24 Months and counting

There have been so many changes!
Ava had her 2nd birthday! Happy Birthday little missy! Your mommy and daddy love you dearly!
We had a Yo Gabba Gabba party at our house with everything from, bubbles, dancey dances, and pin the food in Brobee's tummy. We had peanut butter and jelly sandwiches also nutella sandwiches and a wonderful cake made by Isabel's bakery! Ava had a lot of fun turning 2 this year. She was super excited to see all of her friends and her cousins. It was a blast!

Since I last wrote, we have also gotten rid of the "nuk nuk". No more pacifier! Wahoo! That is a huge accomplishment for us. Although once in a while she will ask, we no longer have an issue with the "nuk nuk". We threw all of them in the trash can.

Ava also had her 2 year check up. I am happy to report, she is healthy, and GROWING!
She gained 1.5 lbs, grew 2 inches and her head is in the 33%.
She can now, officially go once a year for her YEARLY check ups.
We still need to keep her on pedisure and her doctor assured us that its OK to go on every couple of months or so to get her weighed in. I'm so excited for this report. I was worried because she has been sick on and off again this summer that she wouldn't gain weight for this appointment.
We are almost in 18 month pants! I'm so excited for this!!! She fits them length wise but her waist is so small, she can fit in 9-12 month pants/skirts/shorts. Good thing its summer! She has lots of "capri's"!

Her eating tastes have changed, she is now more "sensitive" to texture. She now refuses certain foods she once loved. We are starting to get her to eat vegetables again, she loves fruit and almost exclusively eats fruit and fruit only. We have resorted back to the baby meat sticks (YUCK) but she will eat the entire jar in one sitting, and since its protein, I'm not complaining.
Every morning she usually eats yogurt and either a baggy of cereal or a cereal fruit bar. Everyday is a hit or miss with lunch and dinner is usually up in the air. We continue to feed her two pedisure's a day, and if I'm not quite certain she will eat lunch she gets a third pedisure to drink at school.


On Thursday August 11, 2011 I quit my job. For about a month, I almost lost my mind. I didn't know why I was quitting (other than to go back to school), but since I quit, I have had some of the most amazing experiences. My cousin came to town on Friday. I had the best day with her. We went to the Spa and had a manicure and pedicure. It was awesome. I've had more time with my husband and baby girl. While Ava still hits once in a while, we have almost eliminated ALL time outs! Phil and I seem to be getting a long a lot better. And I noticed, that while I am still kind of stickler, I have relaxed (for me) for the first time in almost 4 years. I feel like I can breathe.
I miss my co-workers, they are some of the best people I know! I wouldn't trade them for anything. But I am so happy and excited for this opportunity to stay home, go to school and learn the family business. I'm so excited.

Ava is doing exceptionally well. We are impressed with all that she is doing all that she is learning. Everyday I hear at least 5 new words come out of her mouth. She strings together sentences and words, she is learning more sign language and to say the least, is very demanding (gee...I wonder where on earth she gets that from).
Some of the things she says now are:
"Where'd it go?"
"All done"
"Open it"
"Outside"
"Put on"


She can understand that animals say certain sounds.
She also attempts to count but it goes something like this: "1, 2, 3, 7" or "3,4,9"
She can also name part of her body: "Arm" "Face" "Ears" "Nose" "Feet"
When we put on her clothes she can name "Shoes" "Pants" "Shirt" etc.
She can also sing "Ashes, Ashes, down"
She now understands the sticker process. Since brushing her teeth has become such an issue, I now give her one sticker after she brushes her teeth. If she only lets me brush the upper OR lower part of her mouth she gets HALF a sticker.
So now she will ask for a sticker and understands that she must brush her teeth to get a sticker.
So far we have had the best luck not finding stickers stuck to the wall or the side of her crib. We are lucky for that.


While we have bouts with the terrible twos we are learning that sleep and spending time with out little one has a lot to do with how much or how little she acts out. Now that I have more "time", I feel like we are doing better as parents providing for her and giving her the attention we've always wanted to give her. Being a parent is such a joyful experience, but the process of learning how to be a good or better parent, well its a process.