Babies!

We got to meet a couple of sweet babies this spring, too. One of my best friends had her second little boy in April, and I got to hold him the very day he was born. I'm never sure if holding someone else's baby is going to satisfy my baby fix or cause me to want one of my own...oh well, it's worth the risk!

Angie holding Baby Joshua. Sorry to say I have no pictures of him with his beautiful Mama - we were hogging him!

Perfection!

And Ava and I had our first girls' weekend at the end of April. We drove down to Madison to visit my friend and her three little ones. Ava had a blast playing with the 4-year-old and 2-year-old and holding the little guy whenever I would relinquish him. It was nice to have a weekend with just Ava, and the boys did great at home and visiting grandparents in Eau Claire while we were gone.

Children's Museums

We had a couple of visits to both the Children's Museum in St. Paul and the one in Eau Claire this spring. We've had a membership the past couple of years to the one here in Minnesota - it pays for itself quickly. Ava is starting to outgrow some parts of it, but it's still fun for Charlie and I to spend the morning there while Ava is in school, and if the visits there for her are few and far between, she still enjoys it, too.

From our trip to Eau Claire:

Checking out at the grocery store

Mail carrier Ava (did you know this is what she says she wants to be when she grows up?!)

Cooking in the restaurant

At the construction site

Charlie spent lots of time in the water area...

...while Ava kept busy in the craft room

And in St. Paul:

Do-it-yourself face painting...enough said...

Crazy driver

Funny little factory worker

Jamming to Wheels on the Bus

Children's Theatre

I've been very neglectful again with the blog, but I'm going to try to get a few new posts up (though they may not be in chronological order).
We bought a pack of tickets to the Children's Theatre Company in Minneapolis this season. Ava and I saw Mercy Watson with Angie and Samuel, The Wizard of Oz with Tricia and Lily, and just last weekend Pippi Longstocking with Emily and Sarah. My favorite was Pippi Longstocking - it was captivating for the girls, and I found it hilarious!!

Here are a few pics from The Wizard of Oz on New Year's Eve:

Before we left

         

Lily and Ava at intermission

Meeting "Dorothy"

 And from Pippi Longstocking:

Sarah, Emily and Ava

Waiting for the show to start

Meeting "Pippi"

We had a great time going to the shows. I think we'll buy tickets for the next season, too, and this time Charlie should be old enough to come along. Actually, there are a few shows that I think are geared more for his age: If You Give a Mouse a Cookie and The Cat in the Hat; I know Ava would love to see The Grinch Who Stole Christmas - she loves that story!

Ava's First Piano Recital

Ava has been taking weekly piano lessons since January. Here she is playing "Squinchy Pinchy Shoes" at her first recital.