She spent her first night in her "big-girl bed" on Wednesday night. We bought a safety side-rail so she won't fall out of bed during the night. She really seemed proud that she slept there. We have a step stool so she can climb up by herself. We timed this so she won't feel too slighted when baby boy arrives later this summer, like he's taking over her crib.
She wanted her nails painted a few days ago, and chose bright pink nail polish. She was ever-so-happy with the way they, and her toenails, turned out. She was a very good customer, sitting completely still while they dried. I was amazed she sat still that long!?! The next day at day care, her teachers said she really enjoyed showing everyone her nails. :-)
During the past few days, she has been saying more complete sentences: "I'm cleaning," "I'm eating," "I'm walking," and other sentences. She absolutely loves the book "Five Little Monkeys Jumping On the Bed," and will say "No more monkeys dabin ah da bed." It's entirely too cute when she says it. She is really enunciating well these days, forcing herself to say "YESSSSS" and "Q,R,ESSSSSSSS". She's using more please and thank you's on her own, too. I continue to be amazed at the open-ended questions she answers, when I ask. You can see the wheels spinning in her head...
Lately everything isn't just an "elbow", it's "Ava's elbow", "Ava's cereal". She loves Strawbery Delight Frosted Mini Wheats for breakfast. She loves to dance, requesting that we "dance, dance, dance", and also likes to do "circles" with Daddy (Doug pulls her up in the air by her arms and spins her around). She wears Daddy out requesting circles...
Ava seems to be more outgoing lately, giving hugs to more people than she has previously. It's cute to see her interact with complete strangers at the grocery store, replying "Hi!" (very socially) to them. She continues to sing at the top of her lungs in any store through which we peruse. People crack up at her loud singing voice, and smile. Ava doesn't even notice.
The other day Doug was getting Ava out of her car seat and said "Okey dokey", to which she replied "arti-chokey!" I guess we use this phrase all-too-often in our household?
She is becoming more particular about what she eats, but still wants to try new things and determine if she will like that food. She is also insisting on her independence more these days. We continue to work on the "first-time obedience" thing, so she will comply when we ask her to "come here" (as this could be a safety issue in a parking lot, etc).
We removed the gate at the bottom of our stairway, and she frequently "practices" going up and down the stairs. We've only had one spill down three stairs at this point, so we're hoping that will make her more careful in the future. The gate still remains on her bedroom door, so she can't get out at night and potentially fall down the stairs.
I think I might be confusing Ava, saying that I am a girl, but there is a baby boy in my tummy. She normally will say that she is a girl, but I think since I've been mentioning the baby boy in my tummy, she's a bit confused. :-)
I think we will be ready to revisit potty-training again soon. She announces now when she is "poopy", and will even crawl up onto the diaper-changing pad after announcing it. So, I think it's about time. :-) She likes to sit on the potty occasionally, but hasn't "gone" lately. Guess we'll have to work on that!
It's interesting how well-mannered she is in stores, etc. She doesn't like to venture too far away from me / us when shopping, and likes to tag-along right next to the cart. She is this way everywhere we go, surprisingly. Other people have commented on how she isn't a "wanderer". When in the store, she does like to get out of the cart by requesting "walking?"
Let the good times roll!
With our love,
Shelly, Doug and Ava
