A Goulish Good Time

"Mom... the sun is too bright for pictures." These days baby boy is about the size of an $8 pumpkin!

We didn't carve a pumpkin last year, so this was Avery's first interactive carving experience. That little girl of mine has the most sensitive nose. She immediately hated the smell...

She wanted nothing to do with the guts! Poor kid even got crocodile tears rolling when I asked her to help scoop some out.

Mommy to the rescue! I showed her how to use a big spoon to fish for the seeds - keeping her hands clean.

Success! So proud of herself.

Ultimately a happy dance - hooray for spoons!

Party time with some spooky treats.

This year, Avery was a bunny. Check out that awesome hand-sewn costume!

But, don't give me the credit.

That bunny costume was made by my mom and first worn 27 years ago by ME - as a 3-year-old!
The 1984 pic is pretty faded, but I love that Oma saved this for Avery to wear.

The bump club. We really should have done some creative costumes with this!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

3 Year Snapshots

Avery's Antics 3.0

Super excited about her "very own" new digital camera!

While watching Monday Night Football...
"I love you, Avery."
"Um, I love the Raiders."
(Daddy would be so proud)

Reading a book at bedtime...
"There's the baby bird with his Mommy bird and brothers and sisters."
"That's not his Mommy, that's his Daddy."
"Oh, how can you tell?"
"He doesn't have eyelashes."

I got really frustrated trying to run errands with Avery the other day. She was messing around and just wouldn't get back into her carseat. I let out an "Aarrgh!" sound to vent and she says -
"You need to take two deep breaths Mommy. Like this... (breathes in thru her nose, out thru her mouth)"
"Thanks kiddo."
Gotta love a good dose of your own anger management.

"Time for a nap, Avery."
"Are you kidding?!!?"
"Um, no."

While driving...
"Mommy, why is that man taking a nap on that bench? He needs to go to his bedroom."
"Well, sweetheart, I think that man doesn't have a bedroom. He probably doesn't have a job and doesn't have any money to pay for a house, so he sleeps on that bench."
"Well, he should call the police. They can help him find his house."
*sigh* The innocence of youth...

Avery's 3rd Birthday

This past Sunday, our sweet Avery turned 3! Oma and Opa were able to come into town, so her special day began with a pink pancake family breakfast. Then Daddy took the birthday girl to the zoo for the morning while Oma and I finished party preparations. After a good nap, the princess celebration commenced with friends. Avery had a great time opening gifts and spending the whole day in her princess dress! This smart, tender-hearted girl continues to amaze us. God has blessed us with the joy and honor of being her parents. We are so proud of the easy laugher, deep thinker, hug lover, song singer, compassionate, creative, and exuberant little person she is today. Happy 3rd Birthday, Avery!

Freezer Paper. Not just for meat.

At any given time, I'm prone to have 3 or 4 crafty projects going on around here. While I find our home super cozy (and I'm grateful for my little garage studio) my piles of fabric, paint, paper and knick-knacks leave me (and Matt) wishing for a proper art/craft space. Wouldn't this be dreamy...

Maybe some day - *sigh.*

With Avery's birthday coming up on Sunday, I've been putting together a few things for decorations and games. It's not going to be a big party, but I want it to be special nonetheless. The next project I totally stole from my good friend Leah. One of the best things about having other crafty friends with blogs is checking out their neat ideas. And since she reads this blog, I hope she considers imitation the highest form of flattery! ;)

A year ago I bought this Silhouette paper cutter for my Climber business. It will cut any font or design that I can put together on my computer. I adore this little thing. Anyways, if you've never been introduced to the wonders of freezer paper fabric stenciling, you're missing out! Here's a tutorial with details if you want to try your hand at it...

Instead of cutting out designs by hand with an exacto knife, my silhouette does the work for me. Just slap some freezer paper on the carrier sheet and watch it go!

When the design is cut, you carefully peel it off the carrier sheet and iron it onto your fabric. Paint gently with permanent fabric paint, let dry, and WOW... check out the result when you pull off the stencil! 

(I use www.dafont.com for a bunch of awesome, free fonts!)

Since this bunting is made of fabric, it's entirely re-usable. A new birthday tradition - hanging this someplace in our home each year for Avery's birthday!

And now that the kitchen table is cluttered with stenciling stuff, I'm tempted to whip up a couple other freezer paper projects before cleaning up!

Update!

3 sweet little T's I stenciled tonite in a couple hours. Aviators for my little man, a gift for Miss M, and butterflies to cover the fabric paint Avery accidentally smudged on her pink shirt today. Did I mention this is a superb technique for reviving stained toddler shirts?!

Disney - take two

If you've been following this blog for any significant amount of time, you may remember these photos from our trip to Disneyland at this time last year. Avery was entirely overwhelmed and hated every minute...

Well, we had one day left on the 3-day passes from that weekend that had to be used before the end of October. Matt was home from work on Monday and we decided to give Disney another shot. Such an improvement! Avery was all smiles, loved the rides and even hugged some princesses. We didn't see any costumed characters, so still not sure if there's residual trauma on that front, but it was a great family afternoon nonetheless...

 

Lately...

Just a random smattering of what we've been up to in the McNeil house lately.

Avery's been taking swim lessons for about 2 months now and is really improving. Considering that as recent as July she absolutely refused to put her face in the water, she's come really far! Aww, my little mermaid.
(And if you're in the San Diego area, I highly recommend Murray Callan Swim School in PB)

This funny girl continues to amuse me with her witty comments and exploding imagination. Yes, she really did insist on walking through the entire grocery store with her babies in her cart and pretend cellphone to one ear. Her multi-tasking made me laugh, as well as many of our fellow shoppers.

Earlier this month, we had the pleasure of joining our good friend Tyrone in celebrating his marriage to the lovely Wallis. It was our first time watching the ponies at the Del Mar Racetrack. Avery had a blast picking and cheering for her horse each race.



Aspen turned 7 on Sept. 16th! Her adoptive family texted me this note: "She woke up to a 3ft bone and a new bed! Now off for a long walk and home for a nap before her party tonight. What a life!"

Grandma Laurie sent a little care package of goodies for Miss A (and baby boy) recently. Painting this suncatcher was her favorite!

Speaking of baby boy... he is growing like a weed! Pregnancy is the only time in my life that my otherwise stick straight hair gets a little curl to it. It's so nice being able to hop out of the shower, scrunch with mousse and run! 25 weeks down, 15 or so to go.

Avery's Antics 2.3

"How do you get married?"
Well, once you are older and you find a boy who is your best friend and who loves Jesus as much as you do, and you want to spend your life with him, then he will ask you to marry him.
"When I'm old enough Daddy will pick a boy for me. That's his job."


"You can't say sh*t. That's a bad word."


"Why can't chicks drive?" 
What do you mean?
"Daddy said chicks can't drive."


"Queens have birthday parties and Kings go to work."