Trip to the Orchard #2

On Saturday, our good friends Mic, Kristen, and Laney (18 months old) came for a visit. The weather couldn't have been more perfect!! Fall in the mountains is truly beautiful!! We ventured out to the apple orchards one last time before the end of the season. Most of the apples have already been cropped, but we were able to get some really good pictures. Let me make that....Kristen was able to get some really good pictures. I didn't get as many as I would have liked, but here are 2 that I managed to snap. Ava Grace wasn't very interested in picking the apples off of the tree, but she enjoyed eating them off of the ground. Don't worry...I made sure they weren't rotten before she took a bite out of them. Laney chose to ride in the wagon for some of the adventure while Ava Grace chose to walk or be carried by me all the while trying to eat 2 apples. She ate both of them (not the entire thing) while we were in the orchards. She even sat down for a bit to concentrate on their yummy flavor.

It was a quick trip for the Bernard family, but a fun time was had by all. Thanks for coming to visit us!! We miss you already!!

Go Skins!

Since the Redskins play the Eagles tonight for Monday Night Football, we thought it only fitting to let Ava Grace wear her cheerleading outfit to mark the occasion. Now, who knows if the Redskins will actually win, but at least Ava Grace was cute wearing the outfit for her Mama's favorite NFL team!! Thank you Aunt Stacey for my cheerleading outfit!

These pictures were actually taken yesterday when we went to the Family Fun Night at our church. It was a fall carnival where the children were allowed to wear their Halloween costumes. Ava Grace is not going to be a Redskins cheerleader for Halloween this year. The event was on Sunday and that means church and then football in our family. So, she was just donning her NFL attire. The carnival was a lot of fun. Ava Grace won a prize picking the duck that had a cross on it out of a barrel of water. She loved playing among the pumpkins too.

Septmber and October

Watching the USC/Ole Miss game with Daddy

Loving Cece's hammock

Swinging by myself

Helping to wrap a present (or myself)

Hanging out with Cece and Luke

Waiting patiently for the doctor at Shriner's

Playing Star Wars with Luke

Brushing my teeth and loving it

A Girl After Her Uncle's Heart

This was too cute not to share. Ava Grace has been going to most of Uncle Doug's Friday night football games. She learned before the season began to put her arms straight up in the air and say "touchdown". So, on Sunday we were watching football on TV and several times she pointed and said "football", "touchdown", or "uh duh (which means Uncle Doug)". It was so funny!! See Uncle Doug, Ava Grace really does pay attention to what you do on Friday nights!

Also, here are two pictures of Ava Grace in her Indiana University cheerleading uniform. Some of you are probably wondering where we got this and what the meaning behind it is. Well, Ava Grace's Meme grew up part of her life in Indiana and she and Pop Pop live there almost half of the year now. So, it was only fitting that she had an IU outfit to wear!! She has probably worn more college logos than the average kiddo, but what can we say, sports are a huge part of our life!!

Pumpkin Patch

We had our annual trip to the pumpkin patch. Yes, I know this is only the 2nd year we have gone with Ava Grace, but that counts as annual. We had a great time!! She had fun walking around touching all of the pumpkins - all shapes and sizes. At one point she said "here" as she pointed to the largest pumpkin on the lot. We kindly said "no, not this year....lets find another one." She is so easily persuaded at this age....too bad that it doesn't stay that way. We picked out the perfect pumpkin and headed home. We are planning to carve it next week sometime. Once we see how artistic we are, we will decide whether we are going to share the outcome picture.

Shriner's Appt.

Hey! We went back to the Shriner's hospital today for a follow-up on Ava Grace's hip. You may remember that since 3 months of age she has been having some hip issues which were later diagnosed as Hip Dysplasia. This has not slowed our little girl down as she is walking well and moving quickly!! At the appt. today, she had to take x-rays. She did not enjoy this - Tim and I both had to hold her down while she cried big crocodile tears. She quickly got over it as we waited for the doctor to review her x-rays and tell us some news. As we looked at the x-rays, there wasn't any change from the previous x-rays in April. That isn't really bad news though. Although the left ball is a little smaller in the socket than the right one, it is positioned in the socket in the correct place (which is the good part). Her hip is not dislocated and really is not near the dislocation or sublexed area. The doctor seemed encouraged that she was weight bearing now and her gait was not awkward. They still want to monitor her though which will take us back for another appt. in April. Tim and I were encouraged by the news we received and have been praying that things would get better for her. The greatest part is that she has never understood that anything has been wrong because she has never been in pain or frustrated due to crawling or walking. We are certainly thankful for that!!

So, for now, she is a busy little girl actively learning everyday!! As far as we are concerned, she is as healthy as she can be and we will just encourage her movement in hopes that this issue continues to resolve itself. Thanks for all of your concern and your prayers all of this time. We are truly blessed to have family and friends that care so much!! What would we do without you!!

Recent travels

We have visited family and several friends lately, but just haven't had time to update our travels. We spent a week at the beach with Cece and Dixie. We took her to the beach for a walk and to play in the sand, took her to the merry-go-round for the 1st time, and visited many of my friends. Ava Grace LOVES the beach - the water, the sand, and the seagulls. The weather was a little rainy and breezy, so we didn't take our bathing suits that day. We did allow her to play in the sand until the rain started. We stood in the rain for a few minutes, but as it fell harder, we decided that we could visit the beach another time. Ava Grace didn't complain about leaving, but I know she would have rather played despite the rain.

Ava Grace had her first trip to the big merry-go-round. Since closing the Pavilion a couple of years ago, some of the rides (some of our favorites) have been moved to Broadway at the Beach. You can buy tickets and ride anything you want. We didn't think Ava Grace would sit in the boats or ride in the cars, so we just chose to do the merry-go-round. Secretly, I wanted to ride it too - just like old times!! I rode it with her the first time. We sat on one of the benches and she looked around at everything while we went round and round. Tim rode it with her the 2nd time. He chose a pretty horse for her to sit on. She grabbed the brass pole with both hands and held on tight. She would smile as she passed by each time. I think she really liked it, so I guess next summer, we will have to go back again.

The trip also involved eating good seafood (at Horry's) and spending time with Cece and Dixie. Ava Grace loves dogs and every morning when she woke up, the first thing she said was "Dixie?" Too cute!! She was able to swim in the pool a couple more times for the year (unless we can find an indoor pool). It is way too chilly here now to pull out her baby pool. Oh well...fall is beautiful in the mountains!! We had a great trip as usual and hope to get back soon to see everyone.

Ava Grace and I also took a trip to Charlotte to see our friends. Unfortunately, it was a day trip, so we didn't get to spend the time we would like with everyone. We were able to see Heather and Makenzie and meet Maddox - the newest addition to the Earnhardt family. The children are so adorable and it was so nice to see Heather and catch up somewhat (in between our children talking and getting into things). We ate lunch with Jen and went back to her house to visit for a little bit. Her house in not baby proof, so Ava Grace was into everything. Sorry for the mess, Jen....and the gas logs!! :) On our way out of town, we stop by to see Kristen at school. Being a 1st grade teacher meant that Ava Grace gad PLENTY of things to play with. She entertained herself for a while!! It was great seeing Kristen and catching up. I am so sorry that Ava Grace and Laney did not get to play with each other this time, but hopefully we will see them again in a few weeks. We had a great, short trip to the Queen City. We miss you and hope to see you soon!!