My big 2 year old!

I figured that since Avery is now 2, I should do a post to remind myself in the future of all that she is up to these days.  I am so glad that blogs exist and that I can print them because I love that I'll be able to remember these precious days in the future.  Even though it wasn't that long ago, I cannot at all remember what Ave was up to a year ago so I'm sure I won't be able to in 20 years!  

I get teary eyed just looking at this picture!

How has she changed this much in 2 years???

Here's the latest on Ave- 

Eating- Avery still is pretty particular with which foods she likes and dislikes.  A few of her favorites are chic fil a grilled nuggets kids meal, all types of fruit, dino nuggets, pancakes, turkey, broccoli, smoothies, rainbow goldfish (blue goldfish as she calls them even though there are no blue ones), chicken and stars soup, and of course, cupcakes and all things sweet.  Dislikes- beef (ground beef, hamburgers, etc), things that are cooked together like casseroles, PB&J (which kills me because it would be so easy), and more.

Sleeping- I think back to those rough baby sleeping days and am so thankful for how far we've come.  Ave sleeps from around 8pm-7am and naps from about 1:30-3:30ish.  She doesn't nap well in other places but that isn't really an issue most of the time.  

Talking- I absolutely love to hear the things that come out of her mouth lately.  She talks up a storm especially when we are at home.  Her voice is extremely high pitched most of the time but when she gets loud it gets a lot deeper.  It is so neat to hear what is going on in her head whereas before I didn't have a clue what she was thinking.  One of her favorite phrases these days is "Mommy, hold you."  Not Mommy, hold me but hold you.  Also, I love words pronounced wrong too like "hippomanus" and "sower" (flower).  So sweet.

Percentiles- Ave's checkup isn't for another week so I'll have to go back and fill it in.  

Favorites- playing with play-do, coloring, stickers, swimming in the pool, playing "bouncin bears" on our bed, feeding ducks and turtles at the lake, playing with her friends and Sophia, all things horse or animal related, and reading books. 

Dislikes- Vacuuming and carwashes elicit a "so scared" out of Ave so she is not a fan, being sprayed by water, and being restrained by high chairs, grocery carts, etc.

Her prized donkey at Market Street.  She could stay on him all day long!

I thought I'd do a little recap of her actual birthday here too.  On the morning of her birthday, I thought that I would use a pinterest idea and make some sprinkle pancakes.  I didn't plan ahead so I found a recipe that didn't call for any sprinkle cake mix.  This lady raved on and on about how heavenly her pancakes were so I went with it.  They called for sliced strawberries but I wasn't sure how good that would be so I only made a couple with them.  

The finished product.  Don't they look SOOO good??? Not!  The strawberries ones were disgusting and the others really weren't so good either.  Maybe I should plan ahead next time!

I made one in the shape of a heart and she thought it was awesome.  

We went to lunch with my mom, Sophia, Ash, and Luke.  Since Avery loved Hooks Airport so much on Father's Day, I thought it would be great to go back.  

Sweet girl daydreaming about lunch

This isn't centered but I love how big Luke's smile is.  Absolutely precious!

After lunch, we went to go feed the ducks with the leftover french fries.  

I'm so glad that Ave could celebrate her big day with friends and family!

 Ave was in a bit of a mood that day and didn't really eat anything at lunch.  Something just seemed a bit off earlier that morning and continued through the rest of the day.  I was hoping that it would get better after her nap.  Once she woke up, we baked some cupcakes together for that evening.

We decided to go to Mi Rancho for dinner since Avery loves chips and usually has fun at mexican restaurants.  Ave didn't really want to sit in her chair at lunch and I probably should have taken that into consideration when thinking about going out to dinner that night. Well, when we walked into the restaurant, she immediately clung to me and said, "Go home, go night night."  We should have walked out right then but we went to the table anyway.  She refused to sit in her chair, we made a bit of a scene, and finally I just let her sit on my lap so those around us could still enjoy their meals.  It was one of those moments when you just know people are looking at you and your screaming child judging how you must be as a parent. I was sweating and wanted to be anywhere but there!  When our food came, it was more chaos (she went in a chair, then wanted out, and when I put her in my lap she would just cry.  I ended up taking her outside while Bill got our check.  When sitting outside, I was trying to figure out whether there was something wrong with her (she hadn't eaten anything since breakfast) or whether she was starting the terrible two's exactly on her 2nd birthday.  

We ended up going home and putting her to bed without having her cupcake.  I realized after she went to sleep that we hadn't given her our gift either.  She didn't even notice that she missed out but I was just so sad with how her birthday ended up.  

Avery again refused to sit in her high chair for breakfast the next morning until she requested to wear her fairy costume which I used as leverage to get her into that chair.  Whatever works!

We had a much better day and were able to give her a cupcake and presents at lunchtime.

She licked off every bit of the frosting and left the cupcake

Sunday morning she woke up at 6am.  We had endless tears and clinging that even led Bill to google 2 year old will not stop crying.  She just was inconsolable.  It just was a rough weekend.  Was it teething, stomach issues, something else??? Who knows!

 Thankfully, by Monday she was back to her normal self and it has made me cherish the good days even more than before.  I wanted to document the reality of her 2nd birthday, not just gloss over it so that I can remember it in the future.  I guess life isn't always perfect, and there are going to be tough days mixed in with the good.  

Even with the rough days, I am so so thankful for this girl.  She has grown so much, and the love I feel for her is insane.  It really is.  I miss her like crazy when I'm away from her and just want such great things for her future.   

I've come to realize how special birthdays are for the parents also.  There is this flood of memories from the day that Avery was born that comes over me on her birthday.  I love remembering the first time I held my baby girl in the hospital and those sweet times holding, rocking, and praying over her during those first few weeks.  When I think back over the past two years, we have had so many wonderful moments and made so many amazing memories.  It's hard to remember what life was like before our girl came into the world!

My Avery girl...I love being your mommy. When you were born, you changed my life so dramatically in a such a great way.  I love that my job is to hang out with you every day.  You are so sweet with your spontaneous kisses and hugs and yet you can be so spunky and funny too.  I can't wait to share many, many more birthdays with you in the future.  Happy 2nd Birthday, Ave!  Daddy and I love you so much!