ABCs (Avery style)

Happy 6 Months Old, Kayla!

Videos

Here are some fun videos for the grandparents...

Old McDonald song:

Sharing the drums:

Attack of the Daddy:

Mighty Machines song:

Time to get a bigger blanket:

Daddy's Biggest Fan:

Avery entertaining his sister:

Charleston Farmer's Market

Here are some pictures from the Charleston Farmer's Market at Marion Square.

Escape Artist

Avery finally got up the nerve to climb out of his crib a couple of weeks ago. He waited until both Phil AND I were in the room before he busted free. We just ignored him and let him stub his toe at the end, like the awesome parents that we are. But hey: he hasn't tried it again. If he stays in this crib until kidnergarten, you won't hear me complaining.

America's Got Talent, Here We Come!

Sibling Love

Era

"It's the end of an era!!", Rachel wails as Monica hugs and consoles her during a "Friends" episode where Rachel has finally accepted that Monica and Chandler are moving in together and she has to move out of the apartment that she cohabitated with Monica for six years. I, too, felt this way when my best friend, Martina, and I moved out for the final time after graduating college and took jobs in different states. But since becoming a mom, I have been muttering this phrase over and over since having Avery, and then Kayla. I have rejoiced over every new developmental milestone that each one has hit, but with each new skill comes the realization that they are getting farther and farther away from that 8 or 8 and a half pound baby that I held in my arms for the first time in the hospital. Lately, we seem to be going through a lot of "eras ending". For example, now that Kayla is sitting up and desperately trying to move closer to Avery during playtime, she has developed an intolerance for her bouncy seats. "No thanks, Mom", I hear in her wails of protest when I try to strap her into one of her three seats that keeps her restrained in a semi-reclined position. "I would prefer to be on the floor next to Avery pulling his hair!!". Don't get me wrong, I am excited to pack up these seats for potentially the last time and gain a little bit more space in my living room and bed room. But I also am saddened that my little girl is growing farther from the completely dependent stage of babyhood where as a parent, you know where your kid is at all times. Avery has also hit the end of several eras lately. He developed the skill (in his case, the courage) to climb out of his crib...oh yeah, and to open doors. These two tasks coincided quite nicely together, don't you think? Along with the more slender and elongated legs of a small boy (as opposed to the short and chubby legs of a toddler), Avery is growing up more and more every day. His "chores" that he is so excited to do include throwing items away in the trash can (he loves that he can open the pantry door now) and letting Haley in and out of the back sliding door. Pretty soon he will be going to preschool and hanging out at the mall with his friends and asking to borrow the car for prom night. Aggh! It's the end of an era! Where is my hug from Jennifer Aniston??

Marley & Me (and Joel)

These are a couple of Kayla's buddies from lactation class. It is so fun to watch them all figure out how to move around to get their toys. I am not sure why my baby likes to pull hair and grab on the other babies. Maybe that is what I get for letting her "horseplay" with her big brother. Oops!

My Avery

I can't believe that Avery is two years old. Was I not just giving him bottles and carrying him everywhere, like, yesterday???? Avery is such a great kid. I did not know that two year olds could be so frickin' awesome until I had one. He can be full of spirit and spunk, making batty eyes and funny gestures to the blonde cutie patootie two year old sitting at the table next to us one night out at dinner. Or he can be so sweet and loving and gentle with his little sister, showering her with slobbery kisses and foot tickles and not complaining when he gets a handful of hair pulled in return ("No no, Taco...Let go, Taco"). And then he can be quietly proud of his accomplishments....so proud, that he puffs his chest out, grows two inches taller, and tries to contain a big grin so that all you see on his face is this little smirk. He is growing so much these past several months, doing "big boy" tasks like taking off his clothes, letting the dog in and out of the back door ("Hadey Hadey, outside, go potty, go outside"...complete with finger pointing and hands on hips, just like his Mom), and brushing his teeth past the point of just sucking the toothpaste off of the brush. The coolest thing, however, is watching how creative he is getting when he plays by himself or with us. He can entertain himself for hours with his trains, categorizing them by type of car or color, or seeing how many trains he can put together and still be able to wind it around his little track. My favorite game that he recently came up with was what I like to call "Daddy and Baby Alligator and Daddy and Baby Cement Truck". There are many variations of this game that are equally hilarious. Maybe you have to be there. Or maybe you just have to think like a two year old. :)

Fair is Fair

Avery counts like a politician...

"My Bear", Performed by Avery Jean

As much as I love Avery's creative lyrics to some imaginary song titled "My Bear", my truly favorite part of this video is Avery's slow-motion walking in place on the stool. That takes talent.

Advice For My Kids

Avery & Kayla: If you ask me now at my ripe old age of 31, I will tell you that having two brothers growing up was really awesome and that I can't imagine my life without them. But living the younger years can be a bit trickier when you are this close in age. So here is some advice from your mother about how to get along better while growing up with your siblings.

1) Like the early nineties song by Queen Latifah claims (you will probably hear this song on the "Oldies" channel one day in the future when I drive you to soccer practice), "U-N-I-T-Y, that’s a unity". May you unify and become allies, whether it's on the playground at school, on the bus ride home, or when getting yelled at by your parents (I am sure I will regret saying this). Be there for each other.

2) Share. Your dad and I aren't made of money and may not be able to buy two of everything in the future. Avery, if you share your Gameboy with Kayla, I am sure she will let you listen to her Sony Walkman in return.

3) If and when you get another sibling in the future and you find yourselves scrunched in the backseat of a small car during a long road trip, please let your little brother or sister fall asleep on your shoulders when he is stuck in the middle seat. Window seats are a privilege. (Sorry Jon!)

4) Play together. Barbie can play with He-Man; it is socially acceptable in the Toy World. May you guys be so excited to continue playing together, that you wake up at 6am on a Sunday morning just to keep evolving the imaginary world you created. But please do it quietly, so your father and I can sleep in for a change.

5) Do not date each other's friends. I still have not heard from Elise Bowers in over 10 years.

6) Instead of ratting one another out when you sneak M&M's from Grandma's secret stash in the cupboard, you should just split the pilfered candy with each other.

7) If you move out of town, state, or country for college, make sure you visit each other often. And in spite of what Uncle David tells you, it is not necessary to run into the other one’s house and yell “SHOTS!” (of milk) before you say hello.

8) Play sports together. There is nothing like having a live-in soccer or pitching coach under the same roof. Just be sure to take turns when fetching the baseball out of the scary neighbor’s overgrown pricker bushes.

9) If you guys insist on beating the crap out of one another, I will have to call a babysitter to watch you when we go out. That's pretty embarrassing when you are thirteen years old.

10) Be each other's biggest fans. Whether it's rooting your sister on at her soccer games or going to your brother's science fairs, be proud of each of your accomplishments, no matter how different they are from each other.

Potty Training Perils

Nope. Still not ready.

My Joy