Super Snow Sunday

For Super Bowl weekend, our family headed to Big Bear for a ski weekend.  There was just enough snow for Ava and her friends (and weekend roommates) Josh and Sarah to make mini snowmen, and to throw snow into the hot tub to watch it melt.

Ava, Josh, and their friend Gavin all enjoyed their time on the slopes.  After being confined to the "magic carpet" during her first lesson last year, Ava was able to ride on the chairlift for the first time and made it down the bunny slopes without any problems using french fries (parallel) and pizzas (wedges/snowplows).

After their lessons on Sunday morning, Ava and Josh went down a few more times with Chris before heading home.  

What about the Super Bowl, you ask?!  Don't worry, after a quick drive down the mountain on Sunday afternoon, Ava made it back in time to see Derrick Coleman and the Seahawks win the big game.

Cookie Time

Ava recently joined the Girl Scout Daisies (that's the step before Brownies) and is a proud member of her troop.  She's already earned some daisy petals learning about the earth, how to be a good friend, etc.  Of course Girl Scouts wouldn't be Girl Scouts without selling Girl Scout cookies.

Since most of you are far away, it's probably not practical to order cookies from Ava, but if you want to support Ava's troop in their attempt to reach their goal of being able to adopt a zoo animal, you can participate in "Cookie Share" where you buy a box for $4 and the cookies are donated to our troops and to Orange County's Second Harvest Foodbank where they can be enjoyed by those who would normally be without.  Just email Ava at avalouisecruz@yahoo.com.  

Old Year, New Year

"Better late than never," they always say, so here's a very late entry on some of Ava's December and January adventures.

Christmastime is always a busy season for Ava with plenty of activities such as visiting Santa, riding the Christmas train with friends, baking, and picking out a tree.

This year we spent Christmas in Oakland and had Grammy and Poppy over to our house for an early Christmas celebration.

On the afternoon of Christmas Eve (aka Christmas Eve Day), Ava dressed up to see the Nutcracker for the very first time. 

We took BART into the City after Christmas to see all the decorations in all the fancy hotels and to visit one of our favorite places - the Ferry Building.

In the new year, Ava has been back to her old tricks - fun at school, soccer, gymnastics, and ballet - as well as visits to the Natural History Museum to see dinosaurs and The Olde Ship to watch Chelsea.

Trundle Trouble

This past weekend, Ava's friend Sophie visited us from out of town for a fun girls' weekend.  The girls enjoyed playing together at the park and making potions in the back yard.  

We even took a trip to the Great Park to ride the carousel, run around the playground, and visit the farmers' market.  

We also rode on the giant orange helium (not hot air) balloon, which rose 400 feet in the air and offered views of Irvine.  Not quite the same as the Empire State Building but still a lot of fun. 

At night, Ava opened up her trundle bed as this was her first time hosting a sleepover.  The girls giggled, played, and stayed up very, very late.

The main event - other than the sleepover - was a trip to South Coast Rep to see Ivy & Bean, which was originally commissioned by the renowned Bay Area Children's Theatre.  A number of friends joined us for the show.

After the delightful show, the girls were able to meet the cast for a quick chat, photos, and autographs.

Ava sang songs from the show on her short drive home and Sophie surely sang songs on her flight home.

Return to Fariyland

Three years ago, Grandma and Grandpa took Ava to Children's Fairyland for the very first time.  Ava still returns as often as she can, but as you can see a lot has changed in three years.

Although she's now much bigger, Ava still enjoys the stories, rides, and attractions at Fairyland including the newest attraction - sliding down Jack and Jill's hill.

Weekend Fun

Most people think of Southern California as full of self-absorbed people who spend all their time shopping at the nearest mall or working on their tans at the beach.  While that may be true, we try to make sure Ava is exposed to other, more fruitful activities on the weekends.

One of the more recent additions to the Southern California museum scene is the Space Shuttle Endeavor, which impresses everyone who sees it.

The butterfly pavilion at the Museum of Natural History is a real crowd pleaser.

All the exhibits at the California ScienCenter are fun, but we'll save you from having to view photos of maggots and rotting food.

Visits to the La Brea Tar Pits are a key memory everyone who grows up in the LA-area.

Closer to home, the Discovery Science Center always has new/touring exhibits.

Home Depot and Lowe's have weekend projects where kids can use real tools to build things.

Of course with our warm weather, spending time outside with a picnic (and food for the ducks) is always fun too.