Time flies! I can't believe it's already July 26th. It's Virginia's 30th birthday and Avery is already 8 months old. I know people say time speeds up when you have kids, but I had always hoped that it was a gross exaggeration. I know now...it's no lie, it's no exaggeration; its the unfortunate and sordid truth.
So, let’s try to catch up on the past 3 months. The Boulants moved to Arizona. Did I mention that already? If not, they moved to Laveen, AZ where Matt got a job as an engineer. Go Matt! The kids have to wear uniforms to school now, not something they were accustomed too, but all things considered it’s a great opportunity for them and a good move. Avery will miss her cousins, Uncle Matt, and GiGi.
We were in Lakeport for Mother’s Day this year and Grandma Angie got to meet her youngest great-granddaughter for the first time. They hit it off really well, even though Angie did forget a few times whose baby she was. Keith would remind her that Avery was ours and she’d go “Well, where’d you get a good looking baby like that from? Must be from her mama!” I love Angie!
The Hulse Family came out to visit us in May for Keith’s birthday. We went on the Skunk Train and to Ft. Bragg and hung out for a day. Avery went on her very first train ride, and she was a trooper. She slept through part of it and was just interested in everything when she was awake. We stopped in a little lumber town called Northspur. Here’s a bit about the ride, from the website:
"The view from the restored rail cars is pretty much unchanged since 1885: towering trees, deer drinking from the Noyo River, an isolated fisherman's cabin peeking from the forest. With occasional whistles as it chugs through tunnels, over bridges and past open meadows, the train follows the coastal "Redwood Route" as it has since 1885.
Built as a logging railroad, the Skunk line began that year as a logical vehicle for moving massive redwood logs to Mendocino Coast sawmills from the rugged back country. Steam passenger service was started in 1904, extended to the town of Willits in 1911, and discontinued in 1925 when the self-powered, yellow "Skunk" rail cars were inaugurated. The little trains were quickly nicknamed for their original gas engines, which prompted folks to say, "You can smell 'em before you can see 'em."
Built as a logging railroad, the Skunk line began that year as a logical vehicle for moving massive redwood logs to Mendocino Coast sawmills from the rugged back country. Steam passenger service was started in 1904, extended to the town of Willits in 1911, and discontinued in 1925 when the self-powered, yellow "Skunk" rail cars were inaugurated. The little trains were quickly nicknamed for their original gas engines, which prompted folks to say, "You can smell 'em before you can see 'em."
There was an annular solar eclipse in May of this year as well. Keith, Avery, and I were outside taking pictures, the lighting was just so crazy. Everything was brighter and there were shadows of the eclipse on the ground and on the walls, everywhere. Really strange, but pretty.
Avery is apparently a water baby. She loves swimming. She kicks her little legs about a mile a minute and slaps the water with her hands and tries to drink it. She has no fear of the water, which isn't fun when you're holding her and she tries to dunk her head in the water and then she ends up coughing and with a runny nose and you're trying to make sure she's okay and she's trying to dunk her face in the water again. I mean, really child, are you trying to make mama feel bad? This one is definitely going to need swim lessons, soon! She'll end up being our little swimmer, no doubt there, but in the meantime, we need some water safety lessons. :)
Avery just before the 4th of July. We went to Palo Cedro to see the Warners the weekend before the 4th and Avery got to play with her 'cousin' Max. He's so cute, tow-head and he too loves the water. They have a lot of fun playing.
The Warners are from Washington and are Mariner Fans, thus the American Flag and the Mariners flag flying high. I held up Avery while Keith took a photo of the flags behind her. They were blowing the opposite direction, so we flipped the picture. Cool, right?
Isn't this just the cutest face you've ever seen?
She is the love and joy of our lives. She makes us smile and laugh daily with her expressions and antics. She is learning so fast. She signs for 'Eat' and 'Milk', she adores her GloWorm, and she is trying so hard to crawl. Nothing in our lives will ever be the same, everything is exactly as it should be. She completes us in every way.
