Avery @ 2.75

I printed all 52 of the weekly photos I took of Avery in 2014 and looking through them is priceless, I'm so glad I stuck with it all year. I've been continuing this project in 2015 but have fallen off the blogging train lately. Below are the first 8 weeks of Avery's 2015 photos along with some bits about who Avery is as a 2.75 year old.

1/52
The spitting image of his daddy.

Although I think babies become big kids much too quickly and I've been mourning Avery's growth since the day he was born, I have found that each new age and stage just gets better and better and this almost-three-year-old age is the best one yet. He gets sweeter, smarter, more creative and more funny every single day. He certainly has a mind of his own and is developing a strong opinion about everything but I stand in awe of his imagination and his creativity and am so proud of the sweet little boy he's becoming. I'm so lucky to spend my days with this vibrant spirit :)

2/52
Bedhead all day long. Every day.

3/52
Finding him hiding out in a corner reading a book out loud is just my favorite.

This boy is almost accident-free on the potty training front. He has made leaps and bounds in the last month becoming more aware of when he needs to go and being very independent in doing his business. About a month ago we switched entirely to wearing underwear (with the exception of diapers at nighttime) and he's had fewer and fewer accidents each week. We were using tractor videos on YouTube as an incentive but he doesn't even ask for them anymore, he just goes to the bathroom when he needs to and goes about his day. Yesterday, Avery got a prize for making it through a whole week accident-free, and then we headed to the store for new undies. (he chose Olaf, no surprise there!)

4/52
Superboy at mach speed.

Avery's favorite things right now:
Building forts
Vehicles. Tractors, boats, excavators, cranes, trains
'Hunting' bears, deer, snowmonsters, rabbits, squirrels, wolves,  etc etc...
Calling family members on numerous devices that may or may not resemble a phone
Cuddle time before bed
'Climbing mountains'
Dancing (and participating in Zumba :)
Frozen and Brother Bear
Bathtime (and drying his hair 'crazy')
Snacks
Wrestling/chasing/tickling Cullen
Singing 
Typing messages to his 'boss' while helping dad work in his office (he takes it very seriously) 
Watching 'Wheel of Fortune' and yelling out the letters
Watching tractor videos
Hiking in the woods
'Chopping down trees'
 

5/52
Down with the sickness.

This sickness was THE. WORST. Avery had influenza and this is the first time he has been this down-and-out sick in his whole life. It was pretty terrible to see my sweet, active little boy want to do nothing but sleep or sit still all day long- for over a week. I was never so happy to have my sweet boy back to health, sickness sure has a way of helping me appreciate all that toddler energy!

6/52
Still crazy pale... but sporting some of the first smiles in a week.
The bond these two share is something seriously magical.

7/52
This is his 'seriously mom' face. He's a tough cookie to crack some days ;)

Avery is such a kind soul. So sensitive and so polite. We toured a preschool a couple of weeks ago and it was sort of surreal to see him in that space interacting with other little people so independently. He was so excited to be there yet it was so bittersweet for me to think that in a little over a year he will be starting 'school'.

8/52
One evening we were enjoying dinner together as usual and glanced over at Avery who was giving us
^^this look. Totally out of the blue. Tears of laughter followed :)

9/52
Constable Avery

From the day Cullen was born, Avery has been such a good role model and protector over his little brother. I can tell that these two boys have a strong bond that I hope only continues to grow. Although they've started having some power struggles over toys (and Avery is quickly learning that Cullen's personality isn't quite as passive and as his own) the majority of their days are spent in harmony. Watching them run and play and laugh is like food for my mama soul and I can tell it's going to be a really, really fun summer.