Avery 5

This sassy girl is 5!! How can that be! I swear it was just yesterday that I was holding all 6 pounds of her in my arms for the first time! She has sure grown into a sweet, beautiful, kind, and crazy 5 year old. Avery is definitely our drama mama! She came out feisty and that hasn't changed much :) Avery is my cuddle bug. She loves to snuggle and sit in my lap. I love that she still calls me "MaMa" and Shane "DaDa." It makes me feel like she's still little!! Avery's favorite things to do right now are, crafts (she's gotten much use out of her craft table), read, play dolls, and play "baby and daddy" with Carson (she's always the baby...she loves to pretend like she's a baby!). She's incredibly shy in new situations and around new people. She takes a while to warm up when in a new place. I still have to peel her off my leg to go into her various classrooms at church (except for school days because she does carpool...that doesn't seem to bother her). She loves when her daddy carries her and when we lay down with her at night. She's a good friend and doesn't like to see her friends and cousins upset. She can be a bit bossy (she reminds me a lot of me when I was little :), but is always willing to share after some coaxing sometimes. She loves to pray and sing songs and talk about Jesus! There's a few cute things she's said over the past few months that I've jotted down and need to record. "Under bridgen falling down" (London bridges), "Hi-ho the did you know" (Hi-ho, there derry o), "Open says me" (Open sesame), and, "bressel milk" (breast milk). Ha! I love the way kids interpret things!!

She's our sweet, smart, silly girl!! I'm so thankful that I have a daughter!!

Oh how she loves her blanket!! She's been very attached to this blanket lately. And also to a stuffed giraffe she calls "Giraff-y" that Shane bought her at Cabella's.

Avery is a great sister to her brothers. She's usually very patient with Cade and they seem to get along better now that he's a little older. We went through a long phase of her wanting to hold and baby him, which he did not like very much. 

They love to play tea party!!

She's definitely the ring leader most of the time. I think this picture sums it up quite well. Ha, I love it!! She had a little reading to do while Carson drove her around. She usually ends up being the one to chose what they play,

But every once in a while they will break away from their usual "baby and daddy" game and play hunting or camping or whatever Carson picks.

They really do play so well together, most of the time that is. They still fight and argue like crazy, but they love each other and miss each other when they're not together. 

Avery and I have gotten to spend some sweet time together lately. We had a cupcake date while the boys were at the deer lease,

And got pedicures the day before her birthday!

This girl loves to swim (her lips still turn blue when she gets cold),

loves dressing up,

and loves to sing and dance to Let it Go. 

She loves anything and everything Frozen, for that matter. It's all the craze in her preschool class, STILL!! A year after this movie came out and it's still so popular among the preschool girls! It's crazy....she absolutely loves it!!

She's also gotten into "Re-merican" girl dolls, as she calls them. She doesn't realize that there's a whole American Girl Doll store, and I'm not telling her!! She's perfectly content with the Target version!

Avery got her first kitten about a week before her 5th birthday. And boy does she love this little thing! She had been asking for a kitten for a while and we kept holding off on doing it. Frankly, I didn't want another animal to take care of, but she was insistent. She spent the night at my parents house one night and I got a text from my mom, "Do you want Avery to get a kitty from Kayla?" Avery had gone over to my parents neighbors house (who had a 6 week old litter of kittens) and had picked out the kitten she wanted and had her mind made up that she was coming home with us. So we went over there when we picked the kids up and due to the begging from Carson, Avery, and Shane (my animal loving husband) we left that night with a kitten, who Avery named Stella.

I can't even begin to describe how excited she was to get a kitten. She talked nonstop the whole way home. Excited chatter!!

She fed Stella food out of her hands that first night. 

They became fast friends. She fell asleep with Avery in her bed a few nights after we brought her home.

Best friends!

Avery tried to take her training wheels off the same day as Carson, but she wasn't quite ready. Balance is a hard concept to teach. She'll get it though!

She loves her new baby cousin, Austynn! She also loves playing and having sleep overs with Kennedy and Taylor at MiMi's house. They have so much fun together!!

Happy 5 years sweet girl!! We love you so much!!