Weekend Update

Yesterday Avery FINALLY listened and participated in dance class!  She even let us trade her flip flops for ballet shoes before class. Such progress!

She wore her bunny mask with pride...



She followed Miss Kristen's directions...

She even took her turn in the center of the parachute!

VIDEO: DANCE CLASS SUCCESS

And all this WITHOUT a nap! We were so impressed.

After class we stopped at Gammy's house for a visit.

By late afternoon, she was ready to crash!

I guess we really messed up her schedule... this morning she set a new record and slept until 10:15 am.  (But we're not complaining).

Josh took care of her today while I lunched and shopped with friends.  He didn't take any pictures except this one:

When I found it on the camera card tonight, I asked him why on earth he took a picture of the drawer. He started laughing and said, "Avery took all the stuff out of the drawer and scattered it around the kitchen, so I asked her to please put everything back in the drawer. And she did what I asked; she put all the things back in and walked away.

This is what it looked like."

Avery's Conversation with Boompa & Sheila

VIDEO: CONVERSATION PART 1

VIDEO: CONVERSATION PART 2

Long Day!

Avery and I started out our day very early this morning - we were out of the house at 6:45 am for the 2011 Making Strides Against Breast Cancer 5K at South Coast Plaza.

Avery even walked part of it by herself! (With her babydoll, of course)

We were back at home shortly after 10:00, and both of us took good naps!

At 2:30 we were off and running again for a birthday party at Irvine Park.  When we pulled into the parking lot and Avery saw the bouncer, she said, "Jumping! Alllllright!"

Then came the best surprise of all... A PONY RIDE!  Avery seemed excited about the prospect of riding on a pony, but I wasn't sure if it would last through the wait in line.  I had a vision of her totally panicking and backing out at the last second when her turn came.

But she proved me wrong! We made it to the front of the line,

and up into the saddle she went.

The whole time, she repeated, "Pony! Avery's turn!.....Pony! Avery's turn!"

When we arrived back home for dinner, I told Josh we should get wind her down and get her to sleep early since we had such a long day today.

After he gave her a bath, I found this going on in her room:

VIDEO: GIGGLEFEST

One Step at a Time

Although a battle (which I lost) ensued when I tried to get Avery to put on her ballet shoes before class, she did do slightly better this week. I tried to keep my distance from her at some points during the class to give her a chance to follow the teacher's instructions instead of mine, and I actually think she did well when I wasn't hovering over her.  (Even though she still thinks the main purpose of dance class is to check herself out in the mirror and run amok).

VIDEO: DANCE CLASS 1

VIDEO: DANCE CLASS 2

Pop Quiz

Pop Quiz:

Which of the following things occurred today during my aunt and uncle's vow renewal at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden?

A. It was a warm and lovely afternoon with a peaceful outdoor ceremony to celebrate their 20 years of marriage

B. Avery shouted "POOP!" during the prayer

C. Avery was removed by mommy and taken for a walk to go look at a beautiful oak tree

D. Mommy showed Avery a squirrel in the oak tree in the quiet garden, and Avery was insistent that it was a "MONKEY!"

E. Avery was allowed to return to her seat and was given rainbow colored goldfish crackers to keep her quiet

F. Avery refused the crackers so she could sing the ABCs at full volume during the exchanging of the vows

G. Avery shouted "TRACTOR!" and was removed from the ceremony kicking and screaming to go for a walk with daddy

H. All of the above



Terrible Two in a Tutu

Yes, we have definitely arrived... Avery had an epic meltdown this morning, and we knew she was tired because she had woken up too early. So Josh tried to rock her and put her down for a little nap around 9:00 am.  Our plan was flawless; she could get some extra shut-eye and be happy and fresh for dance class.

Nope.

She hit him as he tried to settle her down. He scolded her and told her that it is not okay to hit. So she pinched him (hard). So he put her in her bed and walked out.  Of course she cried, but we figured she was tired enough that she would cry it out for a few minutes and then get over it and crash out.

Nope.

We made it almost 30 minutes before I went and rescued a sobbing and snot-faced Avery from the corner of her crib.  I like listening to her cry about as much as I like listening to rakes made of knives being dragged across sheet metal.

I decided to bring her to Target with me around 10:30, just to get her out of the house. She enjoys riding in the cart and looking at the displays.  And as usual, she was very good in the store, despite her earlier soap queen scene.  As we strolled through the produce section, I heard a dad behind me tell his two little ones, "Look at that cute little girl riding in the cart. Do you see how good she is? See? She doesn't cry."  I suppressed my immediate instinct to collapse on the floor in a fit of hysterical laughter, shouting "HA! You should have been at our house an hour ago!," and instead bit my tongue and beamed my best, "Why yes, thank you, of course I have a perfect child!" smile.

At 11:15 we buckled up for dance class. She took a short nap in the car and actually did surprisingly well for the first 20 minutes of class. She stayed in the center of the room with the girls and was even mimicking some of Miss Kristen's moves. 

Somewhere around the halfway mark, her two year old behavior reared its ugly head. She refused Miss Kristen's attempts to help her or hold her hand for circle time, spent a sizeable amount of time pouting in the corner, and tried to strip off her clothes. 

I tried to ignore her and just let her be when she was acting out. At one point I looked over at her from across the room and saw her throw her "prop" (a beanbag) on the floor. Another little girl picked it up and ran off with it, and I made no effort to stop her. I figured if Avery wants to act like that, then she will have to deal with the consequences.  But I did have to muffle my laughter/horror when I saw Avery react with clenched fists and a red face, growling, "AVERY'S TURN!" 

Nope. 

Warming Up?

Josh took Avery to her second dance class yesterday, and she actually did a little bit better!  (What a good daddy, he even took pictures and put her hair up and I didn't ask him to... but he did let her dance in flip flops instead of ballet shoes!?)

Miss Kristen even got a hug at the end of class!