Another song, another season

Before Audrey was born, Ryan and I spent a couple of summer seasons at the Scera Shell outdoor theater watching plays, concerts, and movies. It was so much fun. This year we thought we'd try it with a toddler.
We saw Footloose, Pride and Prejudice, and The King and I (all musicals).
For the concerts we had Jordin Sparks, Three Dog Night, Boyz II Men, Little River Band, and ABBA.
This year Ryan's parents and brother joined us. It saved us to have other people there to help entertain Audrey.Another thing that saved us was Dippin' Dots. Audrey really did like them in spite of the face she is making in this picture.


This is Audrey running down the aisle from Devin!


These last three pictures are from the last concert. It was September 1st and it was freezing!

First time at the Zoo

Audrey really seems to like animals and Ryan and I were sure it had been close to 20 years since either one of us had been to the zoo, so I made him take a day off during the week to go. The beginning of the day was perfect. Audrey was actually okay with sitting still in her stroller (this is usually NOT the case) and the weather was perfect. Then I had the brilliant idea of taking Audrey on the Carousel. She hadn't been on one since she was four months old but I thought she'd love it. I couldn't tell the reason why, but she hated it. She cried the whole time. After that she wasn't in the mood to go in the stroller so we let her run wild in the small animal building.
She chased this cat back and forth for awhile.
She was a little wary of the train at first but wound up liking it by the time it started moving. Ryan and I were grateful for the small breeze at this point in the day.
Our favorite part was the penguin pool. The penguins would line up on the edge of the ground, then take turns jumping in. Audrey would say "Ready, set, go" (this is one of her favorite phrases). Once they were in the water they even did some tricks for us. We thought it fitting for Audrey's souvenir to be this stuffed penguin.

Are Dads more fun?

You know how frustrating it is when someone is playing 'keep away' with you and you can't seem to get the ball? This is not the case for Audrey. She thinks it's hilarious.


I try to do things with Audrey all day. I read her books and take her shopping and we sing and dance...but she always seems to laugh and play harder when Daddy's home. They seem to have the best time with the simplest game.
To be honest, I wouldn't have it any other way.
This particular game was really close to bedtime as you can see by the look on Audrey's face.
P.S. Audrey always wins.

2nd Annual Ride on the Heber Valley Railroad

Last year the tradition began. My mother-in-law Jackie, sister-in-law Ashley, niece Halle, Audrey and I rode the Heber Valley Railroad. Audrey was about six months old and had no idea what was going on. But the rest of us had a great time. The scenery is amazing, the ride is relaxing, and we get to spend time together. This year was even better.
Here are the girls ready and excited with their new train whistles.
Halfway through the ride we get about half an hour at Vivian Park to run around.

Even though she broke her leg on one months ago, Audrey loves the slide.
I think the highlight of the day for Audrey was the Dairy Keen restaurant where she couldn't take her eyes off the train that ran on a track around the walls and this train outside.

There's no stopping them now!

A few minutes before these pictures were taken, we were attempting to keep these two girls dry. Keep in mind that the sun is already going down, Audrey didn't have a change of clothes and our niece Chloe had already been through an outfit that day. So much for that!!!


At some point, you just can't help but stand back and watch!


There also comes a time to grab the camera.

Trip to Pennsylvania

Our trip to Pennsylvania was an eye opener for Ryan and me (it's hard to travel with a toddler), but looking back it was worth it to spend all that time together. Audrey seems to be learning so much lately, neither one of us want to miss it.
We started in Philadelphia. This is Audrey meeting James Madison at the Constitution Center. She had to touch all the eyes, noses, and ears (a new favorite activity) of the signers of the Constitution.
This is Audrey in the Sacred Grove in Palmyra, New York. Although I don't condone the fact that she picked this dandy lion, I had to take this picture. What a blessing to be in the trees where Joseph Smith spoke to our Heavenly Father and our Savior.
Our next stop was Niagara Falls. We splurged and stayed in a beautiful "falls view" room at the Marriott in Canada. It was so amazing. We spent so much time in our room just watching out the window.
Everywhere we went Audrey had to chase the birds, seagulls, pigeons, and ducks (to Audrey they are all ducks and they all say 'quack quack quack'). She would never get bored with this activity. Imagine being at Niagara Falls and spending so much time chasing seagulls!
We added two stadiums to our goal of going to every MLB stadium. We saw the Giants play the Phillies and the Pirates. When we first got in to the Pirates' stadium they had this tiny baseball park for the kids to run the bases. Audrey was so excited.
The Pirates game was the night before we flew home. After seven days of traveling, Audrey was looking pretty tired.

All American Girl

For everyone who's heard the Carrie Underwood song "All American Girl", I am devoting this post to that song. That song could have been written especially for Ryan and Audrey. When Ryan first heard that we were having a girl, he was pretty disappointed. Everyone had predicted we were having a boy and we had started to believe it. After the ultrasound we took a walk in the canyon and talked. He felt like he would know what to do with a boy better than a girl. He's also convinced we won't have any boys (because of the female population in my family) and thought the first one would be the best chance. I told him that he should plan on treating his daughter just like his son. He should buy her clothes from the BYU bookstore and take her to games etc. He felt a lot better after that. Audrey has tons of stuff with the BYU and San Francisco Giants logos. This year we've been able to take her to a few Jazz games and even two playoff games! What a trooper. Check out her Deron Williams jersey.
For the record: Audrey has been to six Jazz games, a Major League baseball game, a Real Salt Lake soccer game, one BYU football game in New Mexico and six home BYU football games.