Baby Alive

When I was a kid...I had a Baby Alive doll.

Oh, the joy.

I'll never forget the day she arrived. It was Easter Sunday, at my Grandma Clingerman's house. The Easter Bunny brought her. Her skin was soft, she wore a diaper, and when I fed her - REAL food (well, real to a 4 year-old, it came in packets in her box) she actually moved her mouth as she ATE the food!

The JOY!

So when I saw the NEW Baby Alive in Wal-Mart last Friday, I was hooked and thought, "Ava has to have one!"

These marketing folks are smart.

Luckily, she too, is as excited about caring for a baby as I was. That's the nice way of saying she is waaaay excited about feeding her baby and then changing her diaper, because yes folks, her diaper is really wet after you feed her.

So, in the end, everyone lives happily ever after...
Ava loves her too. And I know she's going to be a good mommy to her new charge. We cleaned out her toybox before our trip to Wal-Mart and boxed all of the soft toys she no longer plays with and donated them to the puppies in need of love at the Humane Society.

Life is good.

How to Make a Hillbilly Birdfeeder

First, gather your ingredients: pinecones, peanut butter and birdseed. Then test the peanut butter to make sure it's OK.

Smear the peanut butter on the pinecones. Ok, that's good...

Roll the pinecones in birdseed and shake off any excess.


Tie a string around the top of the pinecone and viola! You're ready to hang this baby on a tree and watch for squirrels and birds.

Under the Sea...

On a whim, Ava and I hopped in the car and drove to Chattanooga to visit the Tennessee Aquarium. The day was beautiful and the drive, just right. Not too long, but far enough away to feel like we were on an adventure!

Our first exhibit was the Sea Horses. We took an escalator down to see them and Ava was so excited with the moving stairs, that after seeing one sea horse, she grabbed my hand and led me back to the escalators so we could ride up. I was afraid we'd paid good money to ride the escalators...

Luckily, there was a looooooooooooong escalator that took us way up to a rain forest. The chirping birds and waterfall enticed her into the wild and away from the moving stairs. We watched otters swim, she climbed rocks to peer at snakes and birds, and walked down some steps to see turtles and trout.

"Where is the baby turtle's mommy?!" she gasped, watching a little turtle swim in the deep water. We found it's mommy swimming not too far away, and she was relieved enough to go on to the Shark aquarium.


I had no idea she'd be so taken with sharks. She ran towards the glass and 'ahhhhed' over the hammerheads. We peered into the tank for what seemed like hours, watching the stingrays, the starfish, the sharks and other large, menacing bug-eyed sea creatures glide through the water.


After the excitement of the sharks, we got chocolate/vanilla swirl ice cream cones and enjoyed our walk to the IMAX theater. We had tickets to "Under the Sea" and Ava hoped we would see Ariel, since Sebastian the crab sings the song ('Under the Sea')in her favorite movie, "The Little Mermaid". We were excited when handed glasses, not knowing we'd get a 3D experience.


It was amazing! Ava reached to touch the coral and seals as they swam by. We made it through the whole movie. Afterwards, I gave Ava the choice of going back to the aquarium or going home. "Let's go home, Mommy."

Not more than 10 minutes into the ride home and she was asleep. It was a fun day together. We'll go back soon, to visit Camp Discovery and spend some more time under the sea!!