Avery at 15 Months Old

Avery had a wellness checkup some days ago and is growing right on the average line even though she looks smaller than her age.  She is now 20 lbs which means that I can change her car seat to forward facing and create a new change in scenery for her since she is starting to get bored looking back at nothing.

Our little angel is finally showing a little more personality that includes some sassiness.  When asked to do something she replies "No" in sweet manner that makes it seem funny.  She actually responds that way because she notices that Emily does it all the time except she doesn't know the context of how her sister uses it.  After a stern look she comes walking toward you or does what she is told. 

For the most part Avery is very much a mama's girl although she loves to yell for dada and is saddened when he walks out of the room.  She sticks to me like glue which can be frustrating at times when I'm cooking or need to hustle.  Her feelings get hurt fast and she can cry for reasons such as not being carried or being put down when she isn't ready. Avery is also starting to fight with Emily for petty things.  I should actually say Emily is in a aggressive stage where she says everything is hers so Avery gets the short end of the stick most of the time.  I have noticed that Avery is starting to stick up for herself by yelling in short bursts or trying to bite or pinch.  She has never bit another child at school but she will try and do it to her sister when she feels she is not being treated fairly.  While she likes rough housing with her big sister there is a limit with what she can take and I have to watch them very closely so she doesn't get hurt.

School is a great asset and Avery is learning so much.  She can recite where her body parts are located and count up to four which is as high as they have gone in her class.  Avery is also recognizing more animals and the sounds that they make with her favorites being a cow, a dog, and a lion.  Her phonics are also coming along great I am pleased to say that Avery has great pronunciation and says her words clear enough to understand.  Although she is learning more and more everyday from school, she also learns from her big sister and will copy many of her moves and words.  When Emily gets excited about one thing or another Avery also has to mimick her excitement most of the time not knowing what the fuss is all about. 

A new developement is dancing.  Avery never was much of a dancer and when asked would just stare at you as if you were crazy.  Now its as if she's found her dancing shoes and dances whenever music is played.  She mostly sways her hips from side to side and her arms back and forth all while sticking out her tongue or laughing.  With Christmas just around the corner mom and dad have asked Santa to look for some animal toys or items with music to please Avery's new found interests.

Play Time with Sisters

As our young ones grow so does their love for each other and their tolerance to share opens so that they can play with each other in peace.  Don't get me wrong, they aren't the best with each other all the time, but they have their sweet moments, and the following pictures are some of them.

Halloween 2011

Halloween was different this year in that daddy was working nights and mama had to hold down the fort all by herself.  I didn't want to stay at home alone with the girls so we ventured out to Nonna's for the night and went trick-or-treating in her neighborhood.  As this was the first time both girls would be trick-or-treating I figured their quiet neighborhood would be a great place to start.  I am so glad we started there because the first couple of houses we went to Emily freaked out.  She started out fine walking up to the door, but once someone opened the door she clamored up Nonna's leg and started to cry.  Once calm, she got to get some candy and was very quick to say thank you and bye-bye!  Her previous bumble bee outfit wasn't working so she wore her fairy costume instead.  Emily loves fairies so it was perfect.  Avery was happy in her cow costume and was along for the ride being carried in my arms most of the way.  We got to see some of Nonna's friends and then took a little trip to Mimi and Papa Joe's house.  They were very happy to see the girls and the girls got some yummy treats.  All in all it was a great Halloween but we are hoping next year that daddy will get to join us.

Pumpkin Patch and Fall Festival 2011

As we headed into October I started to get excited with the thought of Halloween costumes for the girls and our yearly trip to the pumpkin patch.  I bought Avery's cow outfit early in the month and then decided upon a bumble bee outfit for Emily which I ordered mid-October.  When I received Emily's costume in the mail a week after I ordered it, I found that I was missing pieces and had to wait another week for the wings and antenna to arrive.  This delayed our pumpkin patch visit until the last week of October.  As we are getting ready for our trip I noticed that Emily's skirt had already torn, no problem I just pulled off the bottom lace detail.  Then she lost her antenna, which to this day I still cannot find.  To top it off her wing elastic was too tight and snapped, hitting her in the face which caused her to say, "No bumble bee."  What a fiasco.  Ama came to help out and was supposed to also bring her trusty professional camera, only to find that she had forgotten it at home.  Feeling horrible, she decided that as an early Christmas present she was going to buy us a camera for our little family.  Yay!  But as we were on our way to the store we passed by our little pumpkin patch to see that it had been torn down already and there were no pumpkins left for us to pose by.  Could it get any worse than this?  In the end we took pictures in front of our home with our new camera.  My little stinkers wouldn't sit still so most of the pictures are of them walking around.  Oh, and daddy gave Emily some cereal and she wouldn't let go of the box so most of her pictures have her carrying around the box of cereal.

The Thursday before Halloween, Nonna had a fall festival at her school.  Alyssa and I took the girls and they had a wonderful time.  Emily got to play toss-the-ball and won some candy and prizes for her and her sister.  Avery also got to play at the lily pad pond and tossed the ball into the water, which she loved.  Alyssa took Emily down the inflatable slide and we had hot dogs and treats for dinner.  Although Emily was a little apprehensive about all the kids in costume she still had fun. We will definitely be going back next year.

Fun with Play-Doh

Now that fall has arrived the days aren't so hot and the air has a slight breeze.  It is on days like these that going outside to play is the best, and on this particular day the girls decided to take their play-doh out with them.  We enjoyed our time with snacks and creation.  The girls loved it so much we stayed out there almost until the sun went down.

Emily at 25 Months Old

Now that Emily is two years old we are working on potty training full time.  It doens't always work because as soon as she sits on the potty she stands up and says all done.  Then she grabs a piece of toilet paper and wipes and wipes as if she has a mess to clean up.  Her favorite part of course is the flushing of the toilet.  While she hasn't pee pee'd on the potty at home she has gone several times at school.

Speaking of school, this past month has brought on new information and fun times.  Emily started attending Tumble Bus every Friday and she loves it.  The Tumble Bus is a school bus that is gutted out and filled with small gymnastics equipment.  There is a slide, a small trampoline, a glider , a balance beam, and mats to teach minor gymnastics and coordiation.  Emily absolutely loves Tumble Bus and is excited to go to school when she knows it's Tumble Bus day.

Emily knows how to count to ten in English and now she can count up to five in Spanish!  Every week Emily's teachers write on her cirriculum sheet what she is to learn and so far they have only put that they are working on uno and dos.  As I was practicing with Emily at home, I came to find that after dos she said tres and then cuatro and then cinco.  Wow, I was amazed at how much she learned and at how quickly she learned it.  I am really impressed with Emily's preschool and am so glad she is getting a headstart for when she attends kindergarten.

Two year olds can be a little frustrating at times and Emily is like every other two year old, a handful.  She is constantly pushing our buttons and trying our patience.  I am sure I have said these things before.  Although she is testing limits she also knows when she is in trouble and when mom and dad are not happy. Time outs are helping too.