Typical

Claire woke me up at 3 AM this morning to ask if she could have oat bran for breakfast. I told her yes. She went back to sleep.

True story.

Gymnastics

 First off, here's a random snapshot of Claire before we went to Hat Day at the library.

 Now, on to the main event. There is an awesome thing here called "Tot Time" at the gymnastics center. They basically open up the gym for 2 hours and, for $2.00, anyone under age 5 can come and play their hearts out on the equipment. It is one of our favorite things to do here.

Claire loves to run on the trampoline runway...

Averi Kate loves to play too, like a big kid!

The balance beam is great fun...

And nothing can beat hanging out on the parallel bars.

 AK gets some tumble time in...

And especially enjoys when her big sister stops by for a few minutes!

And then, she's off again...

Until there is a phone break...

And a big wedge to climb on... (AK cracked up laughing every time Claire climbed on this thing.)

Both girls love the trampolines...

We love the gymnastics center!!!

Pumpkins!

2 Quotables before we get to the subject of this post...

Claire's recent compliments to me...

•  Mommy, you are the best maker of cereal.

• Mommy, you are the best cooker of the world.

 Also, the other day we were eating supper when Claire said, "What kind of cheese is this?" "Pecorino," I replied. "Oh," said Claire. "I don't like Pecorino cheese. I just like Manchego. Do we have any Manchego?"

I'm willing to bet that I'm the only person who has had that conversation with a 2 year old.

Now...the other day Claire's mother's morning out class had a visit to the pumpkin patch! They had a great time, first at storytime...

Listening to the Pumpkin Patch Parable...

Dancing, of course...

And watching a pumpkin being carved!

Then, it was on to play in the pumpkin patch!

"Oh, look, this is a great pumpkin!"

"Hmmmm, it might be a little too big, Mom..."

"Oh, here, this one is just right!"

 I love this silly girl with all of my heart!

And I love this silly girl with all of my heart too! I love this face...this is one that Averi Kate makes quite a bit!

"Look at all three of my teeth!" 2 on the bottom and one random off-center tooth on the top!

After a fun day at the pumpkin patch, it was on to play on the playground with some friends that afternoon! Here is our dear friend Mrs. Tanya getting some cuddle time with AK...

Hmmm, what is this?

I think I shall eat it!

No, Averi Kate, you can't eat a stick!

Give it to me!

Here, let me comfort you while you still chew on the stick.

On This Day, I Will Remember...

Favorite Words

Claire's favorite word these days is "very." She sometimes uses it in the correct context...

• "My teacher is very sweet."
• "Mmmm, this cereal is very tasty."

And sometimes not...

• "Is our house very this way?"
• "Can I have a snack? Can I very have one?"
• "Mom, I very love you."

Averi Kate's favorite word these days is "bmm." She usually uses it in threes...

"Bmm bmm bmm."

She can say lots of other sounds, like /b/, /m/, /d/, "bababa", the rolling b (like an engine sound), etc. But just try to get her to say any of those, and she will look right back at you and say, "bmm bmm bmm."

Other Things

AK getting ready to crawl. She got on all fours today and rocked back and forth. Oh, it's coming.

Claire talks a lot in her sleep. I didn't realize how much until we let her sleep in our room for the past few nights as we have been strongly encouraging Averi Kate to please start sleeping through the night. Now that I have "slept" with Claire for 3 nights straight, I think I understand why it is taking AK so long...

I put AK in the floor the other day and walked out of the room to do something. When I came back in the girls were sitting on the floor playing together. Well, at least playing side by side. Averi Kate might have actually been eating a book, now that I look at the pictures. At any rate, it was fun to watch. They played for probably 15 minutes before I had to step in and rescue somebody. Visions of days to come...

Averi Kate is super sweet. Like, super sweet. She loves to smile, loves interaction, laughs a lot, even cuddles a good bit. BUT. I'm afraid that she is going to have a temper. In those moments when she is not a happy baby...well...she is a really not happy baby. At least she is pretty easy to read! Love to watch these little personalities develop!

Videos

"God Our Father." Please pay attention to the "A-war-men" at the end.

This is the day in the Lord's army. Let us rejoice and be glad in May.

AK getting poomed.

And finally, another dance video. Because these things should be so.

Amen.