Into the Third Year I

Ava's 2nd Birthday Party was at the same pavilion as last year. The weather was a bit cooler but she was able to appreciate it all a bit more this time around.

Going for a walk with Grampa John, the first to arrive.

Aunt Renee and Uncle Mark coax her to smile...something she wasn't doing too much of all day.

Cousin Valerie also knew how to get a smile going.

Perhaps the biggest smiles were found while she was playing hide-and-seek with her cousins.

Just after the last present was opened.

Loading the car after shopping on an August evening.

In the stroller with one of her "Princesses" that she likes to have with her these days.

Truth in Advertising Admission: Not every moment is Hallmark-worthy. Being two means that moments like this are never too far away...Come to think of it, being 40 is often like this, if you're a Red Sox fan at least.

Checking out the fish at the doctor's office before her two-year checkup.

Ava learns that everyone has to wait for the doctor. The checkup revealed that Ava now weighs 30.2 pounds (anyone who's carried her lately wouldn't be surprised by that figure) and that she's just shy of three feet tall. There's an old legend that if you double a young girl's height at two you'll get her adult height. So that works out to about 5'11"...We'll see about that...That's a few years off still.

Some evidence for how much she's grown: With Grampa John in August 2003 (L) and August 2004 (R).

And evidence of one of the things that she now reaches with ease by using her tiptoes.

Something she soon will be too tall to do...Run through Daddy's legs.

In the Discovery Center at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.

In the same room, Mommy buys pretend African foods from Cousin Jessie. Aunt Val, Uncle Chip, and Grammy & Opa were also there.

Five stones that Ava collected on one of her evening walks, labeled here as she named them.

Ava's getting quite good at identifying particular people on TV. The other night, she shouted "Caveman!!" when Johnny Damon got up to bat for the Red Sox (I'm not kidding). "Caveman" is of course short for "Unfrozen Caveman Center Fielder," which she's still not able to say perfectly.

Listening intently to a musician at the Art in the Park. This was the third time that she'd been to this annual event. The first time, she was only three weeks old.

Later that day, at a local Oktoberfest, Ava demanded that we get dessert first. We had no problem with that.

We can understand the sweet tooth, but her love of popcorn with ketchup baffles us.

Caught by the camera as she was standing on a chair by the sink and filling things with water.

Copying the way that Masayo uses her hashi (chopsticks) during dinner when she visited Ohio. Masayo hadn't seen Ava since she was three days old.

I took Ava outside when she got restless, but, once outside, she pointed to the restaurant and said "Masayo!" So, I had to go in and get her.

For some time now Ava has delighted in deliberately putting her shoes on the wrong feet. Like with other oddities, we're simply waiting this one out.

Playing with the many crayons in the kids room at Experience Kent Day.

She sat very still for the face painting...

...and the hand painting.

With Mommy at a local park.

Soon it'll be too cold to do this, so we're getting out while we can.

She did the tunnel again and again...

After that, we went on to see the hot air balloons being launched at sunset.

Getting a better look at them outside of the car.

She enjoyed them a lot and still says "balloons!" in order to get me to show her pictures like this one from that day.

Daydreaming in the carseat a few days later.

Afternoon nap with a Teddy Bear.

Another bathtime.

Trying on Daddy's sunglasses after the bath.

Admiring the different types of pumpkins at a nearby farm.

Riding the Ghost Car with Mommy

The "barn cats" there certainly weren't the stereotypical antisocial kind. In fact, this one followed us to our car and got into it when we were loading our pumpkins!

Ava and Mommy were visited by another friendly cat there. This one looked a bit more like your typical Halloween cat, but he wasn't too scary either.

Happy Halloween!

At a pancake breakfast at MAPS the next day, in the blimp gondola that she likes so much.

On the way to the car. She's holding the latest addition to her beloved rubber ball collection--a rubber ball with an airplane inside of it that Mommy bought her in the MAPS gift store.

In the car a minute later, still clutching it with delight.

The word "haircut" has been coming up in our conversations lately...

The same day, playing with Cousin Valerie at Grampa John and Grandma Rita's house.

Two days later Ava suddenly said "Pony" to Mommy, again and again, when she was playing with her hair clips. Mommy asked, "Do you mean you want ponytails?" Ava said, "Yeah...like Valerie."

Ava was in bed and missed all of this on October 27th.

I wasn't, of course. How she ever slept through my celebrations, I'll never know.

Mommy gets Ava ready for her first appearance in her Halloween princess costume--at day care.