Month in Review

This month has been extremely busy for the Anderson household. Joel and I celebrated our 5th Anniversary, our baby turned one, Joel's bank got bought by an investment firm - which caused him to have to work extra hours, visiting family and friends, Christmas, and the list goes on and on. But even though it has been busy, it has been tons of fun too. We wouldn't change any of it.

We love the snow. Lucky us -- it has been snowing quite a bit lately. It is absolutely beautiful and looks magical as it falls from the sky. Today in particular was gorgeous. We got about 10 inches of new snow last night and it was sunny today. There is nothing more pretty than the bright sun shinning on fresh new snow. We only wish we were up on the mountain skiing in it!

We cannot wait to see what 2011 brings to our family. We hope to have many fun adventures and make wonderful memories. We feel so blessed for all that we have been given.

Our Little Lady

Our "Little Lady" turns ONE today. I cannot believe how fast this last year has gone by. Ava has grown up so much and is constantly making us smile and laugh. I never thought anything could bring as much joy into our lives as she has.

Ava had a ladybug birthday party this year (pink and brown instead of red and black). She wore a cute pink dress with a ladybug on it, and definitely stole the show. Her ladybug cake was made by Grandma Tilton and her ladybug cookies were made by Grandma Anderson.

She didn't go crazy over her birthday cake like many kids do. I was hoping to get that really messing cake eating photo, but she went about eating it very lady like.

Her stats at her 12 month check up:

• Height: 30.75 inches
• Weight: 21.8 pounds

She says mama, dada, baba (bye bye), and lets us know what she wants by pointing to it.
She is walking everywhere, and loves to get into every kitchen drawer that she can.

She is growing too fast (I wish it would slow down a little sometimes), but we enjoy watching her learn new things. We cannot believe our baby is one today. She is really becoming such a little lady.

We love you Ava!!

On the Hunt

This last weekend we went up north with some of our good friends, Rhonda, Mark and their little boy Henry, to look for the perfect Christmas tree. And we had success!! After a little hike through the woods, we finally found our cute tree.

I was a little worried about how Ava would do being out in the cold. This was her first time outside for a long period of time, but she seemed to enjoy it.

Our little family on the hunt for our Christmas tree.

Ava and I took a break to play in the snow while Joel cut down the tree. Ava loved touching the snow. She is always so curious about everything (she gets that from her dad - and it is a good thing).

And since she was so curious...Joel thought that she ought to taste it too.

This little adventure made for the perfect weekend, and our house is beginning to look alot like Christmas.

Ava's First Encounter With Santa

Ava met Santa last night at our Church Christmas party for the first time. We did not know what to expect, because she totally has separation anxiety really bad. However, it went much better than we expected. She enjoyed herself the whole night...One, because she could walk around the whole gym with all the other children (which meant we were chasing her the whole time), and Two, because there were Christmas trees everywhere. She thought the trees were great. We are putting ours up tomorrow.

Then she met Santa. She was not too sure about him, but did not scream or cry (which was all we were asking for).

But she was sure excited to show us the candy cane she got from Santa when she was done sitting on his lap.

What's For Dinner

This last weekend I had some of my favorite girlfriend's over for a craft day, but more importantly to celebrate Beth's birthday. We use to get together so much more and hang out, but life just keeps getting busier each year and finding time that we can all get together gets more difficult. It was nice to just sit and talk to each other, and we made a pretty cute craft too.

We made menu boards to go in our kitchens. They all turned out so cute, and each had their own personal touch and style. Here are some of the finished products.

I cannot wait to start using mine. Hopefully it will help me plan my meals and shopping trips better. I can't wait to have our next girl's day either.