18 months...and we keep on growing!

Praising the Lord for my beautiful, healthy, energetic 18 month old! We celebrated that milestone this week with our Ava girl. She's so precious to me. She's cutting 4 teeth (those pointy ones) all at once, too, so I was given the awesome gift of some extra cuddle time on Wednesday - which, I was all to happy to embrace! I'm still an emotional basketcase about this child... I get teary eyed at every bath time, each box of clothes she's outgrown and every goodnight kiss. Even now my eyes are full to the brim with tears - with thankfulness mingled with a little sadness because she truly is growing up.

I've been really challenged by the new blog Raising Homemakers - and I'm really appreciative of the ladies who have put that together. Each post touches a heartstring of mine in someway - and I'm glad to be learning and growing along side others, tho it be "virtual" growth? In the last few months I have buckled down and really taken my role of raising a possible homemaker to heart. I try to teach Ava everything, even if I think she's really too young for it. In a matter of a month only - she now knows how to help me sweep up the kitchen floor, empty the dishwasher, take out trash to the kitchen trashcan, shake out laundry (I fold), put away some of the toys... and the list goes on. But at the very top of this list are kitchen tasks - she LOVES helping me cook and bake. Which, you know, takes 4x's as long with a toddler "helping", but... I already see the reward of diligent training in this area. We talk through ingredients for a recipe - she tries to say them. We seek out the correct bowls, spoons, and measuring cups - she tries to say them. We mix ingredients and then pour or whatever else step - and she's right there helping the whole time. Praise the Lord for such an eager learner! :)

So, in awe of watching my little one grow and change - I wanted to share some pics from breakfast this morning. We had really simple & easy pancakes. One of Ava's "job's" on these days is to stir the batter. She's a pro! And melting her momma's heart with each stir. {sniff}