Drunken Penguin

Although she looks like a cross between a drunken sailor and a penguin as she ambles along, Ava is officially walking! She does best when she is barefoot, carrying something (especially if it is a toy for one of the dogs), and/or trying to get one of the dogs to give her a kiss, but no one can stop her now! In other related "All Ava All The Time" News:

* She is descending stairs without trying to slide down face first, thanks to Monday afternoons spent with my mom, and she can pretty much feed herself with a spoon or fork, although the resulting mess is often reminiscent of Jackson Pollack.

*She pats her leg whenever she sees a dog or a cat and calls them "Tys". Everything else she has taken to calling "dada", including me (unless she is upset, then I get a drawn out, mournful "maaama").

*She loves giving kisses and has perfected her style from open mouth wet ones to fish faced loud ones.

*She likes music, Black Eyed Peas (or any fraction thereof) especially, and tries to snap her fingers when she dances. Who does that?! My mom. Think Earth, Wind, and Fire, 1978, Banning High. And just for the record, Barack and Michelle Obama dance like that too. So was it the "Ellen" segments or my mom's influence? Either way, she has also added a little bit of a butt shake to the mix (unless we are in the car, at which times she just puts an arm on her armrest, leans to one side and bobs her head, low rider style. I blame Josh for that one, as it is about the only way he can dance).

*She pretends to talk on the phone by resting the phone on her shoulder, she likes putting her "O" shaped toys on her wrist, she enjoys carrying purses, bags, or totes (she even opens the closet to get to them), and she tries to put on my shoes (and already has her favorite pairs). I'll take the blame on those ones...at least I don't snap when I dance, unless I am doing a weak Flamenco attempt.

Now if only we could get her to slow down long enough to sleep...