We had a WONDERFUL Christmas season thank you very much to Grandma and Grandpa. The kids are still talking about their visit AND looking forward to our next one in June. Yes, June. Not July and definitely not August for in August a new little bundle of joy will be blessing us with its presence. Much to our surprise we found out in early December that we are expecting a baby (or as Ava put it, a third knucklehead) in early August. We are excited and the house is abuzz with the feeling of anticipation that seems to grow as my belly does. Ava rubs it and tells everyone she sees that "Mommy has a baby in her belly." So does Shane but that is because he says and does everything Ava does. Ava also informed Steve and I that we are "going to have our hands full with all these kids running around." That statement just confirms my suspicions that she has a direct line to Grandma hidden somewhere in her room.
Since we have been back in Alaska we have embarked on a few new endeavors. First and foremost Ava started preschool. She protested briefly which I believe was more out of habit than anything else. She expressed some worry over me not being there but Steve and I gently told her that it was time and that she would love it. Which, she does and that makes us happy. She comes home talking about what she has learned (planets) and looks forward to the next day of class. I have to admit I got a little excited about her first Scholastic book order. Shane likes her preschool also. A little too much perhaps as he doesn't want to leave. Once we are in the car he shares how he misses Ava. When we pick her up they embrace each other and then shortly thereafter start fighting.
This past Sunday was another big day for Ava. She and I "competed" in our first mother/daughter ski race. It was called the Alaska Ski For Women. It is held every Superbowl Sunday as a fun event for women to do instead of watching the game. What actually happens for many is that they ski and then still make it home for the game. Every year it draws hundreds of women, many of them in costume to ski the 2.5 miles while raising money for women and children. Ava and I have done it together once before but I skied while she rode in a backpack. This year she skied the whole way on her own AND made the Anchorage Daily News photo gallery online. We dressed up in fairy wings and Ava wore a tutu (mine got stuck around my armpits and I immediately felt claustrophobic). In the parking lot on the way to the starting line a woman had two extra crowns and gave them to us. It completed the outfit.
She was a bit wide-eyed as we approached the starting grounds. There were women everywhere skiing about in all sorts of wacky costumes. You could hear giggling and cackling as the more casual groups skied over their mates skis. We did the wave a couple of times with our ski poles and then we were off. We skied with a group of other moms and kids for a bit and then it was just us. If she noticed she didn't say anything. The race was just under 2.5 miles or 4km. Every half km a ski patrol would ski by and cheer Ava on after a while they all clustered together behind her and cheered her on as a pack. At one point I turned around to take a picture of them following her when I noticed one woman was taking a picture of us. Another patrolman gave her a chocolate gold coin each time she reached the km marker. Ava is one tough cookie. She only complained of tired legs once. The downhills and snacking on snowballs sustained her. As we approached the finish line the announcer in the field house flipped on the music and she crossed the finish line to something from the 80's.
We celebrated with a trip to Baskin Robbins. She selected Bubble Gum and Wild and Reckless as her two flavors. While we normally would have called it a day we actually had Caitlin and William (ages 4 and 2) and their Mom Sarah, over for a play date while their dad studied for an exam. Both Ava and Shane were in heaven. It was a great ending to a great weekend.
Here we are in the car. She is just a little excited.
Surveying the Scene. Ignore my voice please.
And action! At 1 out of 4kms.
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| Love that face! |
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| I told her to show me the face you make when you hear you get to down a big hill. |
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| The ski patrol became quite attached to her and cheered her on. |
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| The patrol busied themselves taking pictures while she tackled the biggest hill of the race. |
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| At the finish line and smiling. |
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| A sweet ending for a sweet girl. |
