You won't let us say "amen" at mealtime without giving thanks for either Daddy's truck or Sissy's bed. And then after you are done eating, you take a dish towel and place it over your plate like a burial shroud.
On mornings when you wake up before Claire, you prefer to eat your breakfast with Mommy on the rug in the kitchen floor.
You're the only person I know who has gotten cheese in your eye.
You love to put a blanket on your head and say, "I'm in my shower." And then laugh hysterically.
You answer most questions with "Mmmm-hmmm."
Your favorite song of all time is "Are there More Gods than One?" from Songs for Saplings Questions with Answers. You call it "Gods" and your favorite way to hear it is on "Sissy's leap pad." You are really starting to sing a lot and love music just as much as your sister.
You are working your way out of a nap. Already. Just like Claire, who stopped taking naps the day you were born.
Every time you cough, you say "I need tissue for my nose." You also love to flush the potty, which works out very well for Claire, who is largely afraid of flushing public toilets.
You are obsessed with people having possession of whatever belongs to them. If you see anything lying around you say in an expressive voice, "I found Daddy's phone!" or whatever it is that you found, and then you take it to them even if they don't want it. The other day you literally took my phone out of my pocket, said, "I found Mommy's phone!" and handed it right back to me.
You are not as jumpy as you used to be regarding noises. Recently as I was printing something off the computer, you hesitated and then looked at me and said, "I don't scared."
You have a tender heart. The other day I let you try some cookie dough from a batch I was making. You immediately gagged and spit it out and then proceeded to say, "That tastes good, Mommy," as you walked across the kitchen to throw it away in the trash can. Thanks for trying not to hurt my feelings, honey.
You call your daddy either Coach, Daddy-o, or Dippadaddy. You say "pockasikable" for "Popsicle" and "stashasidios" for "pistachios."
You love to play outside, and I never would have guessed how quickly you would become such a great playmate for your sister. You girls will disappear for long stretches of time and play church or school or whatever is in Claire's imagination. You just go along with it. It's one of my greatest blessings to watch you girls become friends.
You are pretty easy going except in a couple of situations. One is when you're tired, of course, in which case you just want Mommy to hold you. And then there are the times when you are frustrated. You can be just fine and all of a sudden cry out in frustration if you can't accomplish whatever task you are trying. For example: If I am driving along and all of a sudden you start screaming and crying in the backseat, I can almost always guarantee that if I turn to check, you will be trying unsuccessfully to get your socks off. You will struggle and cry uncontrollably and then all of a sudden, the socks will come off, and your face will brighten like a light bulb, and you will look up with a smile and say, "I got it."
The other day we were in Hobby Lobby waiting in line for the lady to cut some fabric for me, and you were insistent on telling her three things: 1. "I have pockets." 2. "I watch Barney-dog." 3. "My Daddy loves peanut butter."
Averi Kate, I could never have imagined how much joy you would bring to our family, or how perfectly you would fit in. You are such a precious gift from the Lord. You make me laugh every single day, and you melt my heart every time you walk up behind me when I am sitting on the floor and start rubbing my back. You are funny and sweet and free-spirited and our hearts overflow with thankfulness to the Creator for making such a wonderful kiddo.
Happy birthday sweet girl!
