next year.

Phone to her ear, lip stuff in her hand. Is she her mother's daughter or what?!

Doing one of her cute poses.

I'd Be Ashamed, If I Had the Time

2006-06-21T05:54:00.000-04:00

Sorry it's been so long since a fresh post. To all who check weekly, I'll honestly try and have more frequent updates. Hope all is well with everyone.
Let's see... Ava's walking great now. And talking up a storm. I don't really know developmental milestones on the average, but it seems from our reading that she really is a little ahead of the normal times. She's doing things the books say should be in the next couple of months. Maybe it's the sign language, but her vocabulary is amazing. And her understanding is unbelievable! One day we were outside and she says "moon" and points up. We look up, sure enough, the moon's out! The other day she was in her swing in the front yard and says "ball." I told her I didn't see one in our yard, so she points at the neighbor's house, a good 60 yards away or so, and says "ball." Yup, there's a ball in their yard. Good eyes! She knows all kinds of body parts. And it seems like any conversation you're having, she'll pick out words and say them. It's awesome. Then there's the food. She knows what she likes and what she's in the mood for. Avocado, hummus, cheese, yogurt, chili, chicken. All her favorites. Just so cool.

Well, I guess I could post a few pictures. I've got some good ones ready. Some will be from events and such, others are random. They aren't really in any order, just some fun stuff. Enjoy.

This was from our Easter brunch with Nani and Papa. It's so rare dad gets in pictures. We had a very nice time.

Grandpa and Grandma turned down their hot tub a little, so Ava hopped in.

I think she liked it.

Nana came over for breakfast one day with Linda. Ava talked her into swinging. It's a little dark, but Ava LOVES her swing. (Auntie Kim got it for her when she was in town)

Linda and Becky trading glasses.

Other random thoughts:
-when we get Ava in the car, she says "hop" cause Becky says "hop in!"
-she loves the outdoors, looking at squirrels and birds and bugs
-last night my folks came over and mom and Ava sat by the maple tree watching ants. Ava kept saying "sit, ant"
-she likes to play this game where she'll say dada or mama, we'll say Ava back to here, and it'll go on for quite awhile. she'll vary her picth and volume and we'll mirror her. it's really fun

So that's the news from our place. I'll try to update more pics soon. Pass on the peace and love.

Saturday at the Ball Park

2006-05-26T06:10:00.000-04:00

Earlier this summer we went to see uncle Nick coach his baseball team. It's his first year coaching, and he's doing so on the field where he grew up playing. Very exciting stuff. And Ava thought so, too!

Cheese!

Nice shades.

Ava's first walk on a ball field.

Oh yeah, I got to meet Mr. Food when he came to town. Nice guy.

So here's the update from us: Ava's doing great. She has become quite the little talker. And walker! The other day she was sitting in the kitchen, smack in the middle of the room. She stodd up and walked to the door, turned around and walked back across the floor. Once she figured out how easy it was, she made laps around the house for about an hour. It was amazing! I think I got a couple of pictures, I'll have to go through my files soon and update them. And she's loving the outdoors. I think most of our summer will be spent not in the house. Fine with me! Hope all is well for everyone. Enjoy the Memorial Day holiday! God bless the troops, veterans and fallen heroes.

More from Ava

2006-05-16T06:41:00.000-04:00

Hi all. Hope life is good. We're doing so well 'round here. Ava had a very talkative day yesterday. She was calling for me in the morning, so the girls called me at work to say hi. That was a nice surprise. And we went to Gymboree, where she made friends and really enjoyed herself. I thought I'd post some fun pics from this last month. I'll work on the newest as soon as I can. Enjoy!

Easter breakfast. My folks came over that morning to bring Ava her Easter basket...

...which she loved.

And here's the swing from Auntie Kim.

I love this shot.

"What? No more? C'mon Grandpa!!"

Grandma getting her on the upswing.

Then I climbed the tree.

Just enjoying the swing :) Thanks Auntie Kim!!

Next time... Take Me Out to the Ball Game!!

May is Here

2006-05-05T11:37:00.000-04:00

So I guess I'll throw some pics together. It's been a busy week, with a houseful of laughter and such. The Oklahoma crew is visiting, and the kids are so much fun. So here's some randomness for your Friday.

These 3 are from Ava's 11 month picture session. Go Padres.

Anticipating the "gotcha..."

...and there it is!

What a great, serious face.

So big!