A very happy Un-Birthday to you!

Ava just recently turned 18 months old and half-birthdays are pretty important when those six months constitute a third of your life. I don’t know where I’ve been, but suddenly I woke up one morning and Ava had transformed from my cute bum-scooting baby to a charming, precocious toddler. There is a lot going on with her, too much to write at once, but here are some highlights of who Ava is right now.

She has a very sweet, affectionate disposition and will give hugs and kisses to family, bears, balls, and plastic frogs alike. She has many of the social skills of a child a year older. Her hair has grown into beautiful (yet unruly) blondish-gold ringlets and I haven’t a clue what to do with them. Those curls are a hand-me-down from Jon’s side of the family so I’m learning how to tame them as I go. But for now her locks are as happy-go-lucky as she is. She’s 30 inches tall, has five teeth, and has finally broken the 20-pound mark and gets to sit facing forward in her car seat.
Ava still doesn’t say a whole lot; most of her verbal repertoire consists of onomatopoeia (favorites are beep, pop, tick tock, and any animal sound) plus “up” and “baby.” She's very expressive and our days are filled with "wow" and "uh-oh" and exclamations of all kinds. But she’s learning signs as fast as I can teach them and even making up some of her own. She probably knows around 50 signs now and by far the most popular ones are “daddy” and “outside.” SUCH a daddy’s girl, it’s unbelievable. Ava has a perma-grin whenever Jon is around and when he’s not, she’s constantly signing for him. Anytime they tickle and wrestle she signs, “More more!”
Balls of any sort are irresistible to Ava and she often tries to carry more of them than she has hands for. (In contrast, the more realistic a doll is, the more scorn it receives.) She loves to be read stories and spends a lot of time with books on her own. She likes to put things on her arms and wear them around as bracelets, like stacking rings and rubber bands. But mostly, Ava revels in playing outside. Especially in the dirt. Or sand. Or mud. Or water. She may look just like her Dad but Ava’s got her Momma’s need for sunshine and soil running through her veins. Somebody should buy this girl a sandbox.