Locks of Love

Last Friday evening, I had about 10 inches cut off my hair.  I had been growing it out for over a year, and recently decided that I was going to chop it off and make a donation to Locks of Love.   I love my hair being short and have yet to miss my long locks.  It is so much easier and cuts back on my getting ready time by a lot.  I have even developed a slight wave to my hair and can scrunch it when I get out of the shower.  My hair dresser said a lot of womens' hair turn curly after a pregnancy.  I wish I had done it sooner, but so glad that I was able to make a donation!

Before and After

My donation!

Hurricane Warning

      Hurricane Avery has been destroying our house lately.  She ranges from a small tropical storm at times and can turn into a full blown hurricane when we blink our eyes.  Avery loves to play with all her toys and she moves from one thing to the next.  She is into everything and loves making laps around the house.  I love to watch her play and interact with her toys.  She loves her Sadie dog and is always giving her sweet kisses and hugs.  The steps are becoming more consistent.  The other day she was walking from once piece of furniture to the next when we weren't looking, it's not going to be long before we have a walker.  I just hope she not as fast of a walker as she is a crawler!   

 I was going through her shoes the other day to see which fit.  Every time I would put a pair in the basket, she would throw them all out and organ ize them in her own special way.

 Someone loves to play in mommy's closet when I get ready.  The other day she opened every shoebox she could get her little hands on and made a big mess.

 Crazy girl likes to drag every toy and baby into her tent.

 Avery loves to play in her tent.

 I knew something was up when it was unusually quiet in the house!

Something is not right with this picture.  Never thought this would be on my shelf when I bought this piece of furniture 7 years ago.

Sometimes the storms subside, and we get a few moments of quiet time.
Mickey Mouse and other Disney Jr shows occupy her attention for a short part of the day. 

Beach Portraits

Avery had a 1 year photo session scheduled, but we had to cancel due to illness at the time.  I was having a hard time rescheduling.  We were so lucky to get a little photo session on the beach when we were visiting Aunt Taylor and Uncle Andrew last month.  Their friend, Jessica, is starting her own photography business and we were happy that she had an open spot for us in the last minute.  Avery did exceptionally well for being sick in the days prior to our trip.  I am having a hard time picking a favorite.  Let me know what you think...

 

This one might be cute on a canvas hanging in our dining room.

  Taking a little break and getting some snuggles in with our girl.

 She loves the beach!

This is so cute!

 Love this one of Avery and Trey! 

Jessica graduated from ECU with a major in art, and she paints beautiful canvas pictures.  I am thinking of having one done for our home.  I know it will be a great memory that I will always have and one day Avery's children will look at when they come to our house.  Now I just have to make a decision, and I need help!  Go check out her work and keep her in mind if you are ever visiting the crystal coast...don't forget to tell her Becky King sent you!

Here we are done with our pictures and ready to go celebrate with some margaritas and yummy food!

Red White & Blue

We hope your 4th of July was fun!  We spent time with family, enjoyed celebrating America's Birthday in Apex and crammed a lot of fun into this special day. 

I got off work Wednesday morning full of energy and with enough rest to get me through the day.  Trey and Uncle Ian put Avery's seat together so we could ride bikes.  We hoped on our bikes and rode to Grammy and Pepaw's house. 

Grammy had some fun patriotic items for us to put on our bikes and then we...

rode downtown Apex to check out the 4th of July celebration.

This was our first time being in town for the 4th, and we were really impressed with all the fun things down on Salem Street.  They have a ton of great activities for children of all ages.  Avery will definitely be able to enjoy the festivities more next year. 

We headed home to get ready for a day at the pool with Avery's Cousins.  We quickly got ready, applied our sunscreen and headed to MacGregor to meet the Bonello's.

 

Avery had a BLAST at the pool.  I forgot to get pictures, but she loved the splash pool and floating with all the big kids in the big pool.  She would sit on the edge and push herself off into the pool, where her cousins would catch her (I have an adorable video, but can't get it to upload).  Our sweet girl could not get enough of the summer fun. 

 Since we skipped the morning nap and played hard all day, Avery went right to sleep when she got in the car.  After an afternoon nap, we went to Grammy and Pepaw's house for dinner.

Avery loved corn on the cob.

It was a great 4th of July.

We are so grateful for our independence and Happy Birthday America!!

A weekend in Hickory

We headed to Hickory Thursday evening when daddy got off work.  It was not our best road trip with Avery, but the new car headrest mount for the iPad was a definite blessing.  We do not have a TV in my car and did not want to buy a portable DVD player since we will most likely getting a new family car that has a built in TV/DVD.  I picked up the portable car iPad holder Thursday afternoon and highly reccomend it to anyone traveling with children.  We are very grateful with the Disney app.  Avery did not fall asleep until we got into Gigi and Papa's neighborhood...go figure!

 Friday morning we went to visit Papa's office.  Mommy enjoyed a pedicure and shopping that morning.  I was extremely grateful for some relaxation and alone time, especially after the not-so-fun ride to Hickory.  Gigi and Papa's pool was a lot of fun and very refreshing in the 100 degree weather.  Avery continues to love the pool.  She has gotten very adventurous.  We have to keep her from trying to drink the water and dunking her head.  She wants so badly to swim on her own, but the poor girl is too small and the more independent floats are still too big.

  Avery and Daddy

For now, she is stuck with this float.  She has fun and can enjoy the water and her toys with some independence. 

 Sitting in her special chair and hamming it up for the camera.

  Saturday she was ready for another day of fun in the sun and water.  Our friends Jared and Cait joined us for some fun on the lake.  We all went water skiing early in the morning before the lake got crowded.  One day Avery will be out there skiing, but this time she stayed back for her morning nap.  It had been a while since we all had water skied, but everyone managed to get up without any difficulty.  I think we all paid for it later...I know I was sore the next morning!

Gigi managed to get a picture of mommy skiing past the house. 

 Taking a snack break.

Avery and Gigi

She is still not a fan of the life jacket, but loved going on a boat ride with everyone.  Grammy and Pepaw come up Saturday, so Avery was able to hang out with both set of grandparents.

Papa, Pepaw, Grammy, and Daddy enjoying the boat ride around Lake Hickory 

Playing with a koozie.  She loved the wind in her hair and was happy to have a snack on the boat.

 Helping Papa drive!

 Avery stayed in the water almost all day Saturday with the exception of nap time.   She loved being around the water and so many people she loves.  It was a great way to enjoy a very hot weekend. 

 Eating her waffle that Papa made her Sunday morning before we headed back to Apex.

The car ride home was GREAT and Avery slept the entire ride!