Haven 2 1/2 Update!!!

I'm 2 weeks behind on this update! :(

I can't believe that she's 2.5 years old already!

Here are some of Haven's stats:

Height: about 39 inches

Weight: about 32 pounds

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Clothing sizes:

Shirt and dress size: 4T

Jean size: 3T (though they are getting tight, she could probably move to 4's!)

Stretchy pants: HAVE to be a 4T or they are way too short

Pajamas: 4T

Underwear: 4T

Shoe size: 9 (to fit her super long big toes, lol!  Though it is hard b/c her feet are so narrow that she walks out of shoes that don't tighten)

Haven continues to be all things happy and sweet! ♥  She really is the sweetest, cutest thing ever!  She is always smiling and singing songs and dancing and telling us how much she loves us!  She is a cuddler and runs up and hugs, kisses, and cuddles in my arms many times throughout the day.  I honestly think it's what keeps me going a lot of days- that Haven love is powerful stuff!  ♥  She is super outgoing compared to Venily, though will be a little shy in some situations.  Jason really wants to get her into acting, lol!  She's actually amazing at acting out scenarios that we create for her, lol, but who knows how she'd be in a studio with cameras on her! :)

Unfortunately, Haven has developed a bit of sass since she was sick last month.  Usually it goes away once she is no longer sick, but this bit has seemed to have stuck with us!  Fortunately for us, it is not horrible, but it is something that we are working on!

Haven favorites!

Here is a video of Haven on her 2.5 birthday saying some of her favorite things, lol.  Her favorite color changes every single time she's asked, lol!  And I'm glad she's sticking to made up names for my future grandchildren! :)

other favorites:

favorite songs- "Party Rock Anthem" by LMAFO, "Dynamite" by Taio Cruz, and "Someone Like You" by Adele are some of her absolute favorites.  She also loves Rihanna, Selena Gomez, Kings of Leon (Somebody), and some others

Here is a video of her singing Party Rock Anthem and Dynamite!  I laugh every time I watch these!

favorite friends- she LOVES Venily's friend Haley (and Venily)!  She really likes older girls a lot!  Her best same-aged friends are Adalein and Kylee!

favorite books- Haven still loves, loves, loves her books!  Right now her favorite books are "Mercer Mayers" (her current favorite author).  When we go to the library she heads right for that section to look for books, lol!  I just got her a bunch of really cool pop up books, which she really likes as well.  This kid would sit for 10 hours straight and listen to books if I let her!

favorite toys- dress up stuff, babies, and toy kittens (luckily there is no shortage of any of those 3 at our house!  Interesting fact- here are some of the names of Haven's toy kittens- "Epic Maggie", "Spaghetti and Meatballs", "Midnight" and "Crocodile")  And as far as dress up, almost every time I turn around, she is dressed up in something different, lol!

Learning-

Right now Haven is learning letters, what sounds they make, what words start with each letter, and how to draw her letters.  She's doing really well- we are still working on a few lower case letters though.  And she can write about half of the capital letters by herself.  She has been sounding out words too now, which is pretty exciting- reading is just right around the corner!  I feel bad though because she is super smart, but I hardly ever make it a point to work with her on stuff.  I know if I did, she'd really love it!  I'd like to do a mini-daily lesson plan in the summer, but we'll see if I ever actually get to it!

We are getting more and more excited for Montessori preschool in the fall!  I have about 4.5 months worth of preschool tuition saved up!!!  It has been a struggle, but a huge relief as well!  Knowing that I will be subbing next year and making more money than I do now for less work is also help (depending on Jason's school schedule).

Haven is also working on riding a bike.  Jason picked her up a new bike and she is always wanting to ride it now.  Here is a video of the first time she tried it out:

Here's a few pics from Haven's 2.5th birthday celebration! :)

Randoms:

*She is a candy-aholic!  She'd do anything for a piece of candy.  It makes me want to just hide it all and eat in myself (more than I already do!)

*We are working though a severe fear of bugs. Actually, in the last month she has made vast improvements (but I'd still like to see a lot more improvements before camping weather is here!)

*I love the relationship she has with her sister.  They really do play well with each other most of the time.  They stick up for each other too, it's really cute!

 

*This child has the most unruly hair.  It is curl-crazy and always in her face.  The only real hair style she has to work with is pig tails, lol!  Yesterday I was putting her hair in pig tails and she was brushing her teeth at the sink.  She mumbled something with her toothbrush in her mouth and I told her I couldn't understand her.  She took her toothbrush out and said "I said 'Gosh, I sure look cute in pigtails!'"  LOL!!!

*Speaking of brushing teeth, over the last week Haven has finally learned how to correctly swish fluoride rinse in her mouth and spit it out!  She loves it!!
*She really likes nick-names.  She calls us "Mom" and "Dad" instead of Mommy and Daddy.  She calls Kylee "Ky" (almost always), and calls Venily "Ven" more often than not!  I think it's funny.  She is also always calling me "my dear", or "my life" (which I love and comes from the fact that I call her the "love of my life" all the time, lol!).   I usually call her "Havs" still.  Or "Havs Aravs Aravs" (lol).  Sometimes I'll call her something and she'll be like "I'm not (insert name), I'm Haven Araya Young!" :)
*Little Miss Independent insists on doing almost everything by herself (which we greatly encourage).  She picks out her own clothes, dresses herself, does her own buckles now in the carseat (even though I try to do the bottom ones while she's working on the top to speed things along, haha).  She'll go in the refrigerator, take out a yogurt, sit down with it, open it, go get a spoon, eat it all, put her container in the garbage and her spoon in the sink and then go wash her hands and face (all by herself, lol)!  She is a very independent little girl!

*Haven is ALWAYS hungry!!!!  ALWAYS!!!  And boy can that girl eat!

*Haven has taken a huge interest in puzzles lately.  She can happily sit there doing 24 piece puzzles all by herself, take it apart, put it back together, take it apart, put it back together and then move on to the next, lol!