Avi - 12/30/2016

Avilene ate malt-o-meal cereal for breakfast.  (I didn't offer her any raisins.)  For lunch she ate some of everything: ground beef, whole wheat elbow noodles, mixed fruit, and applesauce.

This is a picture from yesterday afternoon when Avi kept covering her head and charging around the room!  They love doing that - right up until the big crash!!  :)  However, Avi never did crash yesterday!!!

This was actually the first day she went under one of our blanket houses.  Sophie had lots of food toys in there and you can see Sophie giving Avilene a drink of milk!  And she was offering (i.e. sticking food in Avi's face) Avi lots of other food as well!  In the other picture Avi is hanging out in the blanket house by herself taking a 3.75 second "power break."  I just happened to be holding the camera!  The picture makes it look as if she's just chilling and relaxing!!

 

And in the last picture Sophie is hiding under the blanket!  (These pictures today all have a common theme!!)  There is really nothing more entertaining than a game of Toddler Hide-n-Seek!  Sophie yells out instructions and Bubba and Avi just wander off to play elsewhere!  Ha!  Sophie yells "GO HIDE" to Hudson (repeatedly) and then shows him where to hide and instructs him not to move!!  Then she pretends to "find" him at least a half-dozen times.  (More efficient that way!)

Avi - 12/29/2016

Avilene ate raisin english muffin and some blueberries for breakfast.  For lunch she had bites of everything: chicken, crackers, sweet potatoes, and canned cherries.

Sophie and Avilene are the only two kids here today and then tomorrow everyone is going to be back. Sophie loves to read books and we had a stack of books ready for Story Time.  We were on the couch and Avi came charging over with her arms raised high.  I started to reach for her and she whirled around and took off.  Ha!  Silly girl.  She teased me two or three more times before she wandered off to play with something else while Sophie and I had Story Time.  :)

This first picture is from yesterday afternoon when Hudson and Avilene were playing in the legos drawer side-by-side.  Nothing too special to say about this except I like how they do the parallel play all the time.  (In this position they look about the same size.)

I like watching to see what the kids play with when they first arrive.  Avi went for the tambourines first and then the shape sorter buckets.  (Hey, there are lots of ways to play with these buckets.  Ha!) I've taken LOTS of pictures with kids sticking their faces in these buckets and making noise.  I think they like the echoing sounds that produces.

These next two pictures were right after breakfast and this is the first thing Sophie played with; hiding under the blankets and then peeking out at Avilene.  In the 2nd picture here the blanket is draped over the igloo.  Avi likes looking at that setup, but she's not about to go inside yet!! :)

Sophie had lots of food toys set up nicely and that was just too enticing for Avilene to resist!!  She grabbed the carrot (you see in her left hand) and just took off running.  Sophie chased her down, but Avi wasn't about to give it up.  However, she did take it back to the yellow bench (Sophie's table) and set it back down.  Sophie was trying to be bossy with Avi, but I guarantee you that doesn't work!!  It kind of went like this; "Avi, come on.....Avi, come on.....AVI!!!!.....AVI!!!!......AVI!!!!"  I  told Sophie; "I think Avi has a mind of her own."  :)

Avi - 12/28/2016

Avilene ate biscuit and peaches for breakfast.  She had a few bites of lunch; baked beans, dinner roll, peas, and crushed pineapple.

Hudson's new favorite phrase: "Mine mine, no no Avi.... mine mine, no no Avi...."   Avi really never wants what he has, but she loves taking something and simply watching his face for his reaction.  She seems quite amused by his reactions!  Lauralea and I have always considered this one of the most important aspects of our work; teaching some social skills!!   :)

Avi loves interacting with Lauralea through the gate when Lauralea is eating breakfast and preparing to go to work.  Lauralea said, "I think Avi likes me better out here than when I'm in there on the couch."  I told her that's probably true -  that way you're not a threat to grab or restrain Avi in any way.  Ha!  When Avi first saw Lauralea this morning she flopped face-first on the mattress and started squealing and kicking her legs.  It was sooooo cute!  (And funny!  We were laughing hard!)

These first two pictures are left over from yesterday afternoon.  Avi was walking around packing this pillow with her everywhere she went.  And in the next picture she and Hudson were just playing in the igloo.  Going in and out and laughing!

Avilene was also "showing-off" on the mattress for Lauralea and I.  It was so funny!  She was stomping her feet really fast and then trying to spin around.  Her balance is pretty impressive for how young she is!  This picture doesn't really show it, but Hudson was also bouncing up and down.  Notice Avi has lost one of her boots.  :)

I took this last picture while Avi was playing with another one of her favorite "toys."  Spinning and rocking the swivel/rocker.  That chair has provided so much entertainment for the children over the several years I've had it.  (It's also Reid's favorite place to lounge.)

Avi - 12/27/2016

Avilene ate waffle and hash browns for breakfast.  For lunch she ate chicken & cheese quesadilla, carrots, and mandarin oranges.  When she first arrived she walked through the gate and immediately looked to see if Lauralea was in her usual spot.  Nope, she left before you got here today Avilene.  Lauralea stopped in for a few minutes later in the morning and when she was leaving that time Avi was at the gate blowing kisses over and over.

Everyone is a little slow coming back from Christmas!!  Ha!  Only Avi and Hudson are here today, but by the end of the week everyone will be back.  I always love watching how they act after being gone for a few days.  Avi was her usual busy self; playing and experimenting with everything and occasionally she was even slightly amused by Bubba!!  Ha!  Hudson was chanting her name several times this morning; "Hi Avi, hi Avi, hi Avi...."  He took her a book and started saying, "Avi book, Avi book, Aviiiiiii book,  Aviiiiiiiiii book!!"  :)

She was trying hard to put the shapes in the holes and I'd show her which ones fit in the correct hole and she was starting to get how that all worked.

Avilene was sitting on the edge of the mattress bouncing up and down.  Hudson had different plans and decided it was the perfect time to give Avi some loves.  She didn't whimper or yell, but she was scrambling to get away!!  Ha! Nice try Hudson!  None of us get to snuggle her for very long!!  I told Lauralea I never want to quit feeding Avi her bottle because that's the only time I get to snuggle her!!

Here's a picture of Avi looking at a book.  She looked at several books this morning.  Earlier she was being silly and sitting on the floor and whipping her head back-n-forth.  (Like a vigorous "no" head nod.)  Good grief, it made my neck sore just to watch that!  Ha!

Avi - 12/22/2016

Avi ate raisin english muffin and a small serving of blueberries for breakfast.  For lunch she had bites of everything: turkey slice, flat bread, green beans, and strawberries.

I want to wish all of Avilene's Family a Merry Christmas!  I sure love having Avi at Little Treasures and she is a joy to care for!  We are spending Christmas Eve in Ronan where my Mom now lives and where my Sister lives.  Then Christmas Day we'll be at Plains with Lauralea's Family.  See you back at Little Treasures on Tuesday the 27th.

These first 3 pictures are from yesterday afternoon.  This is Kenzie on her hands and knees "chasing" Avi.  I've finally convinced Kenzie that Avi does NOT like it when she is restricted from moving for more than 2.5 seconds!  Ha!  So she has learned to make her Avi hugs very brief!  Now this kind of play (in the picture) Avi loves!!

I had this young lady come back and sing for us again and we sang Christmas songs together.  You can see Avi sitting on the mattress watching her.  From left to right it's Reid, Kenzie, Bode (Reid's brother), Sophie, Riley, and Avilene.  Baby Nora was sleeping and Hudson was hiding.  :)

 

Avi charged around the room all morning and played with lots of toys and even sat on my lap for about 6 books during Story Time.  (That's a new record.)  And she did not try to grab the books.  Here's a picture of her peeking from the igloo!

Avi - 12/21/2016

Avilene ate jelly toast and mangoes for breakfast.  For lunch she had bites of everything: chicken, bean, rice burrito, sweet potatoes, and tropical fruit.

Sophie was playing with the food toys and Avilene swiped all three plates and just took off running! I don't necessarily want her thinking that's acceptable, but it's sure hard not to laugh!  It looks so funny and she's mighty good at it!!  Ha!!

Reid has been leaving his action figures here this week for the kids to play with and I took this picture when Avilene was checking out Captain America!  :)  Speaking of Reid, he had pitched a little stuffed animal and told Avi to "fetch!"  Silly guy!  Good job ignoring him Avi!  Then she was watching Reid use some of his special wrestling techniques on the Big Bears.

Avi has been playing with the cars and scooting them across the floor.  For some reason this morning she took off crawling across the floor and she did it two or three times!  (Just like the old times!  Ha!) She also sat for three or four books during Story Time, she played with the rocking chair (making it rock), and probably set a new record for how many times a 13 month old can run back and forth across the room!!

Avi - 12/20/2016

Avilene ate cinnamon roll and four or five bites of canned prunes.  For lunch she ate bites of scrambled eggs and hash browns, ate waffles, and cantaloupe.

Reid was playing with the food toys and then he started dropping some of them on Avilene.  I asked him what he was doing!?!  He said, "It raining corn-bobs!"  (corn-cobs!)  Haha!  Well, let's not do that even though Avilene doesn't seem to care that corn-bobs are falling on her!!

Hudson was sitting in the swivel/rocker chair and Avilene was running back and forth behind him and peeking around the corners.  They were both loving it and laughing hard.  Avilene also set with us for two or three stories during Story Time before she got bored and wanted down.

Avilene and Hudson both love to play with the barbecue and Avi will frequently join him if she sees him playing there.  She especially likes closing the doors when he opens them!!  Ha!  Hudson had just left when I took this first picture and Avi started putting things in the 'oven.'  What the picture doesn't show: she wasn't putting them in very carefully (kind of slinging them in - ha) and they were coming out just as fast as she could put them in!  (That yellow plate popped back and got her in the forehead!)

The last few weeks Avilene will be playing hard and then lay her head on a pillow, chair, couch, mattress, etc.  I've never gotten a picture of it before, but I got one this morning!  These 'rest stops' happen VERY quickly so I have to be just as quick with the camera!!

Avi - 12/19/2016

Avi ate kix cereal and mixed fruit for breakfast.  For lunch she ate pulled pork sandwich, peas, and mandarin oranges.

We did a toy, book, and puzzle exchange this weekend and the kids kept busy all morning playing with the "new" stuff!  I may often say, "Avi played with Hudson!"  This first picture depicts what is really happening!  Ha!  They are playing "side by side" (which is normal play for Infants and Toddlers) and is often referred to as "parallel play." They seem to be enjoying experimenting with the airplanes.

Here's a picture of Avilene watching Sophie jump off the blue balance beam.  Sophie kept saying, "Watch me Avi, watch me Avi, watch me Avi."  And here's proof that Avi was watching!!  She also watched Reid jump off the igloo onto the mattress.  :)  In a few months it will be Avi jumping and another baby watching her and waiting for their turn to jump!!

Ryan, Baby Nora's Dad, was watching Avi walk around this morning and was impressed how well she is doing.  Avi usually arrives after he has dropped off Nora and Nora's Mommy picks her up in the afternoon.  So Ryan hadn't watched Avi walking around for a few weeks.  When Avi wakes up from her nap I will get her out of her crib, give her big loves (which she's usually ok with - sometimes!), and put her on the floor. She flies down the hall and I rarely have to walk slow following her!!  Some children can't hardly stand up when they first wake up!!  Ha!

Avi - 12/16/2016

Avilene ate brown rice and a few raisins for breakfast.  For lunch she ate some of everything; meatballs, flat bread, carrots, and apricots.

Here's a scenario from this morning that hit my funny bone!  This is very typical at Little Treasures and typical Toddler egocentric behavior from Sophie and Reid!!  Ha!  I was just beginning to change Avilene's poopy diaper and Sophie asked (as she's watching me change the diaper!), "Hey Gary! Can you read books to me?!?"  Well I'm a bit busy at the moment.  I'd already put Baby Nora's bottle in the bottle warmer to heat up and she was yelling because she was hungry.  Meanwhile, Reid is working on his art, comes to the gate and yells, "Hey Gary! Can you make a hole in the Ginger Bread Man!?"  Well I'm a bit busy at the moment.  As I was finishing cleaning Avilene Reid again yells from the lunch room; "Gary! You're taking for ages!!"  LOL!!  Is that the same as taking forever??

I'd set Baby Nora up in front of the mattress and took some baby toys for her to play with.  Avi was delighted to see the baby toys and kept 'stealing' them and running!  Ha!!  Nora eventually flopped over and scooted back under the steps.  I'd put more toys in front of Nora and Avilene would snatch them!!

Avilene had a typical busy fun morning and was on the move constantly!  Especially the first hour she was here!  She was also after the food toys Sophie was playing with, but they were not nearly as easy to obtain as Baby Nora's toys!!  Sophie had the food toys in the barbecue and after Avi had grabbed them a couple of times Sophie blocked access to it with the two yellow benches.  Avi is so persistent!!  She tried and tried to get in there and get those food toys!!  When she started to get frustrated I distracted her with some other toys and she was just fine with that.

Avi - 12/15/2016

Avilene ate two servings of toast and ate grapes for breakfast.  For lunch she ate baked chicken, dinner roll, hash browns, and I gave her 2 cherries.

Lauralea was talking/playing with Baby Nora this morning and Avi went walking up to her and yelled loudly to get her attention!  "Hey! what about me!!?!!"  It was so cute (and funny)!

Avi was messing (playing and experimenting) with her tongue all morning; primarily flicking it in-n-out!  I even managed to get a picture of it!  Silly girl!  She did it pretty steady for maybe an hour.

Speaking of silly girl - Here's a couple pictures of her packing the "frog suit" all over.  In typical fashion she was charging around with it frequently over her head and running blind!  The pictures don't really depict how she's moving, but as soon as I took BOTH pictures she crashed!!  First picture, she tumbled right over the steps!  Next picture she plopped right on the step!  She knew I was laughing at her and both times she got up laughing too!!

One more picture with that frog suit!  Nothing to say about this except how stinking cute she is!  Ha! She also played on the mattress several different times, ran away from Bubba with toys, played in the legos drawer with Bubba, and practiced some of her twirling!  :)

Avi - 12/14/2016

Avilene ate whole wheat bagel and peaches for breakfast.  For lunch she ate some of everything: ham, whole wheat elbow noodles, corn, and apple bites.

Before nap time I picked up Avi and said I was going to change her diaper and she was going "night night."  She started saying, "nigh nigh nigh nigh."  That was the first time I've heard her say that and it was so cute!

I took these first two pictures when Avilene was watching Lauralea brush her teeth and get ready to go to work this morning.  In the first picture she was tipping back being silly and Lauralea was laughing at her.  In the 2nd picture there is something about that electric tooth brush that is so interesting!  :)  You have such a pretty smile Avilene!

She was also intentionally trying to spin in circles.  That's pretty impressive considering she's just barely 13 months old!!  But I'm not really that surprised because she's been whirling around and taking off (almost running) about 3 days after she started walking!!  Reid tried to "trap" her this morning on the mattress.  He said, "Hey Gary!  I have Avi trapped in here!"  I don't think so!  Why is she on the other side of the room already!?  He said, "Well earlier she was trapped!"  Ha!

We were all reading at Story Time except for Avilene and she went strolling by in front of us with the big "Captain America" shield in her mouth.  (Same as yesterday - see picture from yesterday!)  We all laughed at her and she took off fast, but blind and crashed into the block structure.  Everyone continued to laugh and she too was laughing hard!  Silly Avi!

Avi - 12/13/2016

Avilene ate waffle and pears for breakfast.  For lunch she ate some of everything: tuna & crackers, sweet potatoes, and mandarin oranges.  Reid was the last one eating breakfast and when he came out he asked, "Where's the big Captain America shield?"  (Reid had brought 4 Captain America toys from home.  I don't care if the kids bring toys from home, but there has to be enough for everyone!)  So I showed him this picture that I took while he was still eating:  "Here's the last time I saw the big shield and Avi was headed in that direction so it's somewhere on that side of the room."  Ha!  Reid found it in the play sink.  :)  I think maybe Avi was walking blind!  :)

The monitor from the Food Program was here this morning checking up on us and she watched Avilene packing some big blocks around and said, "Those are almost as big as she is!"  I think Avi had 3 stacked together and she was practically running with them.  Ha!  Yup, she's a tough little girl!

Speaking of running, Avi had grabbed one of the Captain America toys and Reid yelled, "Avilene!"  When he yelled that she immediately whirled around and took off running and it was so stinking cute!  I was laughing so hard!  Well done Avi!!  (And she was still clinging to the toy!!  Ha!)

I asked Hudson to hold the bottle for me while I was getting Baby Nora ready for her bottle.  (Probably 2 -3 weeks ago.)  Every bottle since that time (for Nora and Avilene) he thinks that's his job and he does awesome just holding it and waiting for me to ask for it.  I don't think Avi totally trusts his intentions!  Haha!  She keeps a close eye on him while he's holding her bottle!

Avi - 12/12/2016

Avilene ate some chex cereal and ate mixed fruit for breakfast.  For lunch she had some of everything: pulled pork sandwich, drank tomato soup (with straw), and ate pickled beets.

This has been a pretty typical Monday morning at Little Treasures!  :)  The kids are usually a little more "testy" with each other and everyone is a bit tired from a busy weekend!  Avi did just fine and stayed busy, but she was tired by lunch!  She ran back-n-forth across the room packing toys and books with her.

Here's the explanation for the first picture: Avi had bent over and laid her head on Baby Nora's head  (to give her a love) and it was SO sweet!!  I grabbed the camera to see if we could stage a replay!  "Avi, give Baby Nora a love!"  Hudson heard me say that and came running over to give the Baby a love and Avi, of course, just pretended like she hadn't heard me!  Ha!

Avilene is keeping a close eye on what Sophie is doing.  (She's actually waiting for the opportune time to start grabbing what Sophie is assembling! Ha!)  I asked Sophie what she is doing and she answered, "Getting it ready!"  Getting what ready?  "The airplane ride!"  Ha!  Anyhow, Sophie started putting various toys inside the seats and Avi got in there and started pitching them back out!

Avi - 12/9/2016

I didn't serve Avilene any fruit this morning - trying to give her sore diaper rash a break!  (Just an FYI, she did have another big poop around 11:00.)  So for breakfast she had a big serving of oatmeal, no canned prunes.  For lunch she had a couple bites of hash brown casserole, and ate a biscuit.  No mandarin oranges.

I was using my electric tooth brush this morning in the Daycare Room and Sophie, Hudson, and Avi came running to see it!  Sophie was pretty convinced it was Lauralea's toothbrush.  And they are identical.  "That Lauralea's toothbrush?!?"  No.  :)

The last two days and again this morning Avilene has been giving mores loves than usual.  No complaints here!!  It's awesome!  For example during her busy play time this morning she stopped as she was passing by and laid her head on my leg two or three different times.  And after her morning bottle she snuggled with me for several minutes.  Yes, maybe she was just tired this morning, but I still loved it!  :)

We used a box and a blanket this morning and had a whole new place to play!  I took this picture when Avi was peeking in and that'a as close as she cared to be!  Sophie and Bubba were in there playing.  However, during Story Time when the "blanket house" was empty she checked it out.

Later in the morning Reid moved the box to a different spot in the room and started building a wall around it to "hide it," he said.  I took this picture when Avi was messing with the box and it was so cute because she was totally keeping an eye on Reid to see his reaction!!  Smart girl!!  :)

Avi - 12/8/2016

Avilene ate toast and cantaloupe for breakfast.  For lunch she ate some turkey, dinner roll, one green bean, and ate her mangoes.  This isn't about Avi, but I think you'll like it:  I was singing "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" at breakfast and Reid said, "Can you stop singing that!?!"  (After about the 6th time.)  Why?  "It kind of getting boring!"  LOL

These first pictures were taken first thing this morning.  (You can tell because I haven't taken her boots off yet.)  I'd set Baby Nora in this spot where she's less likely to tip over backwards and it's pretty safe for her to practice sitting up.  Avilene went to the opposite side of the legos table and took up residence there!  So cute.  In the 2nd picture she went to the gate at least 6 times this morning and yelled for Lauralea's attention.  Lauralea was in the kitchen preparing for her day and visited with Avi every time.

Reid was pretending to thump Avi and Hudson with the Big Bear's feet and they were getting a kick out of his attention.  Then he wanted to hide under the bears and asked; "Put bear on me so no one can see me."  (Not really "asking," but he said it kindly!  Ha!)  Avi and Hudson were looking to see what happened to Reid!!

Reid asked if we could play with the cars and ramps and he was sweet enough to let Avi play with his too.  Hudson had the other one.  We played Christmas music and read books at Story Time.  Avi sat for maybe 2 books, but for her age and activity level that's pretty significant!!  :)

Avi - 12/7/2016

Avilene ate some whole wheat toast and blueberries for breakfast.  She ate a little bit of everything at Lunch; ham, crackers, bean & bacon soup, and strawberries.  At breakfast I was hoisting Avi up to her highchair and had my arm around her middle.  Reid said, "Wth your arm around it (it?), it look like she have a big belly...with a bone in it!!"  Ha!  What a goofy sucker!  And that's another one of the things I love about children - all the hilarious things they say.  I have a journal of humorous quotes from many years of Child Care!

Here's another picture of the kids playing on the mattress first thing this morning!  Avi still has her boots on.  Reid is going head-first over a big bear and you can see Sophie's head poking out!  Silly kids.

Reid was "hiding" under the legos table when Avilene spotted him.  She'd been trying to take his toys and he was being so sweet about it.  He wouldn't give her the ones he had (which was good), but he'd find her another one just like it!  And take it to her.

Avi is beginning to figure out that you can manipulate the legos - at this point she's primarily taking them apart, but that's the beginning!  :)  She's such a busy little girl and it always interests me what causes her to pause, and maybe stop and play for a minute or more.  It's frequently been the legos pieces.  (Next week it'll probably be something different!)

Avi - 12/6/2016

Avilene ate cinnamon bagel and apricots for breakfast.  She ate some of everything for lunch: chicken, whole wheat elbow noodles, peas, and applesauce.

Sophie was looking through the books today and she made this observation on one of them; "Avi NOT chew on this one!"  LOL  Well I think there are actually several she's probably missed!!  Reid and Sophie have been helping me keep an eye on her book nibbling, but she's actually been doing much better.

I'm including a couple of "group" pictures today.  They haven't all been together for several days and maybe that's the reason they played in close proximity to each other for a long time this morning.  Avi is on the left, Reid is upside down, you can see the back of Hudson's head, and Sophie is in the background.

Avilene would wander off to do her own thing and then rejoin the group where they were playing.  She loves being in the middle of everything, but she also likes to keep moving!  Before I took this picture she was drumming for several seconds, but as soon as I had the camera is was time for her to be cheesy!!  Silly Avilene!  :)

I thought this was so cute how the 4 of them were all huddled around the legos creation.  Reid was mostly concerned about Avilene grabbing the legos but she did awesome and never touched them once! Reid said, "Avi might wreck it."  Then he looked at her and said, "You do your own Avi."  Ha!

Avi - 12/5/2016

Avilene ate bran cereal and raisins for breakfast.  For lunch she ate most of everything: cheese & canadian bacon pizza, corn, and tropical fruit.

Avi was her usual fun and busy self this morning.  And maybe even more-so with the toy and book exchange.  I was on the floor beside her (really wanting to give her a hug) and she leaned over and we touched heads momentarily.  I felt very successful!  Ha!  Thank you Avilene!  Avi was standing beside the legos table playing with the legos.  Hudson walked up from behind and gave her the sweetest love (a quick hug).  It was so sweet and so cute.  Good job Hudson.

Here are some pictures of the kids playing with the "new" toys in this toy set.  They had all the phones out and here's what their conversation sounded like.  "What are these things Hudson?!?"  So Hudson explained to her; "These are 'flip-phones' that were used by our ancestors!!  Ha!  (And still used by Gary, except he is in the process of getting a smart phone - meaning; I'm not giving out the number until I figure out how to use this thing so the Daycare Families can message me!!)

I thought this was a cute picture of the two of them sitting and reading together  (Sophie is not here today.)  The picture looks pretty peaceful right!?  Here's what happened as soon as I took this picture.  Avilene had just plopped down and sat right on his foot.  Bubba was trying to pull his foot out from under her and was saying, "Stuck, stuck, stuck...!!!.."  :)

Here's Avilene totally examining the "bear mask" on Hudson's face.  (We've had little kids her age that would cry when the masks were out.  So they had to go bye-bye!  The masks, not the kids!  Ha!) I like how Avi has her finger up to her mouth....hmmm...."What exactly is that thing Bubba!?!"  Here is an FYI in case someone looks at Hudson's Blog today.  Whenever the kids interact like these two did this morning I take advantage of that and their two Blogs will look very similar.  Anytime I can "copy and paste" I use it!!