Avery turned 8 today! Here are some things I always want to remember about our precious gift from God.
1. Avery is very creative. She can make something out of anything. She tapes paper together to make chairs, houses or other objects. She has made up several T.P. roll crafts all on her own. She also put together her very own scrapbook.
2. Going right along with her creativity, Avery is quite the artist. She loves to draw. She has accumulated many coloring books over the years, but she would much rather draw her own art. She has even won some art contests and recently some of her artwork was on display at the DISD administration building. It is humbling when your daughter is a better artist than than you. (It has been that way since she was about 5.)
3. Avery is thoughtful. She likes to make things or write notes or cards to people. A couple of months ago she even wrote a poem for my friend, Jennifer.
4. Avery can be shy at times. This is especially true if she doesn't know someone very well. Recently, Wes had taken her to the public library to get some resources for her gifted and talented class. He asked her to find out where something was from the librarian. She immediately began to well up with tears at the thought of having to do that.
5. Avery is a great reader. She can read on a 5th grade level and has won the award every year for having the most Accelerated Reader points in her grade. Sometimes she can be seen reading to Abby (who she helped learn to read) or even her dolls or stuffed animals. It is pretty cute to watch her really get into the story with voices and enthusiasm.
6. Avery can be sneaky. She likes to "spy" on people. She also was punished a few weeks ago for taking cookies and eating them behind a chair in the game room.
7. Avery is her sister's biggest fan and cheerleader. When Abby and her friends put on "shows" for us she encourages her and does all her introductions. Abby often likes to put on dance routines for her friends, family, or the youth group. Avery is always on the side encouraging her.
8. Avery can be motherly/bossy, which I suppose is part of being the first born child. She not only likes to tell Abby what to do, but I have heard her on occasion try to tell other little kids what to do. In fact, after a small group meeting at our house last year when we had over 40 people at our house she informed me that the next week she had a plan: the little kids would be separated into her and Abby's room, and she would read to them and play with them. If they were too loud or misbehaved then she would send them to time-out in the corner. Ha!
9. Avery enjoys playing soccer. She has been playing since Kindergarten on the same team, the Denison Ponies. They have held a great record. The first season they did not lose any games. Since then, they have only lost one game each season.
10. Speaking of her soccer playing ability, Avery is one competitive little girl. She's generally the smallest girl on the field, but that phrase, "it's not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog" totally applies to her. She'll get in there and mix it up with the biggest of players - bouncing up every time she's knocked down.
11. Avery understands technology. Laptops, iPods, video games, DVRs and more just come naturally to her, and she's been known to teach her sister or even other adults how to operate certain electronics.
12. Avery is a people pleaser. For the most part, she likes to please her friends, school teachers, Bible class teachers, and even Wes and I which makes life a lot easier.
13. Avery is sensitive. Sometimes all we have to do is look at her sternly and she changes her behavior. Other times when we are vocally correcting her, she will begin to cry out of remorse.
14. Avery is insightful. She picks up on things easily. She has often related something that Todd said in his sermon or something she learned at school or in Bible class and applied it to another situation.
15. Avery entertains herself well. She does not have to be entertained or played with all the time. She is happy playing by herself.
16. Avery is a great eater. She eats almost everything that is put on her plate. She understands that we can't always eat our favorite foods all the time, but that we need to eat certain things to keep us healthy.
We are so thankful for this precious gift. She is one of the greatest blessings God has gifted us with and our lives are touched daily by Avery Nicole.
