Ava is 2 1/2 years old pics

This post is seriously overdue, but I wanted to be sure to include it.



Ava is now 2 1/2 years old! She is turning into a little girl, now. She continues to be our sweet, beautiful princess. Where to begin?



Ava has such a creative mind. In the pictures below, you can see that she wanted to put things in her car (aka the blanket) and drive using the steering wheel (aka the pillow). For the first few times she did this, I wasn't understanding and kept putting items back where they belonged. She got upset, letting me know that she wanted these items in her "car". Oops! My bad. :-)



She really enjoys doing arts and crafts (painting, coloring, etc) and baking with me. The other day she made her own hot cocoa (a very special treat after the E.R. visit) and was extremely proud of herself. She can draw her name, vaguely, when we ask her. She knows how to spell her name and recognizes words that start with "A", saying "Ava starts with an 'A', too!" She likes to trace her own hand and other people's hands, on paper.



She enjoys books. Lately she enjoys reading them aloud after we read them to her. A frequent visual in our living room includes stuffed animals lined-up neatly in a row, while Ava reads books to them.



She has her own fashion sense. In the pictures below, you can see that she wanted to wear her winter hat, striped top, cupcake p.j. pants and red glittery dress shoes for a Saturday afternoon. Style maven!



Ava loves all things girly. She enjoyed dressing up like Cinder-lella for Halloween. She likes wearing dresses and any sparkly shoe. Every night she likes to cuddle-up in her Princess "bean bag" (her sleeping bag). She continues to love her pink velvety blanket as her most prized possession. As of lately, her pink princess backpack gets lugged with us everywhere we go. This was a gift from Aunt Sherry for Christmas. She loves her babies; she likes to dress them-up and takes great care of them.



For being two, she really does enunciate well and communicate her thoughts and feelings really well. One day recently I must've said something about my Mom. She said "Mom, Grandma Pam is your Mom!" I was amazed that she was able to understand that. And, by the way, Doug and I are no longer "Mommy and Daddy", we are "Mom and Dad". I'm not sure where this came from. When I asked her who calls their parents "Mom and Dad" instead of "Mommy and Daddy", she said "Ava does". Got that. :-) She cracks me up when I ask her a question and she honestly answers, "Umm? I'm not sure?"



She says a prayer every night, which often goes something like this: "Dear God, thank you for blessing us and thank you for the beautiful day. Thank you for Mommy and Daddy and Ava and Liam and Grandmas and Grandpas (Uncle Joe and Aunt Kristy, you're often in this list, too, as well as other family members and friends, depending on the night). Thank you for blessing ALL the children of the world. In Jesus name, Amen."



She LOVES to sing. I'm impressed that she actually sings the notes to songs so well. She now makes up her own songs and likes to sing to herself in the mirror as I brush her hair. She doesn't care who her audience is, either. The grocery store patrons, company, her brother... they all get free concerts :-)



She uses the potty by herself and is normally accident-free for naps. She doesn't wear Pull-Ups for her naps at day care and does great. We do put a Pull-Up on her during the night. Normally they are dry, as well, but I guess we'll make the jump soon... She still takes about an hour nap during the day. She goes to sleep around 8 - 8:30 every night, and wakes at 7 a.m., regardless of how late she went to bed.



After Christmas, it seemed like Ava blossomed into this social, extroverted little big person. Before Christmas she was a little more reserved and shy. After the holidays, she seems to be ready for fun and want to be part of the action wherever she goes. She makes fast friends. Over the holidays I saw her "leading" another little girl (older than her) through the tunnels at Chuck E. Cheese. She makes me proud to be her Mommy, to see how lovingly and respectfully she plays with other kids. I'm sure there are some situations, but she really does seem to do well playing with other kids.



When she grows up, she wants to be a firefighter or a doctor. Her favorite animal is an elephant. Her favorite color will vary depending on the day you ask her. She LOVES fish sticks. She likes oatmeal with cranberries in it for breakfast, or "Pink cereal" (Strawberry frosted mini-wheats).

We love our sweet Ava-girl!

Mommy and Daddy