News (And Corona!)

I feel like I'm so obsessed with Ava these days that I haven't given the scoop on ME or Curt lately. Clearly we've taken a back seat to the princess of the palace. SPOILED!

I just took a whirlwind trip down to North Carolina to see some good friends that I haven't seen in over a year! They were all with Curt and I in England and moved back before we did. It was so wonderful to see them. I drove, crazy - I know, but it was well worth it. I really enjoy driving, alone, and so rarely get to do it so believe me, I was quite content singing at the top of my lungs while driving on 95 south for what felt like an eternity while I was stuck in Virginia beach traffic with teenage boys leering into my window from their beat up pick up truck. Flattering? No. I was wearing a dress, strictly for comfort, and this brought some wandering eyes from men of all ages. ICK. It was to my knees while I was standing and when I sat down, well, lets just say it scooted up a few inches. Still totally appropriate, I promise. I teach children, for heavens sake.

Me and Dee, together again!!! I had a great time catching up with the Madsen family and I hope Dee comes to visit me and Ava SOON!!! (hint, hint...)

Curt is in the process of bartering with car dealers at both Nissan and Honda, as we speak. I am hoping he gets the accord but the altima is also in the running. I get the pleasure of doing the test drives, so we'll see how that goes. Team Honda from me though. I personally like the look much more. Curt is more aware of dollar signs and seeing how this will be his car he will most likely have the last say. I will leave you with this, though. I do have powerful ways of persuasion. :)
For me? Well, not that it's a surprise but I have some expensive taste. Thankfully, I'm more than willing to work (Really!) hard for the things I like and it just so happens that I LOVE what I do, so look at that. We all win! I think you all remember my days of hobbling around at 8 months pregnant being a full time sub AND tutoring at night. Excuse me, while I pat myself on the back real quick. :) Curt and I will probably buy me a used SUV, and the leaders are from either Lexus or Acura. The new ones are a tad too pricey for this stay at home mom this time around. More to come on my new wheels. We aren't going to buy it until December-ish time frame. Oh, and don't judge on my "expensive" tastes, either. Back when Curt and I were young-ins I told him that the Lexus was my "dream car" so this is faaaar from an impulse buy. No lie, I think I was a freshman in college when I started lusting this car. Granted, a new Lexus would be too expensive for this 28 year old, so used it is. Living within our means, people!

Speaking of work, I am not sure when I will get back in front of the chalk board, or the "dry erase board", these days. I might be in Baby Making mode for a few years and then it will be back to work, FOR GOOD! Babies now. Work later. I was fortunate enough to get a phone call from my boss a few weeks ago at home, FROM ENGLAND, and he is going to help me out big time when I do get back into application mode. I just recently gave him access to my blog so I hope he checks it out! He's headed to SC this summer to start work at a new school. I was bummed he wasn't in NC, but just like the military, it's a crap shoot when it comes to where you're headed next! He was so great to me when I worked at Lakenheath and I'm forever grateful for his faith in me to work for him as a novice teacher. It was a wonderful experience!

Back to Curt! He is in full Weapons School mode. I seriously don't know how he does it. We talk daily but it's usually short and always very sweet. Lots of "I love you's!!!!!!!!" and then he's off to study. Ava and I are headed out there to love on him in a few weeks. I'm especially pumped because I've never been to Vegas. Did I think my first trip out there would include a 9.5 month old? Well, of course not! But, we got lucky and Miss Ava will be playing the slots and shooting the dice all weekend long. Ha!

I will leave you with a small Ava update. She's growing up so stinkin' fast it's unreal. She is now:
- uttering new sounds and "words" daily. We sometimes include a short "mama" here and there. Whatever. I'll take what I can get. "Dada" is spewed from her pretty little lips all the live long day. Lucky guy... I swear, swear, SWEAR she said "Elmo", or "A-Mo" the other day. NUMEROUS TIMES. She would look at Elmo live and say, "A-Mo". Ummm, I KNOW! My Mother stands witness to this. She's a sponge and I need to watch my lil mouth from here on out. :)

- She is crawling like crazy and is trying desperately to stand. She ends up in this funky tripod position and wonders why she isn't completely upright. It's great. She loves to hold onto somewhat stationary objects and the couch and then smile at her newfound freedom and accomplishment.

- She is refusing solids like never before. She purses her lips together and absolutely REFUSES to let one speck of food enter her mouth. Just yesterday and today she ate a total of about 15 bites of food, but that's it. I called the Doc and he wants to see her tomorrow. He thinks she has a sore throat? Ummm, no. I hope it's teething! I pray it's nothing more serious. She is finally starting to gnaw on teething cookies, so that's a start. Still no dice on the rice puffs or things of that nature. She's a picky eater, like her MaMa!

- Speaking of Teething. She has no teeth. NONE. NOT A ONE.

- She is a great sleeper and loves, loves, LOVES her crib! It's definitely her safe space and she just zonks out, after a few minutes of crawling around, as soon as she gets in there. We used to have a little snuggle time in the rocker before I put her down but now she pushes off my face and attempts to dive head first into her bed. Oh well, she's growing up and loving her independence. She is down to two naps a day and about 10-11 hours at night. Bliss...

- She is in LOVE with her grandma's (and grandpa's) and I'm so thankful for this opportunity to live in PA for a few months so she can be surrounded by family. She loves to go to the pool and church with g-ma dougherty, and I'm sure they squeeze some shopping in here and there. :) Back here at the Quigley Compound she is blessed with songs and dance, big dogs and bbq's, and so many stinkin' toys you would think she won the toys r us lottery.

Here is a cute video of Ava and I having a small dance session. She loves to "raise her hand in the aiiiiir" while she's feelin' the beats and clearly, she could care less who's watching. My Mom and I were shopping (shocking!) and we stopped off for lunch to refuel. Ava really enjoyed our pit stop.


So there you have it. Not too exciting, but it's our life and we love it.

Disclaimer: My Dad had some left over Coronas in the fridge and I helped myself prior to writing this blog. I didn't proof read OR spell check. I only had one but my lack of sleep and lower tolerance makes for a silly combination. Enjoy my errors!!!