Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Blake's 4th Birthday

Blake is now 4 and we had a great family day celebrating Blake's birthday! 
Since his birthday fell on a Saturday this year, we kept debating how we should spend the day, and last minute we decide to go to the Colorado Railroad Museum since all Blake wanted to do was see trains. 
When we got there, next to the parking lot were all these old trains parked at the round table and we were free to walk around and peek inside them all. Blake loved seeing "Tidmouth Sheds" and all the diesel and passenger trains. 
We took our time looking around, and Blake was just in his own world narrating Thomas scenes word for word, talking about trains. 
There was a train ride that goes around in a circle that the boys wanted to ride, but since they had already seen all the trains outside we decided to not worry about paying admission, and got them each a small toy from the gift shop instead. (Blake doesn't remember, but a few years ago we saw Thomas the train here and the ride was pretty boring.) So luckily, getting them a toy was a good enough distraction and we considered the outing a success since we accomplished exactly what Blake wanted to do and they were happy. 
Afterwards we were pretty hot, so we decided to head to the community pool for the last hour of the day. 
The boys had a great time swimming, and Jacob loved going down the big slides. I got to sit and relax with a book and sleeping Ava. She basically slept the whole day through all of our outings. 
For dinner Luke made homemade pepperoni pizza, Blake's favorite, and then we finally did presents!
Blake was finally excited this year to open all his gifts- he got lots of trains, ninja turtles, a couple star wars toys, and a new sleeping bag. Then he got one more surprise present downstairs- some new tracks, trains, and a Tidmouth Sheds- he loves it! And it worked out to be a pretty fitting gift since we saw the "real Tidmouth Sheds" earlier that day! I thought Blake would be over his train phase, but he just loves to build tracks and recite story lines from the shows as he plays. It's pretty cute how he gets into his own little world with those trains :)
And I've decided once again I am just the worst at making cakes, but luckily my boys don't expect much from me and always love them. All Blake wanted was a blue Thomas cake, and this pleased him, so at least it makes them happy, ha. 
 Yay for a fun birthday!
We're so excited Blake is 4 and slowly growing up to being a big boy, not the baby anymore! He is a sweet older brother to Ava and a fun companion to Jacob. I love when they play together and are interested in the same things- it's great they have each other. Blake can be a tease to Jacob at times, but also can be really sweet and helpful and full of laughs. We're excited for him to start Pre-K next year and to see him grow more academically, and make some new friends. I can't believe my little guy is already 4 but we're excited to see what this next year will bring for him! We love you Blakey!

Friday, June 12, 2015

Ava's First Month and Baby Blessing

It's easy for time to fly after having a baby! Ava is already a month old and as I've been looking through these pictures, it's already making me miss the tiny baby she was! She's still little (about 8 pounds now) but this time around I find myself more worried that I'll forget how little and soft and cute she is, so I try to take lots of pictures so I can remember this sweet stage!
1 week old:
 Ava stretching and doing superman with her legs
 My sleeping angel
2 weeks old:
Ava in her first outfit to church and then her dressed up a little for Memorial Day. 
3 weeks old:
 
 At one month old, Ava was blessed at church on Sunday, June 7. Luke's parents came in that weekend too. It was a nice blessing given by Luke, and Ava was happy and staring up at Luke through the whole prayer.
 I love blessing days because they look so beautiful and pure and it was special to have Ava wear the same dress that me and my own mom wore at our baby blessings. Here are some more pictures of Ava on her special day!
 
  Overall, Ava has been such a good baby! She's gotten better at sleeping at night and going for longer stretches. She loves to take lots of small naps during the day in her swing and bouncer. She loves to be held, especially swaddled with a blanket and a pacifier. And luckily she is great at sleeping in the car- as long as we're moving! Her brothers love when she's awake so they can hold her and help her whenever she is crying or needs attention. She occasionally will give us a smile and loves to look around and at us. She is our sweet little girl and we can't get enough of her!