avablog

It’s like her artistic urges had been percolating all winter and only then were being released. Nothing like putting down some serious chalk to get you feeling back to normal.

[Read more →]

From a walk Ava and I took downtown and back this morning. I’m home with her today for the start of her spring break. It was just awesome to hold her hand and stroll down the street, talking about birds and flowers and what an amazing day it is. I could get [...]

[Read more →]

Gramary took Ava out to a farm yesterday to see some goat kids. While there, Ava collected a bunch of eggs, one of which she asked me to scramble for her — with ham — last night when she got home. She was as thrilled as could be with her booty. This [...]

[Read more →]

Fresh snow trumps freezing temps. Either that, or Ava has some undiagnosed nerve damage that makes it impossible for her to feel cold. Oh well. So long as she’s having fun….

[Read more →]

Gosh, I hope this isn’t too lousy….

Part of this set.

[Read more →]

I wonder if there’s a costume in the world that could be less scary than this one. Maybe a cotton ball costume. That said, if you do happen to have some strong fear of cows, please, avert thine eyes now.

[Read more →]

Lots and lots of cuteness going around this weekend. Kinda like the flu, only I can’t seem to catch it. A couple choice shots for your enjoyment. First, our big girl:

Next, the NKOTB:

All together now:

[Read more →]

No matter what I do, I can’t keep Ava from becoming cuter as time goes by. But I’ll keep trying! All I can do in the meantime is document her cuteness to the best of my ability.

[Read more →]

Last weekend we made the annual trek to Decorah for apple cider making. The weather was a bit sketchy, but we managed to dodge the showers long enough to gather, clean, and press a whole load of apples. As you might expect, I got all sorts of pictures and video from the event, [...]

[Read more →]

First, an aside. Why can’t squirrels be more like farm chickens? I mean, you can’t run over a farm chicken if you try, but squirrels just seem to freeze up when a car comes upon them. Anyway, I squished one on the way home from dropping off Ava at school this morning, [...]

[Read more →]

I’d be hard put to come up with an image from the last couple months that better describes Ava’s summer. Pigtails, corn dogs, and carnival rides. Oh, and those boots. Always with the boots. This is a shot Gramary took at the Regina Fall Fun Festival over the weekend. Poor [...]

[Read more →]

Ava’s in a major Western wear phase at the moment. I can’t tell if Leah’s happy about it or not, but Ava sure does have a blast getting dolled up in her boots, hat, and bandana.

In fairness, I should probably note that the kid still keeps in touch with her princess roots, too.

This second [...]

[Read more →]

Ava went downtown with her Gramary over the weekend to partake of the festivities surrounding a sand castle building competition. One such festivity was a free concert, and, well, you just know Ava’s gotta move. Photo by Gramary:

[Read more →]

Testing out a new lens yesterday as Ava prepared to go over to her friend Mac’s house in her new raincoat.

Certainly not the sharpest image ever taken, but I like the color and the look on Ava’s face. Not to mention those curls….

[Read more →]

Uncle Scott was over for dinner last Friday evening and took a few moments to toss Ava up in the air as high as he could. Which was high.

[Read more →]

Subtitle: Moment of cuteness
My mom got this picture of Ava last evening at their picnic in City Park. I don’t know how much my mom pays attention to framing or composition when she takes a picture, but this shot turned out about as great as you could hope for.

Between Kevin’s shots and my [...]

[Read more →]

Uncle Kevin posted his Grand Marais pictures today (they’re awesome, of course), and I wanted to put up one in particular that I’d been looking forward to.

[Read more →]

Ava’s friends Aaron and Claire came over to play yesterday, and eventually things turned to dress up. I love this shot of Ava in her finery standing amidst the detritus of our damaged tree in the side yard.

[Read more →]

Taken at the fish hatchery in Decorah over the weekend. Ava put this little bouquet together herself.

[Read more →]

It’s been fun lately to watch Ava become more interested in physical pursuits. I haven’t pushed her in this direction at all, mainly because I wanted to see what kind of natural affinity she’d have for things like throwing balls and riding bikes and scooters.

[Read more →]