Riley's Weekend of Fun!

Riley got a whole weekend devoted to him! He doesn't really like a lot of attention, so he was a little uncomfortable with the idea, but I loved it! It all started on Thursday when Ava and I decided to make him a homemade peanut butter chocolate cake. The kitchen, and us all started out spotless....
Then Ava sifted a little cocoa and flour and that was the end of the cleanliness....

She even got it all over her face somehow...it kept her busy though, so that was nice.And while we were making the cake, Viv was making a mess in the pantry. She loves getting in the pantry. Whenever we leave the door open she heads straight for the door, and gets the cereal every time!

Then Friday was Riley's 28th Birthday.
We went to the morning showing of Toy Story 3. It was really fun and then we went home for a little cake for lunch!
Ava was very proud of the cake, and the Chipmunk card that she picked out for Riley. She wanted to get him a princess card, but settled for the chipmunks. Then she asked me, "Mommy, what did we get for daddy for his birthday?" I told her we got him a BBQ and she said, "Oh mommy, we have to get him some toys too!" We ended up getting him some Slinkies in the dollar section. I think she just wanted some more toys, but it was cute that she at least acted concerned for Riley's happiness.

Peanut butter chocolaty goodness!

Then we opened presents. Ava liked to help and even modeled a few things, like this shirt from Riley's Aunt Teresa and Uncle Jason. Then Riley opened his BBQ. It is pretty tiny, but good for apartment living. Someday we will have a backyard and a real BBQ again!

Ava likes to take pictures all the time, so she was in charge of the pictures of Riley and the girls putting the BBQ together. She got Riley's hand, Viv's hair and the BBQ all in the same shot, which is great for her! haha

Then Riley headed to school for a while, and when he got done with class we headed down to the Farmer's Market. We got some Mexican Corn (Nacho Libre Corn) for dinner. It was Delicious! Can you tell that Riley loves when I take random pictures of him? It's pretty much his favorite thing ever!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Then Sunday the girls gave him a little father's day present. Riley got the figure of the dad and the baby from my dad when Ava was born, and this year I saw the one of the dad with his two girls, and I thought it would be perfect for Riley.
Since Riley has to leave so early for Bishopric on Sundays, we made him a real breakfast of stuffed crepes on Saturday, and then just had a quick breakfast together on Sunday. He got home around 6pm and we had our great friends, The Johnsons, over to try out the new BBQ. I didn't get any pictures of that though, but it was great fun!

He is such a great dad and husband and we are lucky, lucky girls. Riley has been so amazing while I have been in school. He stays home with the girls while I am at class in the morning, and most of the time I come home to the dishes done, laundry started, house spotless and everyone happy and playing. It makes it so much easier to deal with the hectic schedules we have these days. He is my best friend and always makes me laugh. He is also great at helping me be more spontaneous...I'm a planner and list maker, and he balances me out really well. It was so nice to have a weekend to thank him for everything he does for me and the girls. We love our daddy!

Cute Pictures!

My fab friend, Jenni Neilsen, took some adorable pictures of the girls when she was in town last week. She is taking a photography class, and needed some models. I always LOVE pictures of my girls, and it was so nice to have Jenni take some. If you're in Eastern Idaho I totally recommend her! Check out her photo blog HERE.

I love this first picture, because this is so common in our house...Ava all up in Viv's business and Viv like "You're invading my Personal Bubble!" Love it!

This picture is totally Ava these days...Today she said, "Mom you Totally have to see this! It's totally cool!" Then we were leaving the house and she said, "Let's do this!"
Uhmmm... when did she turn 17?

Thanks again Jenni. These are great!

9 months old!

Miss Viv has managed to hit the 9 month mark and still has all her fingers, toes and eye balls! I don't know how she did it with such a loving older sister, but she did and we are so proud of her!
We went to the doctor yesterday for her check up and she is still our little shrimp... 16.3 pounds. Only the 11th percentile. Height she is in the 60th, so that is better, but she is just such a tiny little thing. It is funny how different kids can be.
She is more and more mobile, which takes some getting used to. She is also getting more and more sneaky. I love to watch her when she is trying to go for something of Ava's. You can tell she knows she will get in trouble if Ava sees her, so she is cautious, but she just can't resist the temptation. Yesterday Ava was doing something that I was taking a picture of, and then I noticed Viv pulled herself up and was sneaking Ava's fruit snacks that she left on the couch. I thought it was so funny, so I took a picture of her in the background.

Her favorite past time is removing every shoe from the shoe rack one by one.

So proud of herself.

Then in true younger sibling fashion, protects her loot from Ava's wrath. Ava always gets upset when Viv makes a mess, and tries to clean it up. She says, "AHHHH! Mom Viviann made another mess!" Funny how she can make her own messes and could care less, but when Viv does it, she gets ultra annoyed! Anyway, Viviann has caught onto this, so she now protects her messes so she can revel in them for a little while. Too cute!

Bacon and Her Bike

Ava LOVES bacon. It is the only meat she will eat. Except for McDonalds Chicken Nuggets, which we only really eat on special occasions or road trips, cause Riley and I can't stand (notice I didn't say hate, I'm getting better!) McDonald's. Anyway, every Friday night Ava picks what we are going to have for dinner, and every week she picks pancakes and bacon. At least she eats one meal a week this way. She starves herself until Friday nights! Here are a few pictures of her love affair with bacon....

Then she started getting a little upset that I was taking pictures of her.

You know how every woman has a "look" well here is Ava's.
She means business.

Then a few weeks ago we got her a fun spring time present....
A NEW BIKE!
We hid it under the bed until it was a nice day because we knew she would want to ride it right away. Her she is early in the morning seeing her new bike for the first time. You can't tell, but she was really excited!

The girls helping daddy put it together

She was a natural. All the movie clips I took of her riding were really long, so I only posted her post-bike ride interview. She still isn't too confident with the stoping process, she would rather crash into something to stop, or let go of the handle bars and reach for me...So, we have a little ways to go, but she's getting there!

Here is her first interview after riding a bike. Her enthusiasm kills me!