Cute Composer's Curtsy

I set the keyboard up in the play area again last week. It used to be in the play area in AZ, but the girls had gotten bored with it, so I decided to conserve space and keep it packed up from the move. I brought it out again so the babysitter could play songs for the girls, and now it is a favorite toy once again! I was getting dinner ready when I saw Ava "composing" a cute little rendition, so I grabbed my camera and captured this:

"Mommy pway wittle people with Ava....pwease!!!!"

This is a phrase I hear several times daily lately. Ava LOVES playing with Fisher Price Little People. She can entertain herself for hours at a time with these toys. They usually stay in the play area, with the occasional bus ride to Maya's room, but have recently ventured outside to the deck and play structure (my idea....hey, I am determined to enjoy nice weather while we have it here in Minnesota!) Whenever I sit down to "pway wittle people," the scenario "pways" out as follows:

1. Ava puts me in charge of the Mommy and baby inside the house.

2. She gathers the rest of the people and begins having them knock on the door, one by one.

3. My job is to take the Mommy and have her look out the window and say, "Who is it?" to which Ava replies, "It's a monster!"

4. I must have the Mommy scream now, and call the police on the phone.

5. Ava laughs while saying, "Just kidding! It's just me!" Then I am supposed to let her character in the door and offer her a snack and some lemonade from the fridge.

This goes on until all of the characters are sitting around the table in front of the kitchen. Then we disassemble and start over, usually. Or, it might be time for a bus ride or trip to the ferris wheel....at which point the plot thickens! As there aren't enough seats on the ferris wheel for all of the characters to ride at once, they have to take turns. It can be a long and tedious process before everyone has had a fair ride (pun not intended; even I will admit it is a bad one!) Then, it's everyone back onto the bus for the ride home. And the wheels on the bus go round and round....all through the house!

Sugar and Spice

Thought it was time Ava got a little press coverage. As is the case in most households with more than one child, the older siblings' schedules tend to set the rhythm of family life, and the younger ones hop on board the ride already in motion. Fortunately for us (and her!), Ava is a fairly mellow, even-tempered child who pretty much finds her sync wherever she goes. She is 32 months old now, and is mostly sugar, with more and more spice added as the days go by. We know that, while challenging at times for us, this is good for her.

An example of how she is exerting her own independence occurred the other morning. She told me she wanted to play outside, but it was raining, so I explained to her we had to wait for the sun to come out and dry the grass. Apparently that answer did not satisfy her. She had another solution in mind and proceeded downstairs, wearing only her shirt and diaper, to put on Maya's rain boots and head towards the door!