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

I Will Do It Myself

Buddies Hanging Out

Jeans in July

Last week, Aunt Kelly, Uncle Darren, and cousins Eli, Oliver, and Emeri, visited from Texas. Ninny & Grandaddy also came down from Kentucky, so we had an exciting week with the entire Jean family. Avery was so excited to see his older cousins and proved that he could hang with the big boys! Kayla also enjoyed interacting with her cousins by laughing with them and pulling on their hair. Avery still asks about Eli and Oliver and wonders if they are at the beach. Hopefully, we will see everyone again soon!

Happy 5 Months Old, Kayla!