snow day

it snowed last week!!! !!!!! as someone who is considering a snowflake tattoo and hasn't seen snow in just about a year, this was the best/ biggest deal. i was at work when the storm started, so i left and it looked like ^ outside. magical. :) of course it didn't last very long.. but it was perfect and i got to build a snowman and i'm not even mad. just a little sad. ;)

the day after the 'storm,' i was off of work and had some outside-of-the-house plans. so i got dressed. and austin took pictures.

scarf: ae
sweater: a million years old uo
shirt: christmas present from becca :) <3
belt: target
shorts: ae
tights: target
socks: uo
rainboots: steve madden, via ebay, via my dad
my new purse: ae

i went with kendall to get her new phone.. i played with/distracted little avery (who is all of a sudden a teenager, idek) while getting really excited to finally be able to text kendall emojis. then we had lunch with kayla, who i haven't seen in a million years because she's busy becoming an officer of the law. it was really cute and then austin & i had a date night and i just really like the snow, you guys!!

now i'm gearing up for my all-time favorite holiday, valentine's day. i want to give every human at my job a little card and some candy. ridiculous.

<3

radvent, day 10

radvent, day 10: family

i have kind of already discussed the importance of my family during day 1. i think, in part, falling in love with austin and us creating our own little family (of the two of us, haha) has shown me how much i love my family, too. especially my sister. the two of us have grown so much in the last couple of years, and our relationship has shown the growth. she's one of my best friends, and i would've never thought that was going to happen five years ago. our friendship has been one of the most important to me for the last year or so. i'm so excited that we've regrown our bond.

family

these past couple of weeks, i've been sooo busy. lots of work, lots of family, lots of quick dates with austin, and lots of christmas shopping/wrapping. stuff gets so hectic this time of year, especially working in retail. especially working in the best store in the mall. ;)

i wanted to share a couple of pictures that my sister spliced together that make me really happy.

the top photo was taken in 2010, and the bottom a couple of weeks ago. i love looking at all of our differences! austin said none of us even look like the same people. and i love the little addition to the left side of the bottom picture. ;)

i love my family. <3

aunt/niece style post

this blog is quickly becoming an avery appreciation blog, but whatever. she's what i take pictures of. and really, if i'm not working or cleaning, i'm probably trying to hang out with her. ;)

yesterday, i brought her a few presents from becca (who has a blog! and i can link to her! and i'm so happy about it!), and we immediately decided that she needed to wear the skeleton pajamas for the day.

then i realized that we matched, and obviously there needed to be pictures because i go crazy for this kid.

avery's outfit:
onesie: old navy
shoes: stride rite

my outfit:
jacket: uo (old)
sweatshirt: uo
necklace: catbird (no longer available)
dress: uo (old)
leggings: ae
socks: c/o austin ;)
boots: doc martens

we were roaming around an advance auto parts parking lot because kendall's car broke down. it ended up being like a two hour ordeal, during which avery and i took several adventurous walks around the entire building.

we were all a little crazy by the end of it. poor kendall's car is still out of commission, so i drove us around the rest of the day. we had lunch, went grocery shopping, and played with the puppy. avery even talked a little bit for me! which was ridiculous and i died.

the perfect version of a kid, in case you were wondering

today (my second day off in a row after 12 straight days of work), i have no plans (except for the dishes). so i'm going to lay in bed for a little bit longer, catch up on parenthood/project runway/the mindy project, and maybe take a nap. ;)

i hope you're having a good day! <3

these two

this kid has a new friend.

and they're TOO. MUCH. CUTE. to handle.

the puppy is so sweet and gentle with avie, and she tries to be the same with him. ;)

i'm spending my day today with these guys, and i couldn't be more excited. also, i'm sorry kendall, but look at avie's belly and how she's cuddling you in this picture. had to post it.

<3

guess i'll go to sleep

man, i'm tired. this week has been never ending, it seems. i did start my new job, but my work schedule went like this: sunday at my new job, monday and tuesday at my old job, wednesday through now at my new job. thankfully, i'll actually get two days off this week, but they could. not. come. sooner. to be honest, i'm glad to finally be in my forever job (please don't tell me that i just jinxed myself), because everything changing all of the time is THE WORST. but everyone knows that american eagle has always been my kind of retail home. ae cult status. so i'm stoked on life. obviously. just a sleepy, burnt out girl.

on top of that: last monday night, when austin and i were out to celebrate our anniversary, someone hit my car. womp. i still haven't even gotten to handle it fully with my insurance company, and my little dented door is so sad, but thankfully we were fine and everything is fine. just stressful, you know? i don't handle things like that well (i'm kinda the worst at dealing with STUFF), so i'm glad austin was there to chill me out. it wasn't even a big deal!

also this past week, kendall and her little family adopted a puppy! i'm mostly excited to puppy-sit, so that austin and i can get some practice in. since we're moving soon.. and that (hopefully) means puppy time!! ah! i even have baby/puppy pictures to share.. one day.

so halloween is coming up, and there are a few things i'm pretty serious about getting done beforehand:
- coming up with costumes that beat last years (we were wayne and garth from wayne's world - something that i've wanted to do for as long as i can remember, so this may be impossible)
- the corn maze! we go to the same one every year, and it's perfect and pretty and fun and i love it. unfortunately, i have no idea when i'm going to have a day off with austin, so this actually might not happen :( :(:(
- going to see frankenweenie! i don't even really like tim burton, but i love frankenstein everything, and it just looks so cute. eep.

i promise i'll be around this week. we didn't have the internet last week, and things will be a little bit calmer. :) <3

trip to the science museum

our downtown science museum is one of my favorite places in the whole world. it's not crazy or anything, but it's perfectly sized for a day trip and exploring when you just want to. unfortunately, it's been under construction for a loooong time (and will be under construction until next summer), and the new home of the science museum is kind of a let down.. but we decided it'd still be a fun thing to watch avery experience, and it was.. sort of.

there were like three things that she liked, and she was totally uninterested in the things that we thought she was going to lose her mind over. i guess toddlers are just like that.

i do know one thing, though - a baby drum set is definitely in avery's future. one that we'll leave at her pop's house. ;)

so, that's my sister.
also a giant mouth that we. were. all. about. and avery was its #1 hater.

pretty sure she just loved that we were letting her do whatever she wanted with a computer. but this one read her whatever she typed!!!! ...magic. ;)

i feel bad that i'm being kinda rude, because it was all adorable to see through avery's eyes which was our original point, and the new museum sounds awesome, so i can't wait to take her there.. but this was just kinda silly. the most interesting part for kendall and i was talking to the employee about tarantulas.. because there were two just HANGING OUT at the front desk. ugh, geez, not my favorite thing.

after this, we both got maximum cuddles from avery and ate fast food for lunch and watched some spongebob. it was cute. i love days with these two. <3

distributing gifts

one of my first stops when i got home from renegade was to visit my sister and avery, so that i could give them their gifts from chicago. it'd been too long since i had seen them last, and since avery seems to somehow grow up way too much in between every single time i see her, i've been trying to make them more of a priority.

kendall and i have been having trouble finding little cardigans for avery now that the weather is cooling down, so when i saw this one at h&m, i had to snatch it up. she put it on as soon as i got over there (over nothing but her diaper) and it was SO. cute. it'll look good over everything this fall/winter. :)

the scarf that avery is wearing in the picture is the gift i brought kendall back from renegade. i found it at the little minnow booth, and kinda wish i had picked one up for myself, too. luckily they both loved their little presents.. especially avie, who wore them around until her bath.

this baby is hysterical. she's a serious snacker. she hardly ever agrees to eating meals, but she'll snack all day long. this day, she did such a good job sitting and eating messy doritos while kendall and i caught up.

dorito face.

<3

kendall's 21st birthday

last week, my little sister turned 21! which is so weird. and makes me feel SO old. but that's fine. our dad has taken us to the same restaurant for our birthdays since before i can remember. it's a tradition that i don't mind at all.

a really awful storm with hail as big as quarters started pretty much right when austin and i needed to leave the house to meet my family.

i like taking pictures of frankenstein on road trips and i guess now i like taking pictures of him during weird weather.

thankfully, we got there safe, albeit a lil wet.

i don't drink, so my 21st birthday was kind of a non-event (actually, that's a lie.. some really cute people threw me a "wine and cheese" party, but that's for another time). but that doesn't mean that i didn't get super excited for kendall's! when we got there, she was enjoying her first legal drink. it was so cute. avery was really into the whipped cream at the top, uhh.

kendall and her little family

me and my little family ;)

i love my little sister. there's so much we disagree on, but growing up together really does give us an understanding of each other that no one else will ever have. i've gotten to see her so much more lately than i did while i was in college, and i cherish every second of it. even if she thinks i only see her to spend time with avery!

i'm so glad i have a sister. <3

she was wearing 4 inch wedges.. we're the same height, i promise!

this restaurant takes a group picture at birthdays. i'm sure kendall and i could scrounge up about 10 or so of these each. i think last year's picture from kendall's birthday was the best picture i've ever taken.. ever. we always talk about that, haha. ;) i like this year's because austin had to bend down to fit in with us shorties!

the whole gang!
grandma, jennifer, dad, me & avery, austin
eddie, kendall
cake

it was so nice out after dinner was over. :) <3

water fights and iced lattes

one thing that i hope is super obvious about me these days is that i take my role as aunt REALLY seriously.. i love little avery so intensely, and i want to make sure that she knows it. even if she's only 13 months old. i think this blog is at least a percentage dedicated to her, because i love having a little timeline of her growing up.

this is why, on every one of my thursdays off, you'll find me with kendall and avery for at least a few hours. today, i happened to arrive to their house right as they were filling up avie's tiny pool. i didn't bring my phone or my camera outside, which was a good thing.. because it turned into a full-fled water fight. i ended up soaking wet, even though i tried hard to stay out of it :( . in these pictures, i was wearing my sister's hoodie and a pair of her boyfriend's boxers while my clothes were in the dryer, haha.

this baby is so funny. her attraction to cell phones (all she does is hold them up and pretend like she's talking to them), her aversion to doing basically anything by herself, and her teeth-baring laugh make her one of my favorite people to be around.

luckily, i like my sister a lot, too. ;)

after i left kendall and avery to their naptime, i met my friend caroline at the coffee shop down the street. caroline is bekuh's and my favorite model for the button factory (tied with kendall, of course), but she and i realized recently that we never hang out. it was so nice being able to sit down and have an uninterrupted conversation with her about all kinds of things. i can't wait for more adventures with her, she's the sweetest girl.

i just really love days off! and making new friends! and that sweet lil baby. i'm glad i had such a relaxing day off, because i'm sure this weekend (my last at my current job!!) is going to be just a roller coaster of emotions. <3

trying to welcome summer

even though i'm now officially a documented summer-hater, i did a couple of things that scream summer on my day off this week. kendall has been taking little avery to the pool every day, and i've been soo jealous. i finally got to join them!

i love those sweet ladies. <3

(she had something to add to my conversation)

i stayed as long as i could, until i got a distressing call and had to leave for a couple of hours. it was probably just in time, though, because in those couple of hours, i got sunburnt. :( i really, really do not tan (if you can't tell..), my skin turns bright pink and then i go back to being stark white. i'm okay with it, because i'm going to have awesome skin in my later years, but the recovery time super sucks. you have no idea the amount of editing i had to do these to make me not look like a vampire.. and i still kind of do.

after i took care of some car business (that ran upwards of $150! - does anyone else think cars are the number one biggest waste of money? ugh), i met back up with kendall and avery, with kayla in tow!, for some frozen custard from a cute new place in town, chillypop.

she was clearly into taste testing everyone's custard.

obsessed with this picture.

by the end of it, my cone was perfectly avery-sized! the parlor was a tiny space, so the four of us kind of took it over while we were there. avery was acting like she owned the place. ;)

i have to be honest, if summer can keep offering up sweet get togethers like these, i might change my tune. <3

the prettiest baby i know

now that you've been caught up on the first parties to celebrate little avery's life, i thought i would post a little bit about the sweetest girl and prettiest baby that i know.

born on may 12, 2011, avie is almost a year old! we can't wait to celebrate her first birthday (spoiler alert: i got her some tiny toms.. and her mom some gift cards for diapers and snacks) in a couple of weeks.

she has five teeth now, and it really seems like she likes showing them off.
one of my favorite things that she does is point and whisper (almost all of the actual words that she says are said in whispers) "what's that?" for literally no reason. she'll point at nothing, or at everything. we think it's because when she stays with our grandma once a week, grandma will point at things and tell her what they are. including telling her every person in every picture on her fridge. i love that.
her giggle is hysterical. it's really deep and throaty.

 

she's tiny!! she's almost a year old, but she's wearing 9 month clothes, and still can't fit into her size 2 shoes. which is alright, because it means she can still wear some of my favorite outfits, including:

i guess what i'm trying to say is that i never thought i'd love a baby as much as this. i bought her this book from the 70s at a library sale called "my aunt and i: the best of friends," and i gotta say, i hope it comes true for us. <3

kendall's baby shower(s)

in 2010, my little sister called me out of blue and told me that she was pregnant. then, a couple of weeks later, she found out that she was having a little girl. i was stoked. like seriously so. excited. we started shopping for and obsessing over everything baby right away. i decided that my number one priority as sister (til i became a real aunt!!!) was to throw her the cutest, most low-key baby showers ever (two for luck, obviously. ...just kidding. two because i'm apparently insane). i used the same invitations, decorations, and theme for both.. they just happened at different locations with different guests, food, and outfits for the guest of honor and i. ;)

since i'm probably not going to make a habit of party-throwing, i thought i'd memorialize my career here with a few pictures from the parties. they were held about a year ago.

 me and my sister/ my sister and my mom

the first shower was at my mama's house. :) at this shower, we had a sweet little cake made, based on the invitations.

the second shower was a little bit bigger. we had it at my grandma's house, and invited all of kendall's friends (some of mine came to help and to love on ken, too!) as well as even MORE family than the shower before.

me, kendall, and dad

for this shower, i did more desserts than finger foods, mostly because there were so many people, but also because we held it at a somewhat strange time of day. the cupcake/donut table was my definite favorite..

i also did a teensy tiny more decorating (i'm using that word VERY loosely) for this one.

 

i think i made like 150+ feet of those paper chains. we gave them to my dad's girlfriend to give her daughter afterwards; i always forget to ask, but i hope she got some use out of them! i know austin was beyond over seeing those scraps all over our apartment by the end of all of this.

 

the front table had the favors (candles that i made little cardstock labels for.. most of them matched the invitations [little birdies], but some of them were just doodles), envelopes for everyone to write their names on (for the thank you cards), and a little notebook that i passed around for everyone to write advice to a first time mom in :) kendall uses it now to keep track of things for avery. i love it <3

and, just because i love this picture:

the exact same laugh :)

<3