Tis the Season. Again.

As we sit down to write this post about Christmas we realize that we've given Ava a rather odd view of the event. To coordinate with family from afar we've staged "Christmas" five times in her two years of life: February 14 2009, December 20, 2009, December 25, 2009, November 25, 2010, and her most recent one. This girl's cleaning up!

The concept is still pretty vague in her mind, but she was over-the-top excited that the Christmas season starts off with a bunch of lights. Her (self-appointed?) role during the season was to scream out "Lights!" whenever we passed some. Bless the eagerness of a child, she seemed just as surprised and proud to call out the 2,000th house as she did the first.

Tom, Emily (+1), and Ian flew in to Portland on Christmas Eve. Ian was so eager to start opening gifts that he woke up at 5:00 a.m. and started knocking over tall towers of stackable cups. It was a few hours before we actually started the festivities but Ava seemed truly excited to walk us around the tree and point to gifts saying, "That's Ava's present." With every gift, she let out a gasp as she ripped off the wrapping paper and then finished with an exclamation of joy of some sort. That is, until she opened the apron that Helen handmade for her (might I point out, my first sewing project ever). To that present she cried "Don't like it!" and actually ran away from the gift. A mother's heartache begins here.

Ava was, of course, very excited to spend a week with grandparents and the Boston gang. Weather aside (7 straight days of heavy rain), we had a great time hanging out with family. We spent almost all of our time inside, but that was fine by Ava--it just gave her more time to mother Ian. Here's the two of them in the bath together, with Ava kindly attempting to wash Ian's hair.

While the Edwards family was together, we had a photo shoot. We haven't seen all the photos yet, but here's a preview: 

 

Ava gets a haircut!

At long last, Ava got her first haircut! The build-up to the moment--kicking, screaming, and so so many tears--lasted a good 15 minutes while the haircut itself took 30 seconds. And at the end of it all, you could barely tell she'd had a haircut at all except for this beaming face and quite a grand certificate.

"This certifies that Ava bravely received a hair cut with high honors for great conduct and grown up behavior from Miss Aubrey on December 28th, 2010"

Little Clippers apparently has very low standards for grown up behavior.

Hula Girl

A week after our trip to Chicago, we were off again.  This time to sunny Hawaii. What can we say about Hawaii? It was pretty awesome.

Ava is totally a resort girl. She wows in a tankini. She loves the pool, but she likes to at least have the option of a sand castle on the beach. On cooler days, a game of tennis might be in order.

When it comes to hitting the surf, there's no doubt Ava loves the idea of the ocean. It's fun to look at, and, if you're lucky, you might just come across a sea turtle or two popping their heads up. Getting in the ocean, however, is a completely absurd notion to our cautious child. Not only did Ava not set foot in the waves, she also advised the rest of her party to avoid doing so. When we ignored her advice, she looked slightly horrified, screaming after us, "Mama, you okay? Daddy, you okay?" Ever the swimmer, Helen views this as a personal failure and has since vowed to head back to the pool for more starfish lessons.

Ocean animals, on the other hand, are right up Ava's alley. Here she is at the Maui Ocean Center:

But more than the beach, the pool, and the sharks, Ava enjoyed lots of east coast grandparent time. They spent their days eating on the lanai, coloring, reading, feeding koi fish, and playing games like "I'm Hiding" (more accurately, "I'm sitting under a glass table with my eyes shut"). All in all, pretty cute stuff.

 

Ava's 23rd Month

Ava was quite the jet-setter this month, logging plenty of miles with trips to Chicago and Maui.  As much as we would like to convince ourselves that all this departure from routine is the root of Ava's recent outrageous emotional outbursts assertiveness, we fear the terrible twos are upon us.  Wish us luck.

Thanksgiving

In honor of the arrival of cousin #2 (Monica) and in celebration of Thanksgiving, Ava took to the skies again this November. Her trip to Chicago started with "Monica's first tailgate," complete with Big 10 family and friends from around the country. Rivalries aside, Ava quickly embraced her new cousin.

Ava's motherly instincts kicked in and Monica was subjected to unrelenting bottle feedings and diaper changes - with limited success. Ava also served as some sort of human baby monitor in reverse, standing by Monica's crib shouting "Aca sleeping!"

When it came to sharing the spotlight, Ava reluctantly agreed so long as Monica stayed away from Ava's toys. A deal was reached.

It was too cold to play outside (especially for a small child who refuses to wear jackets) so Ava joined in with such Rabold holiday traditions as card playing and puzzles. As you can see here, she's not all that bad.

Ava also tried her hand at another Rabold tradition - heavily posed family portraits. As you can see here, she's not all that bad.

Ava's 22nd Month

Our camera broke this month so you'll have to use your imagination to recreate the majority of the scenes from the past few weeks.

All in all, it was an eventful month as "Machines At Work" (one of Ava's favorite books), was played out in real life. We took a field trip to the closest construction site so Ava could check out all of construction equipment, which made her a very happy girl. Thinking we were on to something, we followed up with a hayride, to which she responded, "All done. No like." into Helen's shoulder as she clung on for dear life.

Unintentionally, we gave a Ava another introduction to large machinery a few weeks later when Helen and Ava were in a car crash (boooo).  About an hour after the crash, just when hanging out on the side of a road became not so cool, our tow truck arrived and was greeted by Ava's screams of "MACHINES AT WORK!"  Sure, we lost our car that day. But Ava got to ride in a tow truck!  So maybe it wasn't such a bad day after all.

A Day in the Life - October 21

 

• 7:30 a.m.- 8:00 a.m. - Ava wakes up, plays with her stuffed animals in the crib
• 8:00 a.m.- 8:30 a.m. - Brian gets Ava up, she demands "dinner," has yogurt and granola for breakfast
• 8:30 a.m. - 8:50 a.m. - Ava colors at her table, correctly identifies the orange marker, beams with pride  
• 8:50 a.m. - 9:10 a.m. - Ava stacks our prep bowls in different formations, one of her favorite pastimes.
• 9:10 a.m. - 9:40 a.m. - Typical Ava diaper change. She is informed it is time for her diaper to be changed, she requests to skip to the bedroom instead of walking, then she changes her mind, thinking that hopping would be a better idea.  The rest of this time is spent trying to get clothes on Ava as she screams and rolls around on the ground.
• 9:40 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. - Snack time.
• 10:00 a.m. - 10:15 a.m. - Getting socks and shoes on.  Yes, it really does take this long.
• 10:30 - 11:45 a.m. - Indoor play park with our friends Jolie and Carolyn.
• 12:00 noon - Home again, Ava announces she has pooped.  She sits on the potty and we sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and read books.
• 12:15 p.m. - 12:30 p.m. - Lunch: bulgur, beans and applesauce
• 12:30 p.m. - Ava requests a nap.
• 12:30 p.m. - 2:15 p.m. - Nap time
• 2:15 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. - Ava wakes up and practices putting a diaper on her doll.
• 3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. - Shopping
• 4:15 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. - Skype with Tom, Ian and Emily
• 4:30 p.m. - 4:45 p.m. - Snack time
• 4:45 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. - More coloring
• 5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. - Family walk
• 6:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. - Ava washes dishes at the sink while dinner is prepared.  Side note: she's not all that bad.
• 6:30 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. - Dinner: spaghetti and meatballs
• 7:00 p.m. - 7:15 p.m. - Bath time
• 7:15 p.m. - 7:45 p.m. - Getting ready for bed...diaper change, brushing teeth, reading books
• 7:45 p.m. - Ava gets tucked in for the night.  She goes to bed in her turtle jammies with 3 pacifiers, a small doll, and 3 stuffed animals.

Tinkle tinkle little star

As they potty train the kids at school, Ava's teachers have been singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star to keep everyone seated.  Here is Ava's re-enactment:

Transcript:
A: Hi
H: Can you sing to her?
A: Twinkle Twinkle. (Baby): Yay.  I did it.  I pee peed potty.
H: Ohhhhh.  Baby pee peed on the potty?
A: Yay.
...
A: There.
H: There she goes.  She's not sitting inside the potty now.  She's sitting on the potty.  That's good. Okay...let's sing to her.
A: Twin
H: Kle.  Twinkle.
A: Twinkle. How I wonder what. Up above.  Ba-bove. Ba-ba-bove. Up-babove. How are you. Won't you. Twinkle. Up. How I. Yay!

A lot of people suggest that your brain turns to mush when you talk to a kid all day but I think we can all agree this video tells a different story.  Pretty riveting stuff.

Ava's 21st Month

As we look back on this month, we are fairly convinced that Ava's 21st month was the best yet. We're still deliberating, but it was pretty awesome.

The biggest change this past month has been her interest in her friends. While she's always loved them, she now routinely asks to visit their houses. When she does see them, she spends all of her time hugging them. Case in point: during Ava's last music class, we would estimate no fewer than 12 hugs between Ava and Alex (counting loving sleeper holds). Just darling.

Ava is also expanding her artistic repertoire. She can now sing three different songs (albeit poorly, if we're being honest), and she dances better than Brian. She's rounding out her creative side by dabbling in painting, with an emphasis on tempera and mixed media.

Swinging, swinging, swinging in the sheets

Sure, chores take a wee bit longer when Ava's around.  But chores are way more fun when Ava's around.

Ava's 20th Month

This month we stepped up our efforts at molding Ava into a productive citizen. We've harnessed her youthful exuberance in the kitchen by making her both sous chef and dishwasher (as we explained to her, you've got to start somewhere). In addition, we've started her Miss Manners training by taking her out to eat at honest-to-goodness restaurants with some frequency. Just when we started patting ourselves on the back, though, Ava started speaking in full sentences. Turns out, those first sentences were commands and outright refusals.

But we're hardly slave-drivers around here. Ava visits the zoo so often that she now screams "ANIMOWS!" or "AFRICA!" every time we hop on the highway. And when we're not at the zoo, we're spider hunting in the backyard and puddle jumping on the sidewalk. Here are some pictures from her latest adventures...

Movin' On Up

It's a time of transition for Ava and her daycare pals!  This week Ava, along with her ChildRoots friends and teachers, will graduate from room 7 to room 4.  Room 4 boasts a more challenging play structure and a kitchen arranged so the kids can serve themselves lunch. Yeehaw!!

In honor of their graduation, we thought we would share a few photos from the last 8 months. Recommended listening: Barbra's "The Way We Were."

Room 7 enjoys a family-style meal

Precious.  Am I right?  Ava's the one holding a bunny.

Each morning her teachers rearrange the room to keep things new and interesting.  Ava likes to destroy these creations before the other kids have a chance to enjoy them.  You've got to get up pretty early in the morning...

Peek-ing and boo-ing, and all that.

Catch ya later room 7.

Ava says a bunch of stuff

I'm taking pity on all of you and just posting a portion of this incredibly long video. Here's little Ava Kate saying some of the words she knows while doling out hugs to her pops.

Ava's 19th Month

This month in Ava's world:

• Ava continues to talk to anyone or anything within earshot. Her new favorite words are "smoothie," "nokay," "outside," and "oops," although at this point she can make a fairly good attempt at most words.
• Smoothies are now Ava's largest food group.  She requests them every time she sits down for a meal, walks through the kitchen, or during the odd occasional pause in conversation. In response, we now add all sorts of vegetables in with her fruit smoothies and she seems to be none the wiser.
• Scrapes and cuts are becoming an everyday occurrence as Ava attempts to gain the independence she feels she deserves.  We remain unconvinced.
• Ava's wild mane of hair is now completely out of control.  Month 20 holds the promise of Ava's first haircut. See for yourself in this month's pics...

Ava's Hot (Play) Date

Last week our good friend Alexander Cash (or "Aleh," as Ava likes to call him) came over to play. Ava found the idea of "sharing" to be a little much to handle but did allow him to play with two trains at the corner of the blanket, when she wasn't paying attention.

Ava is a quick study, though, and by snack time she had really grasped the concept of sharing.

Here she is allowing Alex to share his pretzels with her.

After exhausting all possible backyard activities, we moved to the front porch where the kids completely lost their minds.

The date ended with a romantic stroll to the park.

Camping! Or...How I spent my summer with yahoos shooting guns on the river

We have been talking about taking Ava camping for about a year now but were holding off due to overwhelming fear. Ava loves being outside but sleeping in a tent is uncharted territory for her. But, you can only put these things off for so long, so this July we bit the bullet (continue reading to see how apt a phrase this really is) and headed for the forest.

We started with a swim in a river. Keep in mind, this is an Oregon, glacier-fed river with a temperature of 50-60 degrees. Ava took a dip to her belly button but regretted the choice later.

Give me one good reason why I shouldn't wear ruffles camping.

Again, this is Oregon, so our trip also included a bunch of yahoos shooting guns into the forest where we had set up camp.

Ava and Brian.  Not pictured: yahoos.

At the campsite, Ava quickly learned that everyone has a job. Elliot was in charge of Ava:

And Ava was in charge of Maisie:

Drunk with power!

Not surprisingly, Ava had a tough time getting to sleep in the tent but did eventually doze off. That is, until she (we) woke up in a puddle of her own vomit. Twice. Ah...kids.

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.