The (almost) littlest Strayer :)

(**Disclaimer-- I know this photo is probably completely inappropriate for me to post.  Oh, well.)

Evie is turning into quite the big girl these days.  I've always heard mamas say that seeing their "babies" gain independence is bittersweet, but I am truly relishing each new thing she learns and accomplishes.  It is so fun to see her little personality develop!  So, because I am sure that my three readers are dying to know, I'm gonna brag on my girly a little bit!

Ev is talking like CRAZY; she totally gets the whole sentence concept... I mean, she doesn't always use the proper tense or subject/predicate order, but she is becoming quite the little communicator.  Somebody (not me; Elmo, maybe?) has been working on phonics with her lately; I  heard her saying to herself yesterday, "C says CA--CA--CA!"  She loves to sing, and she loves to make up little songs by herself; you know, "Ode to the Potty" and other such classics...

Speaking of which, she is becoming quite the little potty-proficient these days.  Although she still wears her cloth dipes for the majority of the day, she will often tell me when she needs to go.  She can be found at all hours of the day, sitting on her little pot with book in hand, tending to her bid'ness.  She gets one Smartie if she pees and two Smarties if she, well... you get the idea.  She thinks Potty Treats are the best thing in the whole wide world (well, pretty much.)

Evie Grace started sleeping in her BIG GIRL BED! (woot, woot) last week, and the adjustment has gone much smoother than I anticipated.  She is very proud of this accomplishment, and likes to go "check out" (her words) her bed several times a day.  We wanted to get her well-accustomed to this before The Newbie comes along, so she wouldn't feel like she was being "kicked out" of her space.  She still wakes up fairly regularly at night, but the wonderful thing is that I can curl up in her little bed with her and nurse her (yes, she's still nursing!) back to sleep.  I so love those cuddly times with my girl; it's not often that she wants to snuggle in her waking time anymore, so I will take what I can get.

I could go on and on, and perhaps I will (another time).  I love being this girl's mama.  I'm grateful that Jesus gave her to us.

Evie's Grandad...

... is pretty incredible.  My Dad came up from NC to visit us this past weekend, and Ev followed him around like a little puppy dog.  When she woke up in the morning, one of the first things out of her mouth was "GRANDAD!!"  They had fun playing guitar, coloring on newspaper with Grandad's special pen, taking walks together, and sampling Evie's first pork roll (blech).

I have a lot to learn about parenting from my Dad.  He has the benefit of both experience and retrospect; he knows that it's perfectly OK to let the baby push her doll stroller back and forth and back and forth and back and forth through one little stretch of the Echo Tunnel, rather than insisting on walking straight to the end of the path.  He is always careful to explain the in's and out's of good behavior to Evie, while I am often guilty of just blindly demanding obedience.  While I can become irritated with Evie's sometimes inconvenient cries of "Hold you, mama!  Hold you!", my Dad is quick to respond, "Great!  I love to hold you, Evie!  We're good friends, right?"  Though she's often the type of helper that makes the job harder, Grandad allows (even WELCOMES) Evie's "help" on a task, embracing the teachability of the moment.  My dad, the true renegade attachment father before his time!!

Lord, help me not miss these moments with my precious girl!  Help me to embrace the mess and the questions and the "hold you!!"s.  Help me to see the wonder of a smashed-up caterpillar on the walkway, or the excitement of the baby slide at the park. 

My friend Julie has this quote on her blog; I love it.  I want this perspective in my life:

"Here is a sweet fragrant mouth to kiss; here are two more feet to make music with their pattering about my nursery.  Here is a soul to train for God; and the body in which it dwells is worth all it will cost, since it is the abode of a kingly tenant." (Elizabeth Prentiss)

Little Miss Stray Lights :)

Come on, what dads do you know that bring a lighting board in just so he can teach you a few basics?!?

Baby belly

I ventured up into the attic this morning and broke out the maternity clothes.  Ah, the bliss of stretchy-waist jeans!!!

Some observations...

1) 10+" snow plus a 32" little girl= HILARIOUS.  I mean, I probably should've helped her, but come on.  You gotta get your kicks somehow.

2) Speaking of kicks: The Wiggles?  They're a little bit hot.

3) There's nothing sweeter than having your sweaty-heady baby fall asleep on your lap when you're checking your email.

4) There's nothing more annoying than a cashier who refuses to *help* bag your groceries EVEN THOUGH she's done ringing you up.  So she just stands there and watches you do it while your 1-year-old systematically sorts your credit cards into two piles: mouth or floor.

5) Only slightly less annoying is when the 6 mo. prego manager comes over to help bag (on a separate occasion) but she can't put the 5 lb. container of bleach in your cart because she's "in a delicate condition".  A) It's FIVE LBS.!! B) You're pregnant, not crippled.  C) I'M PREGNANT, TOO FOR PETE'S SAKE!!

6) If you're in the transitional stages of labor, don't come into the OB's office and wait for an appointment.  Especially when the hospital is in the same building.  I'm waiting here with all the other blissfully comfortable 4 month pregos; believe me, we don't want to remember.