Vacation is over:( but hello 2010!!

We are very sad that today is our last day of vacation. We have been home with the doodle for almost 2 weeks now and it has been so great having all of us home! Of course Steve had a few hunting days in between but he wasn't gone long and has gotten to spend a lot of time with Ava.

Things Ava loves at 17 months:

• coloring! she loves coloring and will run and get paper by the computer, and put one scribble on each piece and move on to the next. I've found color on the floor, the coffee table and the walls, oh and can't forget some of her new Christmas toys. Luckily it didn't take much to teach her that wasn't an appropriate place to color.
• letting the dogs out of their kennels- first thing in the morning she runs to their kennels and lets them out and then giggles as they run to the bed and scurry under the covers.
• correcting the pets- She likes to run after the pets pointing her finger saying "no, no apper!" (no, no Casper) and then say "bad, bad, bad" We realized we need to teach her a more positive way to talk to the pets as they are not always being bad.
• Beating Magnum with whatever object she can find (she did not learn this from us). Steve is working on this bad habit today, but yesterday she clubbed him in the head with a wooden toy. Poor dog just takes it too.
• Elmo- nuff said
• Dancing! This child dances anytime she hears a tune. The second she hears music that bootie starts shaking and the head starts bobbing.
• imitating mommy and daddy- yesterday we went to look at houses out in Spring Trails and brought all of the plans home. She had all the plans on the coffee table and was pointing at different sheets and "talking" up a storm like she was figuring out which house we wanted and what plot of land we needed. It was the cutest thing ever! She had CLEARLY been watching us very closely.
• making a mess!
• being outside- she loves loves loves to be outside. Runs to her room saying "acket, acket" grabs her jacket, brings it to me and then runs to the back door.
• jumping- she makes Steve and I put her on the bed and bounce her up and down while she says "dump, dump, dump" she loves it.
• pulling cereal boxes out of the pantry and dumping them all over the floor.
• covering Casper up with blankets, place mats, or whatever else she can stack on him.
• Telling the dogs to sit sounds more like "shit" when she says it though.

Things Ava doesn't like at 17 months

• being around people she doesn't know or see very often. Suddenly she has major stranger anxiety. Hoping it's a phase and she'll grow out of it.
• being told "no"
• sitting in her high chair while we are out - used to be an angel, now not so much.
• car seat- yep still hates it. Thank goodness for Elmo!

So as most of you know we now have our house on the market. It's been pretty slow due to the Holiday's but we are hoping with the new year here now that people will be more willing to make a move and someone will buy this house. We aren't looking forward to moving to a place where we will have to commute into town, but we are looking forward to living in a family oriented neighborhood, with good schools and having lots of space! We are trying to decide between building in a master planned community or buying an existing home that's been updated. It all depends on the commute and what we can get for our money. Lot's of friends are trying to convince us to stay inside the loop. I know that is ideal as far as proximity and property value, but for what we want in a home, it's just not happening.

So here's to 2010 may it bring us and everyone we love good health, happiness, financial freedom/security etc... Too all of my beautiful friends having babies in 2010 (and there are a few of you) may God bless you with a strong, healthy, happy baby.