Little Secrets ...

Avery sneaking away to her secret Rock Star life ...

All of you out there in the blog-o-sphere probably think you know who I am and what I'm all about ... well, get ready to have that image totally blown away ...

See, I have this little secret ... I like to hop onto my motorbike, let my hair down, and just fly into the wind ...

Avery starting up her motor bike ...

... and here she goes ... preparing for a full standing balance on the seat ...

... look out Evel Knievel ... here come Little Miss Daredevil Avery!!!


Look ma, riding backwards is sooo easy!!!

Happy Daddy's Day, Daddy!!!!

Avery and Daddy goofing around at home

I'm just so lucky to have such a great and fun Daddy like mine ... I love you Daddy!!!!

Milk wins hands down ...

Avery performing her "taste-off"

One night out at dinner last week I got a little curious about all these "brown bottles" I always see Mommy, Daddy, and others drinking from, so I thought I would finally give it a try myself.

Now maybe I'm biased, but I don't think there isn't anything truly better than a "white bottle" ... and I should distinguish from the very different types of "white bottles" ... one from Boobie was always the very best, with one from the refrigerator carton a close second, and the instant power/shaker variety can be referred to as bottom barrel dead last. Thus, for this "taste-off", refrigerator milk would have to do against this "brown bottle" elixir.

And as I could have guess ... my "white bottle" milk clearly beats this brown sludge of a liquid hands down ... it's not even close. Too bad that's what most adults choose ... "brown bottles" over "white bottles" ... I guess that just leaves more for me and all my baby friends!!!

Sailing the treacherous deep blue waters ...

Daddy helping Avery navigate through the treacherous deep blue waters

It seems that I have officially graduated from the "kiddie pool" and now have transitioned into sailing the deep blue waters (the ones that flow in Grandma and Grandpa's backyard, that is). Since this was my maiden voyage, Daddy came along to help me navigate the treacherous waters that lay ahead ... although, he mostly swam along the side of my craft since there was only room for one captain on this adventure ... me.

Daddy explaining to Avery the finer points of navigation

Along the route, one could hear all sorts of animal movements off in the distance. I could even see with my own two eyes things that thrashed about in the undertow that I would never dare image. I don't know what I would have done if my trusty sidekick was not always there to see me though ...

Daddy battling with the forces on nature to calm the waters for Avery

As all good things eventual come to an end, so was our adventure. So I do now declare victory upon circling the perimeter of these vast waters and hereby claim that these waters shall now be referred to as "Avery's Cove" from this point forward.

What a fun adventure with Daddy!!!

Uhhh ohhh ...

Ohhh nooo ... what has happened to our sweet Avery now?!!??!

Uhhh ohhh, why is that spoon in Avery's hand ... and is that the same noodle up her nose now that was previously on the corner of her mouth??!!??

The plot thickens ...

... aah haa ... we should have guessed this was the beginning of the story!!!!

Good hygiene is important ...

Avery brushing her teeth ... all 4 of them

If there is one thing that I have learned from Mommy so far it is this ... a girl has to have good hygiene. Mommy takes excellent care of her teeth, so I wanted to do the same as soon as possible ...

Avery showing Scout-No how to brush your teeth

Avery attempting to share her toothbrush with Scout-No

Grandma has retired from watching me?!??!!?

Avery with Daddy at Grandma's party

So I'm not exactly sure what will happen after this past weekend ... it's all a bit confusing to me still, but then again, I'm just a baby. Maybe if I explain what occurred, one of you out there might be able make sense of it all for me ...

It all started last weekend where Mommy, Daddy, and me got all dressed up and went to a party that was in Grandma's honor. It started out as a grand fun time ... eating, dancing, and partying while Grandma seemed to be enjoying her special moment with all of her friends and family.

Avery enjoying her place setting at Grandma's party

Three generations of blonds

Avery dancing with Mommy (with some help from the staff)

So as the fun night went on and on and on, from the conversations I could overhear it slowly dawned on me that this wasn't just any ordinary party for a great Grandma, but more of a retirement party?!??!!?

So what exactly is Grandma retiring from anyway ... her only job is to cater to my every need from time to time. Am I that hard to deal with??? Does that mean Grandma is buying the boat and sailing away to go bye-bye forever?!?!!?

Grandma getting her retirement recognition

Avery with Grandma and all her fellow new retirees

Grandma, Grandpa, Mommy, and Daddy with Barb (another fellow new retiree)

Note that I took this last photo (since my usually personal photographers where all in it).

So, in the end I guess that's what makes life interesting ... things constantly changing. Hopefully I'll still see Grandma from time to time. I guess I don't know what else to say ... quite frankly, I'm still in a state of shock right now that Grandma had to retire only after one year of service ...

Walking Hard ...

No way, I'm really doing it!!! Check me out!!!

... or maybe I should call this blog "Hard Walking" instead?!!?!?

In any case, I'm finally really doing it!!! But don't take my word on it, you be the judge ... watch this video of me cruising all around (with just a few hiccups) and tell me what you think ...

Next up: asking for the car keys!!!

Avery showing off her sweet upright skills

My 100th blog posting ...

Avery taking a well deserved relaxing break from blogging all the time

Woo hoo!!! I did it ... I reached 100 blog postings in my first year (of life in general and starting up this way fun blog).

I just want to thank all of you out there in the blogosphere for spending your time reading, participating, and commenting on my blog throughout the last year ... you guys are awesome!!! I can't wait to read, re-read, and then re-read yet again as I grow up over time and look at this over and over again throughout my life.

And look forward to another year of blogs about my kiddie adventures and high-jinks ... I look forward to writing them!!!

My Sweet 1st Birthday Party ...

Avery wants THAT in her tummy

Sorry it's been so long since my last posting, but things have been really really busy lately ... plus the temperature has been hitting triple digits lately and that seems to slow life down just a bit.

Since a few of you out there having been asking me about my super sweet first birthday party, I finally made the time to go through all of the hundreds and hundreds of photos from my birthday party and wanted to share a few. Here are some candid shots to show the overall vibe and good time had by all ...

First things first ... BIRTHDAY CAKE EATING was the best part of the party ...

Avery tasting her birthday cake ...

... Avery really enjoying her birthday cake

We also played in my big birthday present Mommy and Daddy got me ... all my guests really enjoyed it as much as I do ...

Avery's friends (Abby and Maya) playing in the sandbox ...



... Will loved watering the sandbox with the pink water can ...

We also filled up the pool since it was such a nice day ... it was such a hit with everyone that Shannon, Lily, Nick, Skyler, and I played in there most of the day.

Pool party time was a great big hit ...


... a lot of us kids stayed in the pool most of the party


Avery's rock concert friend Mathew had a great time too

And oh yes, my on-again/off-again boyfriend Nick was even up to his usual "Mr. Funny Guy" tricks again ...

Nick performing his "bonk Avery in the head" trick

And not only did all my friends in town come over for the party, but lots of people came from far far away too.

Auntie Em and Great Grandma came into town just for me ...

... as well as my out of town Grandparents also!!!

So not only did everyone come over to wish me a happy birthday, but they all brought me all sorts of neat stuff too ... even my own furniture!!!

My own set of table and chairs for tea parties ...

... my own lounging chair ...

... even a hand made Mother Goose quilt!!!

Avery partying into the wee hours of the night!!!

Happy Mother's Day, Mommy!!!!!

Avery excited for Mother's Day

I hope you have the best day ever, Mommy!!! I promise to be good all day ... well, for most of the day anyway!!!


Thanks for being such a great Mommy!!! I love you so much I wrote a poem just for you!!!

Mommy's Love

When I first popped out and saw your great big smile,
I knew Mommy's Love was more than all land's miles ...
When I first let out a huge big ol' cry and saw you rush right to my side,
I knew Mommy's Love was more than all the sea's tides ...
When I first fell down and you caught me before I hit the ground,
I knew Mommy's Love was more than all the world's sounds ...
And that is why I love you Mommy, more and more each and every day,
for you're my Mommy, my lovely Mommy, the very best in every way!!!



PS, Happy Mother's Day to all the other Mommies out there in the blogosphere!!!

It's my first Birthday today ... yeah!!!!!!!

Avery looking around for her birthday present

I could just feel it was my birthday as soon as I woke up this morning and couldn't wait to see my birthday present!!! Mommy and Daddy tried to hide it outside under this big blue covering sheet, but I picked it out right away ... I'm very keen on finding anything new around the house ... it's like a 6th sense or something.

So I hurried and got dressed for the day ... when we finally went outside to see my gift, Grandma and Great Grandma were even outside to wish me a happy first birthday!!!

So, there I was ... in front of this big blue sheet on the ground just anxiously waiting to see what was under it!!! Then Daddy pulled it off and there it was ... this birthday gift of a ... of a ... of a big pile of dirt in a box!??!?!

Avery trying to understand why her birthday gift

was a bunch of her old toys on top of a big pile of dirt

So since I'm only 1 years old and still basically "new" to everything, I said my "thank yous" to be polite, but in the back of my mind I was still trying to figure out why they would think someone of my stature would want a big pile of dirt anyway???

And then you know what happened next?!!?? Mommy plopped me right down onto this big dirt pile ... oh, the horror!!!

But it was sort of funny ... as I kicked and crawled and wiggled around in the dirt trying to get out of it, I discovered that the dirt actually had this nice feeling to it ... kind of a smooth sandy feeling that you could swim around in. So, I then grabbed some of my old toys that were also lying around in the pile of dirt and started to move the dirt all around where it was actually a lot of fun!!!

Avery and Daddy playing in the sandy dirt

So in the end, I should have just known from the start that whatever Mommy and Daddy got me for my birthday was going to be something that I absolutely fell in love with. And I guess it helped that Daddy was also quite the digger when he was as little as me ...

Daddy playing in his childhood sandbox ...

hundreds and hundreds of years ago

Hanging out all day with my best friends ...

I just love love love spending time with my fellow floor friends ... my dogs are just so great and so much fun to hang out with, I just can't get enough of them!!!

And we just like do everything together, such as ...

... playing around on the floor ...

Avery playing with Scout-No

... cleaning each other ...

Scout-No cleaning Avery's toes

... napping ...

Nap time

Even Scrappy has warmed up to me a lot more than she used to be ... at least I think anyway since she still pretends that I'm not there sometimes.

Scrappy pretending not to notice Avery

Anyway, the video below shows just how good of friends we have all become ...