Catching Up.

Can you believe what a slacker I have been. Sorry Avery. I am going to go back to June 6 2009. She started walking! It was her Dad's birthday and we were still in the rental house. We were sitting around trying to decide what to do because it was raining. She looked at Michael and Ethan and took off. Since that day she hasn't really crawled unless she is playing. We went back to Edwardsville June 22 to meet the moving company. While we were there for 3 days she started standing up from a sitting position. With these 2 abilities she is off a running. She does run a little. It is more of a quick, drunken stumble but she is moving quicker.

Her personality is such a calm, easy going, feisty, mischievous little girl. It is very rare that she cries. She has put up with so much these past few months. For a baby who has never enjoyed being in the car she made all the moving trips like a rock star. Her favorite thing to play with is her brother. All he has to do is show her a little attention and she is in heaven. She saves her biggest giggles for him. While I clean up the kitchen in the morning the 2 of them will play between their rooms. She laughs so hard at him the neighbors have to hear her. Of course his favorite game is to take her down. It makes her laugh so he keeps doing it until I put a stop to it. The past 2 weeks she has started playing a lot with baby dolls. She has always loved them but recently she started carrying one around like it was a real baby. Today she pushed her cabbage patch doll around in her shopping cart. Her fiesty side comes out usually when she is eating. Unlike her brother she does not want to be fed, she wants to do it herself. She uses a fork pretty well. She stabs her omlet and puts it straight in her mouth. The trouble starts when I try to take the fork back so we can finish the meal and put the dishes away. She holds onto it, jerks it back, lets out a holler, then gives me 'the look' (refer to Avery 1 year pics).

She also loves to carry around clickers and phones. It is a good thing our direct tv remotes work on any TV. I have found them in drawers and boxes. She talks quite a bit of jibbersh now. Some of it is actually starting to sound like real words. She of course says the usual, Mom, Dad and bye. I have heard her say love you and toothbrush.

She eats anything and everything. I have yet to see the poor starved thing turn down a bite of food. She still has a really strong sweet tooth but she loves mushrooms and carrots. She drinks a smoothy with her Dad most mornings. Ethan just looks at it and says 'Oh I don't like that, sorry".

Avery loves the new house. The first couple of days she would just run in circles and giggle. She loves playing in her room. She goes to bed really well for naps and bedtime. When we play in the toyroom I hardly hear a peep from her. She moves from toy to toy investigating everything.

At her 1 year appointment she was 22 pounds 15 ounces. That is 75th percent in weight. Her height was 29 and 1/2 inches which is 55%. Now that she is walking around so much it is crazy seeing her thighs thin out before our eyes. Her legs are getting really long. At her visit they told me she would be 5 foot 8 inches at full height. She still has a cute buddha belly. Ethan cracks up at it all the time. He is such a lean muscular thing he would never believe he was rounder than her at this age.

We go to the pool almost everyday. She does wear sunscreen but she has the same skin as her brother. She has a beautiful tan body with blond wispy hair. I think she is beautiful but I haven't met her person yet who is able to walk by her without making a comment. One of the cutest things on her right now are the tan lines in her chubby rolls. She now loves the pool. She mostly goes for the snacks. The newest trick she started 2 days ago is to splash like usual but then stop and squat like she is falling down then jump back up. She has gone under a couple of times but when I pull her up she just laughs. Needless to say thank goodness her brother is a good swimmer because she is high maintenance while we are there.

The past couple of days she has started popping her lips together and walking towards whoever she wants a kiss from. Most kisses are reserved for her Daddy when he gets home from work. She hears the back door open and starts running to give him a hug and a kiss. Sometimes she bops Ethan on the head and I'll say Avery we don't hit so then she gives him a kiss.