Professor Ava

Ava drops some knowledge...

Ava's 18th Month

Tar Heeled

From Savannah, we drove up to North Carolina (for the record, not all that close), making this Ava's longest road trip yet.  She seemed not to mind too much, as the road to North Carolina is paved with biscuits.

Ava's first fast food meal.  She ordered biscuits.  And got some biscuits to go.

In North Carolina, we had a mini family reunion with the other side of Ava's family.  We played drums with new cousins, wrestled the old ones, visited the zoo (99 degrees!), and Ava attended her first wedding (99 degrees! Outdoor event!).

XS and XL

Ava couldn't lift Ian--though not for lack of trying--but she certainly could pin him down like a chump.

Eating heartily

I mentioned the heat, right?

We left with some important reminders about life itself: family is great, love is sweet, and sometimes you have to drive 45 minutes to the "best biscuit place ever" to realize that the best biscuit place ever is located a block from your home in Portland.

Whilstlin' Dixie

Frustrated with the slow progression of summer in the Northwest, Ava decided it was about high time we set on down to the deep South and visit her East coast grandparents in Savannah.

We have previously visited the south in the middle of summer so we were prepared for the smothering heat but Ava claims no one warned her about the humidity.  Lacking the proper hair products, she quickly became our own human weather barometer.

Perhaps the most exciting surprise for Ava was her new set of wheels, courtesy of Aunt Paula and Uncle Joe, who made the drive from D.C.  In no time at all, Ava was carpooling with teddy bears and driving into glass curio cabinets.  In a stroke of genius, someone (ahem, Gary) taught her that you fill up the gas tank by placing your hand inside.  I'm sure that won't come back to haunt us, right?

The rest of our time in Savannah was full of great family time, including placing Ava's head in a gator's mouth, swimming, more tickling than you would imagine, nightly feasts, a birthday celebration, and generally staying out of the heat as much as possible.

 

Ava gave this gator a high five.

Savannah ticklefest

Next up...the southern experience continues with a biscuit-fueled trip to North Carolina.

Ava + humidity =

1.21 Gigawatts