fun on the farm

we had a great time this weekend with poppy and c.d. there are lots of fun things to do and avery had a great time. we don't get to see them as often as we'd like so avery gets really excited when we plan a trip. and, this was our first trip to their new house! avery got to fish (she caught the first one of the day ~ all by herself), but she liked playing with the worms more than she liked fishing, i think. addison learned how to say doggy ~ referring to their two terriers that seemed to scare her to death. aniamal lover avery played with the horses and fed them carrots (something daddy wouldn't even do), the fish, the worms, the dogs...really anything living that we would allow her to touch. i hope we can go back soon!

chef averypoppy and c.d.

a-b-c-d-e-f-g...a-v-e-r-y

yay! avery learned how to write her name. we're still working on perfecting the 'in a line' part of writing, but at least she gets the left to right part. it's kind of hard to see, so look closely. not bad for a 3 1/2 year old....but naturally, we think it's absolutely amazing!

off we go

addison really wants to walk ~ chasing avery on her hands and knees can only get her so far. she's doing really well with her walker, cruising and even going from one place to the next one hand at a time. just a fun milestone moment...i'm sure when she is running through my house i'll look back and wish she was easier to keep up with!

encouragement from avery....

though she acts like she doesn't need it.....look at that attitude....

i'm sorry, what did you say...??

i don't know how you do it at your house but we've really been working with avery on 'asking' us things instead of 'telling' us. for instance, i would rather hear "may i have a snack please," rather than "i want a snack." or, "will you get me a puzzle please," rather than " get me a puzzle." we're believing that this common courtesy will pour over into other areas of her life ~ that we don't get to tell people what to do and just expect them to do it....we also don't always get what we want. 1 john 4:21 says that if we love God we must also love our brother. i don't know about you, but shouting orders (i'm thinking long term here) doesn't sound very loving. we are to sing His praises with our words, not cause anger and strife. our prayer, for our family, is that the words from our mouths and the meditation of our heart will be acceptable in His sight (ps 19:14)
so.....for the past two weeks allen and i have worked hard on this and, i'm happy to say, that our strategy (completely made up by us...meaning, a shot in the dark) has worked! in the past she would state a demand, not ill mannered or rude, just telling me what she wanted. i, in turn, would respond with "are you asking me or telling me?" "asking," she would reply and then (at first) i say "well how do you ask?" and she would restate her request in a question form. soon, i didn't have to prompt her as to how to ask, she would just say "i'm asking...may i have a snack please." i thought we were on the right track but she was still telling us things much more than she was asking. so....we started ignoring her. anytime she tells us something we simply don't respond...go on about whatever we're doing and wait - you know, back to her, eyes closed, silently praying she'll know what to do next all by herself. it clicked. almost immediately she rephrases her request. we still have a really long way to go, and i don't want this to seem like more of an accomplishment than it really is. but this is a step in the direction that we hope is the right way. it's always an encouragement to hear from other moms...so tell me what works for you!

writers block...

so, i have writers block - which is weird for me. it's not because there is nothing interesting going on in our lives. it's certainly not because we haven't been busy. post disney we've celebrated easter, an anniversary, taken 2 more out of town mini trips, had some girls night out fun, chased my dog (90lbs) and the neighbors dog (a solid 50lbs) around the neighborhood after a recent jail break, and caught caterpillars and lizards (avery). and don't even get me started on a recent television addiction. still....nothing. maybe there is just so much to say that i can't figure out where to start.

i'll leave you with this....an old picture, but it makes me laugh. if you've ever heard allen and i dispute our children's future, it will make you laugh too!

the most wonderful place on earth...

we had an amazing trip to disney and there are more memories to write about than you want to read...so i'll keep it short. everything was very 'magical' for avery and she loved loved loved the characters. we were a little worried that she would shy away from them and not want to get close, much less hug and pose for pictures, but she went right up and loved all over them. addison was a trooper...she didn't so much love the characters, as you'll see, but she loved the parades and the lights and the food. she never really fussed, despite lack of sleep, and she would get her thumb and lay down in the stroller when she was ready to sleep.

avery's favorite ride was the ferry back and forth from the hotel (ha!) and she loved dumbo, the teacups and the winnie the pooh ride. the most memorable part of the trip was breakfast at cinderellas royal table in cinderellas castle. allen and i miscalculted the 'disney transportation system' to and from the magic kingdom and were terrified and a little sick to our stomach that we missed it entirely as we sprinted down main street at 8.45 (for a 8.15 breakfast) pushing two strollers, two girls...one dressed like cinderella. we arrived only to find out that the breakfast started at 9, and our 'arrival' time was 8.15. i probably should have known that beforehand. somewhere there are disney cast members (aka employees) sitting back and laughing at the video footage of us running.

avery loved the parades at night, mickey and minnie's house, goofy's roller coaster...but she did not love the kali river rapids. it's a larger version of thunder river at six flags. she was just tall enough (allen said she was 37 inches and a hairbow) and she (nor we) had any idea what was ahead. she got drenched by a waterfall and a wave that sunk the titanic. she cried at first because it was freezing water but we clapped and laughed and got her more excited that she'd come on the 'big' ride. all of us were ridiculously wet...some of us in white shirts...and wished we had not gone on that ride, but it left us with a fun memory. note to self: do not wear white shirt and denim shorts when you plan to get wet.

like i said, there are tons of fun stories and i'm sure i'll post them as we remember them all...but i'll leave you with a few pictures and knowing that we all woke up this morning ready to go back.

wach out prince charming....

we leave for disney world in one sleep...

i feel quite certain this will not be one of those relaxing, lay by the pool sort of vacations (the kind i prefer) but i am also certain this will be the trip of a lifetime. i can't wait to see avery's face when she walks into the magic kingdom. we're having breakfast with the princesses in cinderella's castle saturday morning and avery is ready to go. she's been in this dress since breakfast. now, if i could only get my voice back!