Chocolate Pudding

A couple of days ago, I decided to make some yummy chocolate pudding for Aaron and me. I also thought Audrey could have just a little tiny bit. This was her first time ever eating chocolate pudding and she LOVED it! It didn't surprise us, since we know she has a major sweet tooth...just like her mommy. After she finished the little tiny bit that I gave her, she looked up from her bowl and in a very matter-of-fact tone said,"Mommy, I wan mo!!" She was very serious. Someone better be sharing their dessert with her, because she wanted "mo". Daddy was kind enough to share just one more scoop with her. When Audrey was finished, although she was just given a bath, we had to wash her off really good before getting her ready for bed.

Enjoying her chocolate pudding!

Look how focused she is.

When she couldn't get the last few bites with her spoon, she used her fingers!

She's all done! Now it's time to clean her up.

   

Audrey - 21 months

Last week, our sweet Audrey turned 21 months old! When we look at her now, we are starting to see a little girl standing before us rather than our little baby. She has grown just over two inches in three months, her chubby thighs aren't as chubby as they used to be, and her curly locks can be put up into a pony tail. The sentences that she is able to put together make her sound even that more grown up. For example, when we ask Audrey what book she would like to read, she walks over to the basket of books, looks through them, grabs the one she wants and says, "I wan dat one, now!" Yes, there is a "now" at the end of almost all of her sentences. We are really working hard on changing that "now" to "please". Every day it seems like she is saying something new or showing us a new trick. She is very active and wants to climb on anything and everything. Audrey also loves to bounce! When she wakes up in the morning she bounces on her crib mattress and yells, "bouncy, bouncy, bouncy," in between her giggles and squeals of joy. Other activities that keep Audrey entertained are stacking her pink blocks, reading books, completing puzzles, and just recently, watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. 

Sweet, precious Audrey Love at 21 months old.

Something very big and exciting is going on at our house!! It is the very beginnings of potty-training. Audrey has been asking to sit on the potty for awhile now, so we decided to buy her her very own. She was very into the little potty when we showed it to her, and she wanted to go pee-pee in it right away. Aaron and I decided that when we are home with her, we will keep the diaper off and take her pee-pee every hour or so. She has done amazingly well!! She runs into the bathroom, takes a seat, and screams, "I pee-pee in da potty, now!!" We give her a square, she wipes, we dump the pee-pee in the big potty, then she waves and says,"Bye-bye pee-pee!" Immediately she takes off for the kitchen to get her well deserved "tut-ty"(cookie...really it's an animal cracker). Even yesterday she ventured into the bathroom and went pee-pee all by herself. Awesome! 

"I pee-pee in da potty, now!!!"

We are very proud parents, can you tell? Really, we just love our little girl and thank the Lord that he has entrusted us with her. And even though she is growing up right before our very eyes, she will always be our sweet baby girl, Audrey. 

Celebrating 7 Years

On June 22nd, Aaron and I celebrated our 7 year anniversary! We can hardly believe that it has been over ten years since we first met in the lovely city of Las Vegas. After dating for two and a half years, Aaron proposed and six months later we were married. As I think back to that wonderful day when we shared our vows, I remember feeling so in love. There was no way I could possibly love Aaron more than I did at that moment. I was wrong. Over the last seven years, we have celebrated joyous occasions together and we have struggled through different trials together. There is no one else I could even imagine standing next to through it all. Aaron is a man of character, he is strong, passionate, determined, and self-disciplined. He is also gentle, loving, trustworthy, and very patient. He is my protector, my rock, my source of comfort, and my best friend. He is the one who holds me when we pray at night and he is the one who softly kisses me every morning. He is my biggest cheerleader, my best friend, and the daddy of our beautiful child. He is my husband and I absolutely love him even more now than I did the day we shared our vows. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't thank the Lord for blessing me with Aaron. I love him so much!! May we celebrate many, many more years to come...

June 22, 2002

This year we decided to take a trip to Santa Barbara to celebrate. Neither one of us has spent much time there, and so we thought it would be fun to check it out together. We were so thankful that Nani and Papa were able to take care of Audrey for us. She had so much fun with her Nani and Papa and, of course, they loved every minute of it. We were there for four days and three nights, which is the longest we have been away from the little one. Although we missed her, we had a great time just the two of us. What was so exciting about this trip, is that Aaron planned the entire thing! I knew nothing about where we were staying or what we were doing. I was amazed at what wonderful things he had planned for us. On our way down to Santa Barbara, we went to San Simeon and took a tour of Hearst Castle. Then we headed to Pismo for lunch at Splash and a walk down to the pier. When we got to our villa in Santa Barbara, we enjoyed some complimentary cheeses and tasteful wines. During the next three days, Aaron and I took walks on the pier, up State Street, and along the ocean. He planned a day of wine tasting for the two of us, where we toured four different wineries and stopped for lunch at a golf course. One evening after dinner, we went on a special sunset cruz. Seriously, my man is amazing!! It was so nice to get away for a little bit to relax and enjoy each other. At the end of the week, we weren't quite ready to leave our beautiful, little villa in Santa Barbara. But, we knew we had a little girl to come home to. We look forward to celebrating 8 years together next year!       

The indoor pool at Hearst Castle.

We sooooooo wanted to jump in and go swimming.

Villa Rosa Inn - Santa Barbara

Our room is the farthest to the right on the bottom floor.

Foley: The first winery on our tour and where we purchased a very nice bottle of chardonnay.

 Melville: Our second stop on the tour and where we had lots of fun chatting with man doing the pouring.

Check out the grapes at this winery called Sanford.  

La Fond: Our final stop on the tour.

Look how sophisticated Aaron looks after visiting four wineries. 

Our view from the sail boat on our sunset cruise in the Santa Barbara Harbor. Perfect way to end a wonderful anniversary trip!! 

 

Pump It Up!!

Last Monday, we decided to take advantage of the "open play" at Pump It Up in Clovis. From 10:00am until 11:30am, for only $7 total, we had the freedom to slide, climb, and bounce on all of the blown-up play structures that they offer. As soon as we walked into the large room and saw all that there was to do, Audrey's eyes grew and she started screaming. She was so excited she didn't know where to go or what to try first. Once we had our shoes off and our socks on, we were ready to "pawty" (party), as Audrey says. Together with Daddy, Audrey climbed up the huge slide and sat down at the top. The first time down, Daddy practically pulled Audrey by the hand because he was going so much faster than her. She didn't care...she LOVED IT!! That was the only time that she needed a chaperon. After that, Audrey was climbing up the stairs and sliding down the slide all by herself with a huge smile on her face the whole time. In fact, if we tried to help her she would push our hand away and say, "No Mommy/Daddy, I do!" From the slide we moved to jumping inside the bounce house/basketball court, then to playing King of the Mountain, and finally trying the very large obstacle course. It was entertaining watching an adult crawl through such tiny spaces. Aaron and I were laughing quite a bit! Audrey loved the freedom of being able to run around and play in such a big open space. We will be returning very soon, I am sure! : )

Pump It Up, here we come...

Daddy and Audrey going down the slide together for the first time. Really, Daddy is pulling Audrey down the slide with him...on an accident. 

Sliding down the slide all by herself!

Climbing the stairs all by herself..such a big girl! 

Falling head first down the slide and really not too upset about it. 

Audrey and Mommy in the big bounce house/basketball court. 

King of the mountain...soooooooo big!!!

The final slide ride of the day...loved this place!

A Week In Monterey

We have been so lucky to be able to vacation as much as we have this summer. Aaron and I have loved all the time we have had with our little one, Audrey. Two Wednesdays ago, we left for Carmel Valley to get some more time on the beach. We were also looking forward to the cooler weather of the Monterey area. On our way there, we stopped in Casa de Fruta to wave to the "choo-choo", buy some yummy chocolate treats, play on the playground, and look for tadpoles in the pond. That night, we went to dinner and had a good visit with one of my mom's best friends. She has a home in Carmel Valley, and she was so kind to let us stay with her. In the morning, we went into Carmel to hang out with our very dear friends, the Bells. We so enjoyed our time with them and wish we could do it more often!! We headed back to Carmel Valley for nap time and later that afternoon met up with Grandma and Grandpa Love. For the next couple of nights, we stayed with them in their R.V. and had lots of fun! Audrey went for walks with grandma and grandpa, swam in the "so called" heated pool, played on the little playground, and slept on a "big girl" bed. On Saturday, Grandpa and Daddy played in a golf tournament while Grandma, Audrey, and I went to Carmel Beach to walk in the sand and look at all of the "row-rows" (doggies). Grandma and Grandpa Love left on Sunday, but we traveled into Monterey to stay with our great friends, the Robbins. We spent two more days in the cooler weather and on the beach, before heading home. Just to prolong our stay, we stopped and played at the Dennis the Menace Playground. Audrey loved every minute of it!! She was very sad when it was time to leave, just as we were sad to leave our absolute favorite place to visit.     

Taking a break in Casa de Fruta.

Looking for tadpoles with Daddy.

"Ni-ni" fun in the R.V. with grandma.

Swimming in the "heated" pool with Daddy and Grandpa Love.

Carmel Beach with Grandma Love. 

Audrey and Mommy at Carmel Beach. 

Sleeping in a "big girl" bed...check out the barriers!

Playing in the ocean, in Monterey, on a beautiful day!

Audrey loved running through the water and wasn't as nervous about the waves. 

The water was surprisingly very warm. 

One of the best playgrounds ever!

Check her out on the shaky bridge. She never even looked back to see where we were.

 

On the roller slide with Daddy...

and Mommy. Although, she did go down all by herself many times!

Seriously? Look how high she is! I was holding on, but she kept saying,"No Mommy, I do!"

Wild Water Adventure Park

Aaron and I had been told by many friends that there was an amazing offer available through the Fresno Grizzlies. If you went to a home game on a Monday, you could pay $22 and get two tickets to the game, two hot dogs, two sodas, two passes for a round of miniature golf at Blackbeards, and, the best part, two passes to Wild Water Adventure Park. We couldn't pass it up!! So, two Mondays ago, Aaron and I went on a date to the Fresno Grizzly game and experienced the Monday Madness. We enjoyed the hot dogs, the sodas, the game, and just the two of us hanging out. But, we couldn't wait to get to the water park! Yesterday, after Audrey's nap, we decided to pack up and head out to Wild Water for the evening. Audrey was so excited!!! She loves slides and she absolutely can't get enough of the water. She had way too much fun and she was so brave. She went down all the little kid slides by herself! People were amazed at her swimming skills, especially in the Blue Wave. We will never forget the look on her face and the squeals of laughter that we heard when the waves would come crashing against her. We loved watching her have the time of her life. Aaron and I had to make a decision at 7:00pm, after seeing her blue lips and watching her body shake from being so cold, that it was time to go home. As we were leaving, Audrey started waving and said "bye-bye water", "bye-bye side". We will definitely be back next summer...maybe with season passes?! : )  

All packed up and ready to go!

Audrey's face after we told her we were going to go down water slides. 

Look how big that slide is...seriously?

She did it all by herself!

Having fun with Daddy.

Cheese! 

Going up the stairs of the submarine.

Drying off with Mommy. 

Art Project With Daddy

For Fathers Day this year, Audrey gave Daddy a stepping stone....well, all of the supplies needed to make a stepping stone. A couple of days ago, we decided it would be fun to do an art project with Daddy. We took out the stepping stone supplies and gathered all of the additional items that were needed to complete Audrey's creation. Audrey did a great job helping Daddy and pressing her hand down right in the center of the cement mold. I think she really enjoyed taking the beads from a couple of her favorite necklaces and placing them into the mushy mixture. She pushed a couple of them down into the cement so hard that they were nearly buried, but it is what made her creation a one-of-a-kind. Audrey was very proud of her "pity"(pretty) piece of art, and it is something that Daddy will always cherish.

Audrey helping Daddy pour the dry cement into the bucket of water.

Daddy helping Audrey stir the mushy mixture.

Audrey pressing her hand down right in the middle....perfect!!

Look how stinkin' cute! Now for the colorful beads...

Ta-da, Audrey's "pity" piece of art!! So proud!