Wichita Trip

In early May, Mimi and Boompa flew Ava and I to Wichita to spend a whole week with them. We had SO much fun, and if it weren't for daddy staying back home, we would've stayed in Wichita with them much longer!

Conveniently, the week we were in Wichita was the last week in our old house before we moved, so it was nice for us to be out of the way while our lives were packed up into a million boxes!

My little frequent flyer giving her "Ava smiles" before boarding the plane :)

Aside from all the fun we had out and about, we also had a blast at Mimi and Boompa's home, since they turned it into disneyland for Ava - they got her a play kitchen, a baby doll, a sandbox, her very own pink chair, magna tiles, playdough, and lots more! She really didn't want to leave! More than anything, she absolutely loved playing with her Mimi and Boompa - it's so precious seeing relationships form at her age and the special bond she has with each.

Ava loved playing with the puppies, Bear and Pebbles!

She especially loved this pink chair Mimi bought her and would drag it inside and outside constantly:

Our first day in Wichita, Mimi had to work, so Boompa took Ava and I to the park, an arcade, and to the town river to feed the ducks!

Playing at the park with Boompa:

And at the kid arcade with Boompa:

Waiting for Mimi to come home, coloring and playing with play dough...seeing her run up, screaming "Mimi! Mimi!" with an enormous smile when she walked in the door is a memory I won't soon forget!

Feeding the ducks with Boompa:

Video of Ava feeding the ducks/geese - they were incredibly aggressive, so much of the video is of the ground while I ensure my baby wasn't getting attacked! https://youtu.be/W6hTciDduMo

Snuggling with Mimi :)

Stylin'!

The second day we were in Wichita, Mimi took Friday off work, and we all went to the incredible Wichita Zoo together. Our first of three total trips, as it is a massive zoo with so much to see!

Ava loved watching Mama Orangutan with Baby Orangutan :)

She also really loved being up close with the Giraffe, until it stuck it's long slimy tongue out! :)

She's never seen a hippo before!

More fun back at Mimi and Boompa's - we loved playing with our baby doll...

More snuggles with Mimi :)

Mimi and Ava both share a deep love for popcorn!

It was special to be there for Mother's Day - we took this picture out at lunch together, celebrating the special bond between mothers/daughters and grandmother/granddaughter :)

Plus, Ava got to eat "Affles" (Waffles), so it was a good Mother's Day in her book!

Back at the Wichita zoo, on their boat ride. This boat takes you right up to their elephants that come out into the water. Apparently, it's the 3rd largest elephant exhibit in the world!

We went out to eat quite a bit while we were there, and Ava loved all the food Wichita had to offer! Especially at this restaurant, where they gave her pizza dough to play with while we waiting for food (so mama only had to hear "need food mama!" about 948 times instead of 9274746484 times) :)

She also had her first dairy-free ice cream treat!

Safe to say she LOVED it!

Sadly, Mimi got called away on an urgent business trip half-way through our visit, but we continued exploring Wichita with Boompa. Here's a few pics from the Botanica Gardens...

And, a few pics from our 3rd and final visit to the Wichita zoo (we still didn't see every animal!)...

By far, Ava's favorite part of the entire zoo, was the petting zoo where she got to pet, hug, chase and feed goat and sheep, including baby goats and sheep! I've literally never seen her so happy! Her absolute love for animals only continues to grow!

This is one of my favorite videos of Ava of all time - feeding the baby goats/sheep: https://youtu.be/B7Xz9abBS2o

We loved playing with all the ladybugs living in Mimi and Boompa's backyard too!

Major win for the Wichita airport - they have a toddler play area!! These should exist in every airport!!!

We miss Mimi and Boompa terribly already, and we're so grateful for our special time with them and all they did to make Ava comfortable while we were there! She really didn't want to leave (and they were quite okay with that...but, dada wasn't :))