Not your average Christmas

We have been rocking undies overnight since the change a week or so ago!  As another update we heard of a third teacher and a classmate that tested positive.  It's been over a week and no signs or symptoms here -- from anyone -- so I think we're okay.

Christmas wasn't what it normally is, of course.  It was good though.  Avery had plenty of time to open and enjoy her gifts.  She's also had lots of practice picking them back up.  She has plenty of things to keep her busy so I can get some work time in at least; I will deploy the Shrek blu-rays to assist this week.  Avery also helped Saffy open her gifts and distributed them to us.

She seems to be quite pleased with the big T-Rex that Santa brought her.  Her favorite seems to be her Spiderman shoes from Mommy and Daddy though.  She is wearing them all day in the house.  They're a size too big, so I hope she doesn't wear them out before she can wear them out of the house.  The pair of big trucks are also winners this year as is the "hungry little potomases" game (since she knew what it was when she opened it I suspect they've played it at school) from Aunt Jackie.

At our holiday meals she has demonstrated that she likes cranberry sauce as much as Mommy does.

And another...

 Yet another teacher from Avery's school.  This time in her room.  Taking a deep breath.

Truly Diaper Free

 Avery has resisted the diaper at night for a while.  I've joked that she liked how it felt to breathe free.  Well lately it has become a thing.  It culminated in a melt down last night.  When I got her to use her words she told me she didn't like diapers, so I asked if she wanted to try wearing undies overnight.  She's been dry overnight for a while -- heck she doesn't even want to pee when she gets up in the morning.

She isn't up just yet, but I do have high hopes.  Admittedly I am a bit nervous because she strolled into my room at 4am and she's asleep in my bed at the moment.  She does come over periodically, but not every night.  It is usually after she wakes from a dream, or so it seems based on what she says when she arrives at my bedside.

Holiday Homeschool

Whelp.  Daycare is now officially closed until Jan 4 or 5.  They had one student's parent test positive, but the exposure to the facility was low enough that they were going to continue operating.  Now a teacher (unrelated) in another room is positive and they doors are closed.

I knew this was coming at some point.  In theory the timing is the best it could be since I have 2 paid holidays off during this window.  I also had 2 vacation days scheduled, but I knew I wasn't going to be able to really take them off given the large amount of things on my to do list.  This is going to be challenging, but the bright side is I get more time with my pumpkin.

Trying to find Jesus

We took Avery's baby Jesus from our nativity scene to school last week.  Their theme was nativity and they were reviewing the letters like H-L.  I mean, "Jesus, our King, is Lord" what a better thing to take for show and tell?  He was there in the bin at the end of the day.  Avery wanted to carry him.  She's pretty good about saying when she drops something, so I dunno what happened.  Suffice it to say He didn't make it home with us, He wasn't in the parking lot, and He wasn't still in the bin at school.  I've taken the light to the car and hunted around but didn't spot him.

Perhaps someone who needed to "find Jesus" more than us picked him up.  If so, I hope they were inspired... but I sure would like to see Him make it home to His Mom and Dad for Christmas.

I don't like that anymore

A few days ago the kid tells her Dad she wants different sounds on her bed time sound machine.

After three years of gentle "neighborhood sounds" she now wants Brahm's lullaby.

Tonight she says "I don't like that any more" to the critter projector and we reverted to the black, red, and white abstract shapes insert.

The opinions are coming a bit more frequently, for sure!  Ger memory is remarkable. She is doing well remembering pieces of the Our Father when guided through.

Another playdate with her buddy Luke this past weekend.  We went for a walk and saw Santa in the community and grabbed a yummy cinnamon bun.  That is on top of seeing the Grinch in town several times in the past couple of weeks.  she loves passing the town Christmas tree and Sarris tree all lit up at night.

Target run and done

M:  If they do a PJ day at school later this week, which ones do you want to wear?

A:  Skeleton ones.

M:  You don't have skeleton PJs.

A:  We can just go to Target and get some.

Mask Up

I keep waiting for school to close again.  I feel like it's a matter of time.

At this point the only change is that they're starting to require masks for the kids starting on Monday.  I am not loving it.  I feel bad for the teachers that need to try and keep those ducks in a line.

Family and Holiday Season Begins

My worries in my last post were unfounded.  She's holding it through the night and not waking up. Avery has only had one or two slight accidents (where she caught it after a few drops as she rushed to the bathroom). She really has the potty thing down, even if we're out somewhere! In the past week she started saying she didn't need the seat insert and can climb up there and balance just fine w/o it.

This month has been very focused on family too.  Avery's Aunt Jackie and Cousin Dani came to visit for a couple of weeks, during which time her Aunt Susanne also joined us.  We had a full house.  This was the first time Cousin Dani and Avery met - and I am pretty sure, although Cousin Dani will never admit it, she digs her.  Always good when my two favorite rugrats get along.

For Halloween this year Avery had her dinosaur costume for the school parade.  The parade was outdoors this year due to the virus and a bit chilly, but Aunt Jackie and I stuck it out to watch.  Then Aunt Jackie put the finishing touches on a Zero the dog hat and with some help from Cousin Dani we rigged up something to keep a sheet in perfect placement to complete the costume for trick or treat.  Our weather was so much nicer than last year.

I didn't think this part through

Avery has woken several days with a dry diaper and made it to the potty.  Don't get me wrong, it is great that she is mastering the whole potty situation.. but I didn't think about some of the implications.

Last night she strolled into my bedroom somewhere after 3am and woke me.  She needed to potty.

I guess it's time to really start letting her wipe herself and taking steps to get confident that she won't unfurl the whole roll of paper.

In total control

 All 5 days this week Avery went to school in undies and returned in the same (dry) undies and pants.  Today we headed to soccer and out to shop, which made me nervous to attempt in just undies, so we put on a diapie with undies over top.  I'll put it like this -- the girl has it down.  I also now understand what they mean that you'll learn where every bathroom is.  We hit the one at Target, the one in Bed Bath and Beyond, the one in TJIFridays, and the one in Burlington.

She also proved her ability to hold it for a little while before we hit the bathroom in Target.  She was crying pretty hard and I had to get the need out of her!

High and Dry

Avery came home with the same underwear and shorts on yesterday that I dropped her off with. She claims that she didn't have a pull up on even for nap, but my trust in what she reports isn't always 100%.  Regardless, day two off to school in undies!  She even woke up with a dry diaper this morning. 

Big Girl

It has been a busy and exciting month for Avery. She moved up to the first pre-school class early in the month.  While her besty didn't move up with her, he wasn't too far behind.

School photos are done and are cute, even though she isn't doing more than smirking, not really smiling.

Today she went to school in underwear!  We had a great day yesterday, she made it the whole way through and earned herself a candy bar after dinner.

She doesn't really look like a toddler anymore.  Her legs are long and she can run pretty darn fast.  We have had a good time outside with the neighbor girls, last night we were playing with caterpillars off of the kale plants.

Town Pool

This past weekend we made our first, and surely not last, visit to our towns pool.  It is every bit as nice as the pool I spent way too many hours in as a child.  They also have a separated kiddie pool with a little duckie slide and waterfall feature.  They also keep one lane available for lap swimming!

Sign me up.  I am ready for a season pass.  I am sure that it isn't usually as empty as it was when we were there, but we loved it - even though the water was a bit chilly.

3!

And just like that she is 3.  I took today off and held Avery home from daycare.  We visited her extra grandpap, Mr Barry, went for breakfast, picked up her gorgeous dinosaur cake, opened gifts, hunted butterflies and bugs in the back yard, and generally enjoyed our time together.

I measured her at 34.5 lbs and 37".  We'll see where she comes in at her Dr appt later this week.

Yesterday we had her photos taken, they're not all back yet, but the teaser was adorable.  How could they not be?  After the photos we walked around Peter's Lake.  Saturday Avery and I went to meet up with her cousins for a picnic at a playground.  It's been a busy and fun weekend.

Play Date

This past weekend Avery's best bud, Luke, came over with his parents for a play date and dinner.  They had a blast. She was so excited before he arrived she was vibrating.  Of course she was instantly all frowny after he left too.

I never expected to have one much less two near-three year olds running crazy in my house.  I certainly didn't expect to have that happen and enjoy every minute of it.

A comforting vision

I pray a lot for this kid.  On Friday I finished up my work a little bit early, although, not as early as I had wanted.  I took a few minutes out back pulling some weeds before I went to pick up Avery.  During my drudgery work I was praying.  My thoughts were about God always being with Avery and watching over her, that He would be with her and she would know Him.  I believe that children have an easier time hearing His voice, so I also prayed that she might be gifted in that regard.  I noted even in my prayers that I know we aren't to test God for 'signs' or 'answers'.

I then headed to get her from school.  We were headed for ice cream at Sarris because she had a banner day potty wise at school and because it was Friday -- we both deserved a treat.  I quickly realized we'd be crazy early for a curbside order, so I turned around to go to Dollar General.  Stopped at the light in front of the White Eagle club she says from the back seat "is that Jesus?"

I looked all around and no one was on the sidewalk there or near the parking lot on the side.  I asked her where and she pointed out the window in the direction I was looking.  Imagine my surprise as it settled in.  I asked her what he was doing and she said he was sitting there.  Thank you Lord.

Laying in bed I was curious so I pulled up the stereotypical photos of Jesus on google images and asked her who it was -- she said Jesus.  I don't have tons of pictures of him around the house nor do I recall pointing him out in the small cards I do have.  I am sure she's seen photos elsewhere, but stilll!

The feeling is mutual.

Last night during prayers Avery included Luke in her family list. She quickly followed it up with "I love him". I guess given my last post it only took her a little while to realize the feeling was mutual.

We also had Avery's dentist appointment yesterday. Fortunately her buddy Luke told her about his recent trip and she was psyched to go. We had a very good report and they indicated her teeth were very clean. Yay!

Final note -- the threes are hitting pretty hard. Avery's desire to do what she wants is pretty darn frustrating. Mostly I am sure because she's been so easy to this point.

Who loves you?

I tucked Avery into bed last night as we finished prayers. I told her God loves her and then said "who else loves you?" thinking she would respond "Mommy!" Nope. Instead she said "Luke!"

Our own events

Our whole upcoming weekend was cancelled. I wanted to take her to a touch-a-truck even on Saturday and Sunday we had a graduation party to attend. I guess it's all for the best, but it's summer, we're supposed to be able to do things together. Speaking of, this past weekend we went flower picking at Simmons again. I didn't get as good of photos of Avery as I did last year, but I did get some. We also managed to lose her first pair of sunglasses. She must have chucked them because I couldn't find them anywhere in the aisle we were in. I've made it thus far without losing much of anything, I guess it was bound to start happening. Avery has been making good use of her toddler tower. Tonight she helped me make a veggie lasagna while she nibbled on the raw zucchini and sampled other ingredients. She also routinely helps me water the garden out back. After doing so we check the tomatoes. When there is only one sweet 100 ready to go it is all hers. I've at least gotten to eat a couple.

Best Buddies and Holidays

Avery's best buddy's Mom invited us to their neighborhood this weekend.  They had an ice cream truck coming to their community.  It was nice to see them play.  Boy were they happy to hear they were going to get to visit and even more so to see them spot each other.  We had a great visit and it made what would have been a lonely 4th of July a great time.  She was also able to do so much more at the little park all by herself.  They were up and down for the slide a bunch of times.

The neighborhood was going crazy last night with fireworks, including the folks across the street.  Avery wasn't too fond of the loud ones this year, but she was content to watch from the windows inside.

Pop goes the weasel

Sunday morning Avery was up at 6:20am.  Normally I wouldn't be aware of this.  But on this particular Sunday she was able to stroll right into my bedroom.  I felt a bump on the side of the bed and in my sleepy stupor I assumed it was Saffy, whom I told to "go lay back down".  Then Saffy started to climb up on the bed, but not in a leap.  When I opened my eyes - there she was.

Last night she was back up twice after being put down for the night, tonight just once. It's hard to be consistent when I want to hold her hand as much as she wants me to.

On the go, gotta go.

Avery had a really good week at daycare.  One day she pooped on the potty twice, one of those times she told them she needed to go!  There were successful potty trips the rest of the week as well.

Today we went out to do a little shopping and Avery said "I have to potty".  Oh no.  I didn't want to not listen, so we went to the public restroom.  Wow that's a nightmare, especially in the smaller stall.  But she did it - she peed in a public bathroom.  Thank goodness she changed her mind about needing to poo, because I don't know how I would have balanced her and managed to get paper to wipe her successfully.

Big Girl Bed

Last night Avery got to sleep in her very own big girl bed!  Well, kind of.  We put the toddler rail on the one side of her crib.  She was pretty excited.  This morning I heard her say "Mommy", I immediately got up to use the bathroom and she was walking in my door before I got the whole way to the toilet.

Berry sweet

Saturday Avery and I went strawberry picking at Simmon's Farm.  We had a good time and came home with some delicious berries that I spent a good chunk of the rest of the weekend applying to a strawberry ice box pie, chocolate strawberry muffins, strawberry lemondade, and strawberry margaritas.  There are a few left - which will go quickly as tasty as they are.

She's getting so big.  She did a great job picking and listened well.  She can even get in and out of the wagon for the hay ride to and from the fields with minimal assistance.  My baby is getting so big.

It's wake up time

Avery has been getting decent at reading her alarm clock, even if she doesn't fully grasp what it means.  She reads off the time:  "eight, dot, dot, one, six, that means it's bed time" or "seven, dot, dot, two, three, it's wake up time".  Presently she tends to get fives and twos mixed up, and doesn't say zero, but that's ok - it tells me what we need to work on.  The challenge is when she's upstairs for a nap and starts saying "Mommy, Mommy, there's a three! It's wake up time." except the clock says 1:43, not 3:xx.

Speaking of working on things, during her time here at home Avery has gotten pretty good at spelling her first name and we're getting better with prompting at spelling her middle name.  She can tell you what city and street she lives in/on and is starting to get the right numbers but not in the right sequence for our house number.

Keeping Track

This week, while Avery spends a little bit of time entertaining herself (unfortunately, so I can get some more work done) she started coming to me with different items rolled up in pieces of construction paper telling me she had a present for me.  Is that not the sweetest thing ever?  This kid is wrapping up her toys and gifting them to me!

I also wanted to note a few more little things that I'm terming "LifeWithAvery":
- Another shirt, this one my Jason from Friday the 13th tee.  He is standing there with a big ol' knife in his hand.  She joyfully points to it and says "that is for cutting cake".  That's my girl.

- During prayers I commented about her successful efforts during potty-training that day.  She turned to me with her eyes wide and said "did you say potty train?"  from the look on her face I can only image what she was picturing.

- More commentary on my derriere at bed time.  This time it was with little rhyme or reason:  This time she said "your butt's not big, it's little".  Flattery will get you almost everywhere dear child, but you are going to bed.

Kissing Concrete

Yesterday and today were quite nice, so we went outside armed with big girl panties and one of our potties.  We made it quite a while yesterday before the panties ended up wet, and Avery immediately came over and told me.  I had her on the potty several times and she just wouldn't go, so I wasn't surprised it happened.  It needed to though, so she got a sense for how unpleasant it felt.

This morning when we tried the same not too long into the process she told me "I need to poop Mommy".  YAY!  We came upstairs and she immediately went potty.  That's a huge win.  After we went back outside and it wasn't but a short period later that she took a tumble while pushing her little bus along the concrete.  She went booty over teacup and face planted.  I saw the tumble starting from the corner of my eye, but there was no way to get to her in time.  From the look of the resulting boo-boos on the left side of her face, I would say she thumped the forehead high, bounced a bit, and then hit again with part of her lower forehead above her eyebrow, her cheek, the side of her nose, and even her eyelid.

She was quite unhappy for a minute, so I just cuddled her.  Once she was calm and I got a look I was glad it wasn't worse than it is.  She did let me clean it off and put some ointment on it.  Man that's going to be uncomfortable when it scabs.  Lord help me keep her from picking.

She makes me laugh

Avery is funny, charming, and smart no doubt.  Tonight she proved this three times within a couple of hours.

To start with... if I haven't mentioned it before, she adores ghosties (she's my kid and loves Halloween, go figure). I'm wearing my Pacman blue ghost shirt, so I tell her "this is what ghosts looked like when I was a kid, they were 8-bit". Her reply, unprompted, without missing a beat was "that's a byte". I might be taking some liberties on the spelling of said word to reflect what my mind heard. But she's right ya know.

Then... tonight she jumped into the rocker/recliner in her room and wanted me to sit beside her.  When I said I wouldn't fit not only did she tell me that my butt was too big, she also started to sing "Mommy's got a big ol' butt -- oh yea"

But she wasn't finished.  She and her Daddy have their little gang signs they throw up that involve two hands signing "I love you" every night.  As he left the room it was like she was trying to teach me.  She said "it's ten", stuck up her thumb, "one", stuck up her pointer finger, "and pinky", sticking up her pinky.  Why yes, the sign for I love you is a combo of ten, one, and your pinky.  Good job kid.

I want panties

This request was made this morning.  Unfortunately it's rainy and colder outside - cold enough that we might get snow overnight into Saturday.  That eliminates the way I'd like to approach things:  slap on some panties and go outside w/ a potty at the ready.  Then when she has a few accidents and gets a feel for it - bam, progress.

At least if we're not allowed to go out and live our lives there won't be the obstacle of public restrooms anytime soon.

Just so you know -- I can do this.

Avery has always been the little girl who would hold out until she was very confident she could do something before she gave it a go.  I think she could have walked (and fallen) weeks earlier than when she took her first steps, but instead she waited and just took off.  Her decision to climb over the side of the crib is no different.

She's 32 months, it's a bit ridiculous that she hasn't done it before.  Just under a week ago she told me she wanted to get into bed on her own one night.  Ok, so I said how are you doing to do that?  She promptly climbed up and over into her bed and looked at me with a smirk on her face.  Since then she demonstrated for her dad that she could climb out too.  Today I made her show me as well.  The good news is, she has always been a great sleeper once she's out, so I still don't see her getting up in the middle of the night.  She also patiently stays in her crib during nap time, even when she doesn't want to sleep.  I guess I really need to get that toddler rail that matches the crib.

Earlier today we were watching a show that switched to a scene with a woman in skates on ice with a stick and Avery immediately said "hockey" she gets it - and I haven't even been watching hockey with her, sadly.

Shortly we'll  be heading out to do a cookie parade past Avery's school.  I hope she'll be able to see her teachers as we go by.

Won't you be my neighbor

Avery has officially made friends with the neighbor girls. It started through the fence on Saturday morning.  There is nothing cuter than this kid standing there calling for them by name.  Her sweet little voice!  The neighbor girls are sweet and seem to have a bit more structure from their parents than some of the other kids in the neighborhood, so I am hoping they can be buds for years go to come, despite the age difference (they are 6 and 9).

We had a couple of poops on the potty today and a few pees.  I know I need to get crazy about the frequency to bring things home.  If we could keep some warm temps for more than a day at a time maybe we could go outside in big girl panties and see how she reacts when things happen.

Both days this weekend we skipped naptime.  I didn't even try to put her down, and she made it through with minimal hissy-fit.  I am so not ready for her to give up naps, especially right now as I need nap time to get work hours in, but she is also getting better about entertaining herself and playing solo for little spurts of time.

All dressed up and nowhere to go

We did put Avery's Easter dress on today, even though we had no where to go.  She found her eggs that led her to her Easter basket and had fun playing with her new toys.  She got her big Easter gift last weekend, a climbing dome out back.  Good thing to have to help keep her busy and worn out.  Then we had our dinner here at home, some bake and serve cookies that Avery helped me put on the cookie tray to bake, some time outside with a walk.

I guess we'll never know how she would have done with the Easter bunny this year.  There's something sad about that.  We video chatted with Aunt Jackie and our buddy Mr. B today but that's still not the same as being out and about.  I don't know when life will get to go back to normal.  When the time comes I wonder how Avery will adjust back to school and other activities.

Who loves you?

It's fun to ask a 2 1/2 year old questions to see what type of answer you get.  Last night I asked her who loved her.  After the standard response of Mommy and Daddy she remembered that Jesus loves her and followed that with Mary!  We don't know a Mary, at least I don't think we do, so I like to think she's talking about The Mary.

Avery is doing well feeding herself things like yogurt without making a tremendous mess.  She's gotten so much better at pushing the pedals on her bike on her own.  She's having some good days and some less than great days with using the potty.  All in all, she may not be learning all of the things she'd learn at school, but she is picking up other things here at home.  I do need to keep pressing on getting her to spell and write her name, but we have time - lots and lots of time from the sound of it.

Two full time jobs and potty training

So far we're ok.  Things will get harder as the hours I am with her solo get amplified.  I am grateful her Dad had some vacation days that were use or lose.  Sure he'll have more and I have time too, but I don't want to burn through any of it too quickly, because I think things are going to go on like this for an extended period of time.

We've decided to work harder on potty training and today Avery told me she had to go before it happened twice - once for each 'activity'!  I'm quite proud and she enjoyed her M&Ms.

Nap time however is not going as well.  She's been wailing since 1 and it's almost 3.  I've been trying to wear her out by running around and going outside when the weather has been allowing, but this is hard.

Quarantine

As of Wednesday, Avery will be home with me... the whole COVID-19 thing has closed us down.  I know posting this comes as no surprise to anyone, but I'm recording it for my own notes, because hopefully one day we'll look back and it will have been a blip.

Most places seemed to have locked the doors over the weekend, so we're lucky to get two "extra" days at daycare before the closure goes into effect.  It is going to be a challenge, but I'm hoping that I can work when she sleeps and supplement with my saved up vacation time to get through.  Of course, none of us really know how long it is that we'll need to "get through", just a minimum of two weeks.

So far I've been able to get the things I think we'll need.  I'm hopeful that our supply chain will remain stable, so we can continue to get replenishment of milk and fresh fruits.  But if we can't I have enough here to last us for a while, I just can't imagine how displeased Avery would be with some of the foods that would remain.

Rebel rebel

We're starting to get tastes of surly behavior.  It's age appropriate and normal, but super frustrating.  Avery has begun saying no in response to requests for her to do things.  I'm told she stuck her tongue out at school (which has to be where she learned that too).  The hitting and swatting amped up a little again when she's displeased with what you're telling her.

The latest is not wanting to wear what I'm trying to put on her.  It's pretty hard to get a shirt on a kid that doesn't want it on.  The past two days all she wants is the owl shirt, one she wore (and dirtied) on Sunday.

She's getting big and independent, but at the same time she still says she's a baby.  I know the time will come when she says "I'm not a baby!" so I'm embracing this all and telling her she will always be my baby but that she's my big girl too.

I'm hoping nicer weather and more activities will help us get past some of this phase.  We've been trying to take advantage of a small dose of warmer weather.  Sunday we were outside coloring with chalk and Monday we went for a short walk and rode on her tricycle after she left school.  It was nice enough that they even had the kids in the playground at the end of the day.

That's new!

I bought a new dishwasher.  Its arrival today while Avery was at school did not go unnoticed.  We weren't home for 5 minutes when she started to put the carpet back in front of the sink for me, which is laughable in and of itself.  But then she said "hey look at that's new!" as she pointed to the dishwasher.  This kid doesn't miss anything.

Easy peasy lets us enjoy summer breezy!

Vacation was still easy peasy with this girl.  She did better with the water and sand this go round, even though the water was still pretty cold.  It worked out well having the earlier dining time, for sure.

Since we returned she had another great week at daycare with regard to the potty - she pooed there!

Trying to keep up

Around 4pm on Wednesday we got the text requesting that we all pick up our kids ASAP - daycare had a sewage issue going on.  I guess whatever the backup or blockage was effected the downstairs area - it was (smell) notable when I walked in.  As such they were closed on Thursday and Friday.  It was just kiddo and I and trying to keep her worn out across a long weekend has been a challenge so far.  Working when she napped also helped to completely exhaust me at this point.

I've been trying to test Avery out with a few things to see how she'd do on vacation with just a shower and sharing a bedroom with us.  That means I've used the shower sprayer when bathing her, much to her dismay.  I've gotten her to enjoy it enough that she laughs and says it tickles, but she's not a fan when it comes time to rinsing her hair.  Regardless, that we will survive.  As to bedtime, that's another story - man she can fight to stay up all night and even once she falls asleep she's kicking, turning, and climbing out of the blankets.  Last night was not a good night's sleep as a result, but it was doable.

Final "first" to report was not being fast enough to prevent her from tossing herself off of the bed this evening.  She's okay, but she scared herself as she tumbled down landing on the dog bed.  I've been warning her, but I guess there are some things you don't fully get until you experience them first hand. I'm just glad she didn't get hurt.

That's weird right?

The kid loves salad.  That's weird, right?  She started asking for some of ours and ate it when provided.  Now she asks for more "more salad, more salad".  I mean, have at it - but it feels like something a kid should not want.  No, I know what you're thinking - it isn't ranch dressing it's Caesar or Italian.  Then again, to date, she hasn't been much for ketchup either.

On a streak...

Avery has been managing to pee on the potty once a day since her breakthrough.  We've also had a big poop on the potty right at bedtime the past few nights.  I'm pleased with her efforts!

I also wanted to make some notes on the books that Avery has been adoring.  She definitely gets on kicks with books.  A while back she was obsessed with Pat the Bunny.  As of late her obsession is Dog's Colorful Day.  We often see I'm a Little Teapot too (not my favorite).

As to her Christmas gifts it seems that the art easel is well loved, but I think the biggest success was the ice cream stand.  She plays with it most every night and I can see how her play with it will evolve as she learns and gets older.

I went pee-pee in the potty!

She did it!  Avery went pee-pee on the potty at school today!  I've been waiting for this breakthrough.  I think it's going to help us greatly moving forward.