Some people say, "You and Ava need time apart.  You are too close, and she is going to have a hard time."  To those people, mind your own business.  I admit, I have some really bad moments, and when I need to cool off, I go.  There's not a lot of places to go where I live, but I go.  Leaving allows me to breath.  But let me tell you why you should mind your own business.  Do you know all the things I would miss, and all the things she's not going to want to do with me later.  Stay at home life is not all peachy, but most days are fun and full of love and laughter.  I hold her tight and feel this will eventually give her the courage to face the world head on, full of confidence. 

I enjoyed capturing a few moments from a fun day in the life of us...

Woody got a lot of play time this day and finally got left behind (just like that). Flowers ("for mommy") and a rock ("for daddy") picked during a walk through the woods.



         Ava was adamant about learning to crush walnuts through my old school chopper,

 and I just love tripping over those shoes and sweaty socks.

Picking out her own outfits, with seer delight, is allowed on most days (even though they make me cringe, she needs some space to be Ava), and her "so cited (excited)"

face just makes me giggle...EVERY TIME.

Not an overly exciting day, but each moment was delightful to capture and a gentle reminder how we should all be more like kids.  Enjoy your children, but remember to take some breathing room, as needed.  :-)  I am just fine staying home with my daughter and she seems pretty darn happy to me...I also wish people would stop worrying over how shy she is.  She's not shy, just around people she doesn't quite trust yet (and frankly, I am quite happy about that).  She will go to preschool in a couple weeks.  Things will change.  I will hold tight to every hug, sweeties, cry, dance party, and yes, even the bad days we have had.  They too are lessons to be learned in some odd way.

On a side note...this is my new ride. I LOVE it and know it totally geeks me out even more, except for the fact those bikes are worth some money. I wheeled and dealed it down to twenty bucks and hauled it home in the trunk of my car...you can imagine the big eye roll I got from my husband.   Ava told me it was going to be "my bike, I will learn to ride it and you can give it to me, okay?!"  :-)  Okay.

To eat or to freeze...EAT!

My favorite breakfast is always made so much better around this time of year.  The blueberries and strawberries are to die for.  I can never get enough of them, and come January, I will wish, once more, that I had frozen some...they just don't last that long around here.

Summing up the summer so far...kind of...



 Exploring Wildwood Park like only a Japanese tourist would.

  Lots of ice cream with Dad (hazy from the heat!), and a trip to the farmer's market in style.

 Hates fireworks...and days later, still hates fireworks going off in the neighborhood.

 Lots of time in the pool...it's been HOT!

 I really have no idea.

 Some fun with cousins!

 CUBS!!!  lose of course.

 John Deere celebrates 100 years.

 Carnival and silliness

And what would a summer be without a trip or two to the waterpark.

These remind me to do our annual SIGN's screening with my sister.  Gosh, I LOVE Iowa right now! 

There's much more to share, but these I like, and luckily there is still  more summer to go. Could we possibly have anymore fun.  HECK YEAH!! Hope everyone is having as much fun as we are.

"I'm going on a trip. Wanna come too?"

Yes, my daughter did all of that.  I was cooking dinner, Dejan was doing some work on the computer, and this is what she came up with.  "Interesting" is about all I could come up with.  Fun, creative, and messy all came to mind later.  Ava's creativeness is great fun to watch, but annoying to clean up.  We rode an airplane, watched TV (on a clock), read Tom Sawyer and James Harriet (per toddler's perspective), was told the phone was there "in case we need to call someone", then landed at the beach/beach pool.  We swam, ran from the waves, and of course ate ice cream.  Great fun for a three year old is really quite cheap.

My next "want to do this project"...

http://www.designsponge.com/2011/06/before-after-lamp-globe-birdfeeders.html

I am certain these would never survive a Midwestern hail storm or those greedy squirrels, but I am willing to take them down as needed.  I am also thinking these could be used for trailing plants, tea lights, etc.  Someone else may have already thought of that, but I feel the need to shop around for these globe lamps and decide later what to do with them.

Why I Love Three Years Old



Summer has kicked off, and I am happy to say we may be under that umbrella most of the summer enjoying ourselves.  She is watching a movie on my IPad as I prepare dinner.  I LOVE THREE!!

Our trip to the beach was much different then last year's, but we had fun. She was much more eager to stay with my Aunt this time when we went out by ourselves one night.  I LOVE THREE!!

"Mom, I'm ok.  Just go clean out the shed."  I LOVE THREE!! 

'Raise a Kid Who Gives'

I read a great article today in PARENT magazine that got me thinking.  Am I teaching my daughter the gratification that comes from giving to others, and how much contact are we having in the real world?  I agree we are all headed down a road where community no longer involves actually helping real people, it involves how may friends you have on Facebook or followers on Twitter, clicking "like", or texting instead of having actual face time.  "Empathy, the primary emotion that inspires people to help others, doesn't develop through electronic media."  I wish everyone would realize this!  Their studies show kids who volunteer do better in school and are less likely to try drugs, good enough for me.  It shows kids are healthier and doing volunteer work that involves personal contact makes people feel better, builds confidence and self-worth.  Even better!  The buck stops here.  We are going to get more involved in some way.  My parents taught me to give, help, and have empathy, but somewhere along the electronic era, I am guilty of becoming out of touch.  I am so close to removing myself from Facebook and the blog world.  I love the contact with people I haven't seen in years and love to keep up on every ones lives, BUT we forget to actually get involved with our friends, family, and community.

I'm not saying we will volunteer or give every week, but if we could start somewhere and show Ava how good it feels to help other's, even this early in life, can build a character in her that may not other wise surface.  It's easy to spoil your only daughter, especially one you waited 5 years for, but life is not all about giving to ourselves.  It can be easy.  They suggest praising your child for sharing with other kids, picking up trash at the local park, visiting elderly neighbors, visiting an animal shelter and donating supplies, making birthday cards, and actually calling or stopping by to visit friends and family.  I feel good we do these things, so I will take it a step further and pick a kid friendly cause.  GenerationOn.Org.  That's where I will pick a charity, and hopefully find a local spot with similar needs.

It's time for this family to stop focusing on what the world can do for us and instead find the smile that comes from feeling so good about giving back.