Christmas

Did you know there are only 94 days left til Christmas?! I know. Panic time.

After Christmas last year, I was browsing and came across this. Luke and I had been talking about how to make Christmas meaningful for our children, and how to not make presents the emphasis of the holiday. Presents are fun, we all love them, but we wanted our kids to grow up with a healthier perspective on the holiday. And we both are trying to simplify life in general, focusing less on the material things (which is a daily battle for me sometimes). We want to implement traditions that celebrate Christ, and while I am still brainstorming how to best do that, I have at least decided that I want to start doing what the above link suggests as far as gift-giving goes.

So, I'm coming up with 4 things for Avery.
Want
Need
Wear
Read

We will still do stockings, because that's our favorite part (or at least my favorite part). I'm still debating whether or not to do a Santa gift. We'll probably lean that way, but I might lump it in with the Want category. Christmas Eve we always give pajamas, a tradition that started when I was a kid because my mom wanted us to have nice looking pjs for pictures on Christmas morning.

So off I go on my hunt for the perfect little gifts for my Avery girl. I've got a few ideas brewing.

A quiet book for Read - I'll be sewing this over the next couple months
New fluffy diapers for Need (although we could be potty training not too long after Christmas, so I might change this).
Felt food (made by me, hopefully) and dishes for her play kitchen for Want
A darling modern dollhouse found at a children's resale shop months ago - Santa gift (because I already had it)

I'm excited about this new challenge - I think it will be good for all of us as the years go by.

Potty

Somebody thinks that feet go in the hole of the toilet. We'll have to work on that when we're ready to start potty training.

Piggies

17 Months

Avery turned 17 months old this week. This has been my favorite age so far, from about 15 months to now, but especially this past month. She is talking and signing and trying to make us laugh on purpose. I love that she's understanding humor now.

We're transitioning to one nap a day now, as of this past week. Honestly, I thought I'd be sad to see that morning nap go, but I actually get more done now, because errands aren't limited to a two-hour time frame, and we're able to make more plans with friends in the morning finally. She's been happy all week, eager to play games with me and then entertain herself in her room a lot. I frequently find her reading to herself or playing with her baby.

Some new things:

• She loves to bring her baby to me, to show her off, and then she gives her baby a kiss.
• She pushes her baby in the stroller, but more often she will push other toys, her lovey, her cup, whatever she pulls from the dishwasher....
• New words: no, break-fuss (breakfast), thank you, uh-oh (sometimes), bye daddy, hi daddy, cheese, be-beeee (baby)
• New signs: thank you, eat
• Dances in circles when music is playing
• Brings her shoes to me and sits in my lap when she wants to go outside
• Gets all kinds of crazy excited when Daddy comes home from work. She hears the beep when the door opens and comes RUNNING. Or, I'll tell her Daddy is home, and she stops whatever she is doing and runs yelling Hi Daddy Hi Daddy Hi Daddy!
• Is on a pea kick again - one night she asked for more peas six or seven times.
• Visited friends in Dallas - her first extended visit with kids her own age
• Loves loves loves real babies and very gently pats them on the head or hand
• Daddy taught her how to wake Mommy up nicely, by stroking her hair, instead of hitting her face. And now Avery will come up and stroke my hair gently anytime I'm laying down. 
• Favorite foods: goldfish crackers (she helps herself anytime she can snatch them from the pantry), cheese, eggs, toast with jam, berries, oranges, bananas, tomatoes, spaghetti, bites of my salads, loves to dip fish sticks in ketchup, peas, acorn squash, oatmeal, quesadillas. I wish she would eat more greens! We're working on that.
• She loves to brush her teeth, and she'll say "ch, ch, ch, ch" (you know, the brushing sound!) so that I will hand her the toothbrush. 
• Rode her first rollercoasters
• Gives lots of kisses and hugs
• Brings books to us so we can read them to her - today it was her Bible. Yay!
• She loves bedtime prayers - she cuddles her lovey and smiles at me when I say amen. 
• Throws water out of the bathtub, thanks to a fun new shovel. Time to teach her proper usage of it!
• Learned how to climb off of couches and chairs, although still asks for help most of the time. 
• Likes to put her sunglasses on by herself. 
• Drags purses EVERYWHERE. She loves mine and will drag it all over the house.
• Is a huge fan of showing off her bellybutton (her new body part) and will lift her shirt or dress anywhere, all the time, to get a laugh out of us. 
• Knows eye, ear, nose, mouth, hair, head, where a hat goes, bellybutton, and just recently - chin. 

So many fun things about this girl! It keeps getting better and better. 

Thank You!

Thank You from Luke Presley on Vimeo.