Priceless

Pancake Ingredients: $8

Children’s DVD: Free from the library (plus $3 late fee)

GiGi Hardback Book: $12

Microphone for Singing: $15

Throw Pillows: $20


A Relaxing Saturday Morning: You guessed it….

PRICELESS!

A Toddler's Honesty

DISCLAIMER: If poop stories make you nauseous, please disregard this post.

It seems only yesterday that Erik and I spent countless hours poised at Ava’s mouth, desperately hoping that the words Mommy or Daddy would invariably pop out. We dedicated myriad conversations toward attempting to translate her various burbles, raspberries, and mewls into some sort of language. Believe me, it was a full time job.

Well, baby, we’ve come a long way since then! Ava is now one of the most fluent toddlers I have ever met. More than that, she brings honesty to language in a way that I find intermittently refreshing and humiliating. I no longer need a mirror to discover my physical flaws. Mommy, you have a pimple—right there (pointing). Nor do I need to continually peruse her adorable little face to intuit her current emotion. Mommy, you are making me angry (foot stomp)! I’ve taken to recording these clever Ava-isms in a small red journal, and if I’m having a bad day all I need to do is travel through its pages for an instant pick-me-up. Of course, there have been a few incidents I would rather not record for all of posterity.

Take a recent trip to Wal-Mart. As usual Ava and I ended up in the bathroom. This time, however, it was due to Mommy and not Ava. You get the idea.

Ava: Mommy, your POOP STINKS.

Mommy: Please, for the sake of all that is family, lower your voice.

Ava: But it STINKS! Are you DONE YET?

Mommy: Get in my purse! Read a book! Chew some gum! Sit on the dirty floor! Anything!

It was at this moment—not my proudest—when Ava and I both noticed a distinct pair of shoes standing outside of our stall. I probably should have mentioned that we were in the handicapped stall, as I had assumed it would give her more room to move around. Uh-oh. As I froze, Ava took interest and approached to investigate. Just then someone rattled the stall door hard enough to have her scurrying back toward the toilet and me wishing for an invisibility cloak. Or a tranquilizer dart.

Ava: Somebody’s OUT THERE!

Mommy: *&%F#^*^(&*^(^*&!

I waited, hoping this woman—whoever she was—would take pity on my soul and seek out a different stall. In desperation I dropped my head to the floor and counted at least five other available stalls. Why was she still here? Why was she determined to stand in a cloud of toxic vapor? WTF?

Frantically I finished the task at hand and gathered up my daughter, the scattered contents of my purse, and my tattered dignity. Then, with a deep breath, I prepared to open the stall door and come face-to-face with the woman who was determined to witness my walk of shame. Much of what came next was a blur, as my only real memory of this woman remains the soft blue loafers she wore. However, in passing, I did notice that she was rather large in size, a fact which perhaps would explain her determination to wait out the handicapped stall. My main focus was the door, my gateway to escape. I had almost reached it when….

Apparently Ava felt it necessary to explain to this woman why we had taken up so much of her time. My beloved toddler’s honesty simmered to the surface once again as she offered up a sunny smile.

Ava: Mommy POOPED. It STINKS.

How’s that for honesty?

Hopscotch Lesson

A touch of attitude with my hopscotch!

What a jump!

Learning the finer points of hopscotch

Awhile back, the Bell triplets (Katey, Avery, & Libby) came over for a visit and taught Ava all about hopscotch. They were very patient with her, and she had such fun learning the new game. One of my favorite things about my daughter is her love of learning. I think it will serve her well in life. As you can see by the photos, she truly enjoyed herself, as well as spending time with the triplets.

The Hunt for Belle

As a lifelong Disney fan myself, you can imagine my maternal pride when Ava finally began her own love affair with the wonderful world of Disney Princesses over the summer. I am not ashamed to admit that I have been slowly contributing to this preference since her birth—buying princess apparel, encouraging the viewing of Disney DVDs, and even allowing her to purchase Disney dolls as a reward. Nevertheless, this was entirely her choice and she has been enjoying it ever since.

Cinderella was an early favorite, and in fact for several months Ava has been acting out various scenes from the movie. Her favorite role-play is where the evil stepsisters destroy Cinderalla's pink dress and she is forced to flee to the garden in tears—where she is miraculously met by her fairy godmother and receives an even-more-beautiful blue dress (Ava's favorite color). Erik and I have both filled the supporting roles in this scene many times. It's actually quite fun! We think we may have a little actress on our hands.

However, Cinderella has been placed on the backburner as Ava explores yet another princess: the beautiful Belle. We are currently engaged in a desperate search for the infamous yellow dress for Ava's Halloween costume. She is determined to dress as Belle for Halloween, and I for one refuse to accept failure. So if anyone knows where we could purchase such a costume, PLEASE LET ME KNOW!

One of THOSE Mornings

There’s just something about certain mornings, especially mornings where a behind-schedule mother is trying to get everyone (toddlers included) in the household prepared for the day—oh, yes, now I remember—they SUCK. Now generally I am spoiled in this department, as my mother cheerfully arrives each morning to watch my daughter at my house, usually while she’s still blissfully asleep. Talk about a calm, warm-hearted start to the day! This does make me feel somewhat like a cat with cream.

If it’s any consolation to those moms who have to face this daily struggle with THE MORNING and are currently mumbling various curse words about me, please know that you have my total and utter respect, admiration, and sympathy. You see, on Fridays, Ava attends the day care at the high school where I teach. The idea is to build her socialization skills and allow her some play time with other toddlers. Thus, on Fridays, our schedule shifts in unexpected ways, and while sometimes I can feel like SuperMom and get everyone off with a smile, sometimes—unfortunately—I do not.

Case in point: last Friday. To appreciate this story, you must know two pieces of background information. (1) As fall approaches, the weather is getting cooler. (2) My daughter, who is already tall for her age, hit another growth spurt over the summer and outgrew all of her long pants except for two pairs—a completely respectable pair of jeans and a scrubby, spaghetti-stained pair of pink sweatpants. That’s it. For the past week I have been politely reminding my husband that we need to take a shopping trip for this poor toddler and get her some new clothes. Naturally, he kept pushing it off—maybe Wednesday, Thursday would actually work better, how about Friday? I’m quite sure an athletic event was occurring somewhere in the world—televised, naturally—at all moments during the week. I’ve learned to accept this as a fact of life.

So here we are on Friday morning, with low temperatures, and we must dress our child for day care. I always give Ava two choices when dressing her, a routine that she holds dear to her heart, and you can begin to imagine our current situation. Ava wants a choice. Mommy does not want her to wear the embarrassingly disgusting pink sweatpants. Daddy’s verdict: YOU ARE WEARING THE JEANS!

This order does not meet with acceptance. The screaming—please make it stop—I don’t need this stress in the morning!

Ava: PINK PANTS!

Daddy: YOU ARE WEARING THE JEANS!

Ava: PINK PANTS!

Daddy: YOU ARE WEARING THE JEANS!

Take this conversation X100 and you’ll have some idea of the morning I had last Friday. Needless to say, when I finally arrived at school, frazzled and trembling, I realized several things. (1) I had forgotten to brush my teeth. (2) No deodorant either. (3) More proof that our daughter is stubborn, independent, and clearly in control? She wore the pink sweatpants to day care.

What a doll....

I just had to share this photo of Ava, from early summer. We were doing an impromtu photo shoot one morning, and at her request I prepared to include some of her dolls. It was then she informed me that she wanted a picture with ALL her dolls. Lest you think my child isn't spoiled, I must clarify that these are NOT all of her dolls. These were merely the ones handy in the playroom at the moment of photography. We were sadly unable to include the many dolls upstairs in her bedroom. However, as you can see, that fact did not dampen her excitement in any way. I love this picture because you can just see how much fun she is having. And that is what a photo shoot is all about, after all.

Summer Fun

One of my favorite parts of being a teacher (other than inspiring the lives of our future) is the fact that I get the summers off to spend with my family. It gives me a dose of life as an SAHM (stay at home mom) and basically allows me to HAVE FUN WITH MY DAUGHTER!!

This summer we got passes to Holiday World, along with my mother, and that quickly became Ava's favorite summer getaway. We've spent countless hours discussing her favorite rides (the carousel and the fish), the many virtues of Splashin' Safari, and yes, even the wonderful food of pizza and fries that I allowed my child to consume while there. For a moment, I must brag on Ava for two reasons. (1) By her third trip she had gathered the courage to ride the Holidog Roller Coaster, despite the fact that she may have been a tad too short. (2) She became quite the Skeeball princess, winning several prizes which are now scattered around the house.

Most of the pics included here are from Holiday World. As you can see, we had a blast.

Smith Update

Sometimes a good writer needs to let an idea percolate in her brain before she shares her brilliance with the world. While that may have nothing to do with the fact that I took a several-month break from the blogging world, I nevertheless feel that it is an appropriate excuse. Either that or I was just having too much fun in the real world to bother with this silly old website.

I didn’t mean it! I’m just being silly! It’s ISTEP week; give me a break. At any rate, I plan to return with a vengeance. Top of my Christmas list is a newer, better digital camera so that I can share pics more easily. I also hope to incorporate some essays about living life as a Smith.

So what has happened in our family since May? Erik got a new job, and it couldn’t have come at a better time. We no longer need to return unopened gifts to Wal-Mart so that we can afford groceries. Okay, I only did that once, I swear, but it’s nice not having to live paycheck to paycheck. We continue to car-pool together, which will undoubtedly provide further fodder for my essays.

Ava is bigger, brighter, and even more brilliant—if you can imagine that. There are times I have no words for how wonderful she is. She continues to bless our life and keep us entertained. So far I have been keeping a journal of everything she says, and so far the only people who have read it are myself, Erik, and my mother. I’m hoping to share a few of the more amusing ones on here. I need to spread the knowledge of her humor!

As for me, I am settling into the new school year and enjoying the fact that EVERYONE IN OUR HOUSE NOW SLEEPS THROUGH THE NIGHT! That alone is celebrational enough for an update.

Check back soon for more info.