Hugs and Kisses

So our little pride and joy Avery, NEVER cuddles! We are always so jealous when we see babies cuddling and sleeping on their mom or dad...we think oh how would that be. She doesn't transfer well either, like if she falls asleep in the car and we put her into her bed, she wakes up and won't go back to sleep. Whenever we try to hug her close she pushes away and pinches. She's been this way since the day she was born. She would scream and squirm to be put down, and when we would swaddle her as a newborn and lay her down she would sleep....and don't even get me started on how long it would take me at church to get her to fall asleep in my arms.

ANYWAY, so today was a really hard day because she was having some reflux issues and only took a HALF HOUR of a nap today and thats it!! So bedtime comes and I am DONE and can't wait for her to be in her crib. I start feeding her and rocking her and she starts squirming and wants to stand up......I almost lost it, but something came to mind to just pat her back.....I attempted to hug her and rub and pat her back to relax her.....and..... she actually laid her head on my shoulder! Unbelievable!!! This is the first time she has ever done this! THEN, she slowly looked up at me and put her mouth on my cheek for a kiss and then put her head back on my shoulder as I rubbed her back! I was so amazed and happy I started laughing cause it was so cute! She looked up again and gave me another kiss! WOW!! I was in heaven! It felt so good to have her hug me....all my hard work each and every day is starting to pay off with my little girl giving me a hug! I think that Heavenly Father knew I needed that because I was getting to the point of not wanting to nurture her anymore that day! :)

More Pictures

Mom and Me on the train

Uncle Richie and Katie

Here she looks like my Grandma Gray- my dads mom

Brandon joined the Knights Templer, its a humanitarian organization. This was us before the induction ceremony.

Having fun in Phoenix!

Riding the train

We have been here in Phoenix for much needed time away from Roosevelt since the 30th- Brandon went home in between to work for a week and comes back tomorrow. Avery and I have been having soooo much fun with Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Jeff, Aunt Adri, Uncle Richie, and Katie, and FRIENDS! Avery loves it here, she has been swimming and splashing at the outdoor water fountain pad several times, shopping, eating out places, going to parks, had 2 carousel rides and a train ride, and much more! She has been smiling and clapping her hands all the time! She is so cute! I love being able to take her out and show her new things. Uncle Jeff graduates from ASU tomorrow with a bachelors degree in computer science engineering. Avery has been looking forward to his graduation! ahhhh not really- we will see how it goes with her! All for now...more to come of our trip...

Late Easter

Avery says " uhhhh I'm not sure about this Easter thing...."

you can tell how good the plastic egg is to her!

happy bunny

Here are a few Easter pictures of us. My parents were visiting us and they gave Avy an Easter basket, she was so curious about it and so fun to watch! We had a great time with them, it wasn't too hard to see them go, because we are coming to Phoenix in 3 weeks!! We are staying about 2 1/2 weeks! I can't wait! Palm trees, clear forever skies, the smell of flowers and citrus in the air, my swimming pool, places to go and eat! I could go on forever! Other big news is...we got our basement finally finished!!! Brandon has worked so hard on it since August. We have a huge tv/family room, huge play room and exercise area, large bedroom, and lots of closet space for storage. We have the bathroom plummed but we will finish that in month or two so we can save up some more money! I'll post before and after pics soon!

A Great Visit!

Avery and Natalie=BFF

fun in the swing

Avery just woke from a nap when the kids got here. I think she is confused

My best friend Jenny came to visit us on her way out to her mom and dads house. Jenny and her husband Sam live in Westminster Colorado, and they have 2 kids, Collin, 3 1/2 and Natalie, 1 1/2. Jenny and I met in elementary school and have stayed best friends ever since! She is like a sister to me and me to her, both of us have only brothers. We have shared many life experiences together and have been through some tough things that we have helped eachother get through. I really love her and she is such a great mom too! We took the kids to the park and her kids played and we put Avery in the swing for the first time! She really liked it!!

Go Roobie!

Roobie is Avery's nickname-sometimes roobs for short, we call her that more than her real name. Hahahaha! She is so cute, we just love her! She can now pull herself up to a standing position- at 7 months old. She does it in her crib, on the side of the couch, our bed, the toilet, and the tv center.

Our New Favorite Treat...

Brandon and I have the BIGGEST sweet tooths!!! We have dessert almost everynight- but the last couple weeks have only had it a couple times...we have to cut back a little!! But for one of the treats I made these: chocolate dipped oreos- I like the regular double stuff but we decided to try the mint ones. They are so good!!!!!