Look What She Can Do!

This tiny love started walking last weekend. She's been taking steps here and there since before her birthday, but a week ago she made it her main mode of transportation! Since the video she's upped her speed, which cracks me up because her stance is still so wide. This morning after a bath, with her hooded towel, she came "running" around the corner sporting a little towel wedgie.

Conversations with Avery

A few of my favorites from the past month....

"Fee fi four three!"  She was sitting on her bed, reading Jack and the Beanstalk.

At Joann's, while looking for a pattern for her Halloween costume, I was perched on the edge of my chair (I rarely sit all the way back). She turned to me, rubbed my back, and said, "Sweetie, you need to sit back in your chair." The lady across from us looking at magazines had to turn around to hide her laughter.

"Uuuh, this is ridiculous!" (pronounced ridicholas) while having trouble putting on panties

Me: "Avery, you're so sweet. I really enjoy that about you."
Avery: "Yes, I know."

"Hi, kiddo."  To Eleanor one morning.

"But I need my doctor bag!! I'm not healthy!"

This morning at church she told one of her teachers that she was going to be Audrey Hepburn for Halloween. I started laughing when she told me this, because we haven't introduced her to Audrey yet, and Avery has requested to be a cow. There must have been another girl who said that, and Avery agreed that she was going to be Audrey, too. I asked her about it in the car, and she confirmed that a friend was going to be Audrey Hepbird.

Also, at church, Eleanor cries LOUDLY when I drop her off. Her room is across the hall from Avery's, and Avery told her teachers, "That's my sister. And she is crying and whining."

While working on Avery's Halloween costume, I had her try the pants on one morning, because I had to alter them down to fit her. I asked if she liked the costume, would she be okay with wearing this (yes, why would I ask a 3 year old that...she's going to wear it regardless of her answer)...she responded with "Yes, but I just want to walk on two legs, not three (she meant four)."

Monday Musings

Man, things happen around here on Mondays just so I have something to write about.

After the dumping of trash into the toilet by the 1 year old last Monday, combined with a 3 year old who uses the potty regularly, we had to have maintenance come fix it because our plunging efforts failed. They brought out some kind of scary looking 6 foot pole thing. On the upside, I got them to change out the line for me so that we could hook up our diaper sprayer!

Eleanor also experimented with Lysol today. We spent the next 15 minutes flushing her eyes out (in which I had to climb in the bathtub with her, after I saw her squat and pee in it...I later amended my technique to sink-side, duh) and then I had to try and get juice down her, which she refused because I had traumatized her with eye-flushing. Or maybe she just preferred the taste of Lysol? Sigh. I have never felt so horrible, because it's absolutely my fault that she could even reach it. That can has been BANISHED to the top shelf, along with everything else I could find, and if you get sick at my house, it's because I've quit cleaning because I can't reach anything anymore.

No dance today because of Columbus Day (the holiday I never remember), so we played at Barnes at the train and lego tables with our dance friend T, her siblings, and her mama. Kids played, we drank coffee. Nice way to spend the morning!

Avery is spending nap time singing to herself and playing make-believe. Last week she only had two naps all week. Sigh. Is this the end of naptime? At least we have quiet time everyday, where she's in her room for a couple hours. Signs of her growing up. *sniffle*

Crazy fun weekend! I'll do a separate post, but it involved chalk and a (food) trailer park. Suburban Round Rock's not so bad!

Crazy fun week! It was Round Top week! I scored some nice finds and walked my poor little feet to the end of their capabilities, sorting through junk to find good treasures. The girls were awesome on Wednesday, as were their baby cousins. We didn't see as much as we could have without the babies, but we had fun. Avery-girl showed off her dancing moves on the stage at lunch. I learned that she knows how to waggle her hips. I also learned that her shyness with strangers doesn't extend to performing in front of strangers - not a lick of stage fright in her! Thursday I hit up Round Top adult-style with my mother-in-law and sister-in-law, and we scored big.

Struggling with discontentment - my usual vice.

No pics because I haven't uploaded them yet. It's my least favorite part of the blogging process. Uploading them, that is. I like having them on the posts.

Monday Musings

It's October!! I love the start of a new month, especially one that ushers in fall so well. Avery is super-excited about Halloween simply for the candy. I could skip over that day entirely, but I'm always excited to sew her a new costume and I don't mind the loot she brings home, either. 

You know it's Monday when your morning starts out by fishing trash out of the toilet because your 1-year-old dumped all of it in.

We spent last week at my mom's house while she was out of town, taking care of her dogs. Easiest dog-sitting gig ever, since my sister was there (someone to hang out with) and my brother-in-law had to be in town also for work, so he did all the heavy lifting regarding the dogs. Thanks, Nick!!! We made a point to visit as many people as we could. Tuesday was Aunt Ju-Ju and Cousin Sophie day, with some shopping at H&M and lunch out, Wednesday was with my friend Lauren from college and her 10-month-old Isaiah, and Thursday we went to Nana's for the day!

visiting my grandparents - Grandpa just had shoulder surgery , so we had a short visit

Avery loves finding Easter eggs, so my grandma had them hidden for her to find when we got there

Avery then hid them again and again so she could find them a few more times

sweet Isaiah - it was so fun to finally meet him!! And hanging out with his precious mommy was good for my soul

hangin' while I folded the stroller up

Eleanor was in love with Hannah the cat at Nana's house

she has a unique sense of style

Eleanor's sniffy face. This is the face that Avery also did, copying their daddy's face from when he was a baby. Genetics are so interesting. 

The girls are a mixed bag when it comes to traveling. Avery does okay for the most part, but she was a tad whiny and didn't understand why Nonnie wasn't home when we were there. Eleanor - that girl. Ugh. She cried anytime I put her down or left the room. It was fine for her to leave me, but not the other way around. We also had the worst nap schedule ever because we were out too much. We got home Friday and I handed them off to Luke.

We had the first cousin bath. No pics of the full group because I think Avery is too old to have bath pics posted online. But here's a modest shot of the cute babies! Right after this, Grayson decided to tackle Eleanor. And then he melted down into absolute anger-tears. He was DONE with this bath.

Eleanor finally cut that fourth tooth, so we have a happy girl again.

I introduced Avery to the Fancy Nancy books, and she is loving them. We took home about a dozen assorted books from the library, and the Fancy Nancy books are the only ones we have repeated. She barely acknowledges me when I tell her goodnight because she's already absorbed in the books. She's going to be the kid that hides under the covers with a flashlight.

Avery loves her dance class still (phew!), and one of her favorite parts is when they get to dance around freely with scarves. Avery prefers to run laps around the other girls while waving her scarf around, but she was put out this morning after class because her teacher told her to quit, that she should sway gently with the scarf instead. Boring, right?

Her second favorite part of dance? The stamps on their hands.

I don't have a ton of caffeine these days because of nursing, but over the course of 2 hours today, I had a (half-caff) pumpkin spice latte AND a diet coke. I'm surging with energy over here. I hope Eleanor sleeps well tonight!

trying to climb onto the table, but got trapped

our climber getting in on a little Pinterest action

 Eleanor fell into Avery's bubble bath one night, shocked herself silly and then proceeded to eat as many bubbles as she could.

I have stacks of books to go through on my side of the bed. STACKS. I'm trying hard to get through them all, but I just keep adding to the pile. Religion/doctrine, grief, fiction, parenting, and birth education books abound. I think my currently-reading list on Goodreads is half-a-dozen books long?

Round Top on Wednesday and Thursday! This week is going to be a good one.