HAPPY - HAPPY - HAPPY

Kayla was happy this morning. She woke up with a smile, as usual. She is generally good-natured in the morning. This morning was special. She seemed to smile more and she was extra-pleasant. The sweetest thing was that she kept saying "happy" over and over again. She was the cutest, sweetest little girl. I asked her if she was happy because she kept saying it and she smiled extra-big and said "Yes. Happy."

Not Just An Exterminator - The TERMINATOR

Last night, there was a huge spider on the wall. I told Kayla to come and look at it. I always try to show her things so she can learn about the world... "Teachable moments", ya know... Anyway, Kayla watched me as I stomped on the spider and killed it. The whole while I was talking to her and explaining what I was doing. She kept wanting to and trying to touch it. I kept telling her not to touch it. It was HUMONGOUS and NASTY!!!!!

She definately learned to say "spider", although she already knew that word from her favorite book, "Little Cricket's Song".

After the whole spider killing incident, Kayla walked aroung looking for more bugs on the floor. She found one near the front door but it was already dead. She showed it to me and I told her it was dead. She proceeded to stomp on it over and over, exclaiming "Kill it" over and over. She stomped harder and harder until the bug's corpse was obliterated. She had no mercy and she had the time of her life squashing it.

I was talking to my mom on the phone at the time and told her Kayla wasn't just an exterminator, she was "The Terminator"! She was hysterical!

My Beautiful Girl

Every day I am amazed by Kayla. She is smart, funny, beautiful, graceful... I am so blessed to have her in my life and so blessed God chose me to be her mom. Sometimes I feel so unworthy.

It is so scary when I have to make decisions about our life- all on my own! I NEVER know if I am doing the right thing and I am ALWAYS worried that I am screwing up Kayla's life, her future... or maybe even warping her brain! When I teasingly call her a "Goober" or a "Dork" or when I say, "Get up lazy girl." like I did this morning, what is that doing to her self-esteem and self-image? I try so hard to care for her and to make smart choices. Being her mother is such a HUGE responsibility. I hope and pray that I am doing right by her. Lord knows I try. I really, really do...

Sugar and spice and everything nice...

Kayla loves being a girl and doing all the things girls do. She loves to primp. She loves clothes and shoes. She even wants me to put nail polish and make-up on her. She tries to be just like Mommy. If Mommy puts on nail polish, she wants it on her nails too. The same goes for make-up. I paint her little toenails pink all the time but that's as far as I let the make-up go. I think 19 months old is a bit young for her to have a Mary Kay party!

Her hair is finally long enough for barrettes and ribbons and ponytails... I am THRILLED! I love fixing her hair and dressing her up. It is so fun and she is so cute. It's an added thrill that she loves it too. She isn't like so many little girls, fighting tooth and nail, while their moms try to fix their hair. She sits very still and cooperates completely. The only problem is that she constantly wants to see what I am doing, which makes putting a ponytail on the back of her head pretty challenging. Still, over the weekend, I was able to put up her first ponytail in the back. I was inspired and encouraged by my mom who was the first one to put up Kayla's hair. She put it in a cute ponytail right on the top of Kayla's head last week. It was adorable. Anyway, I got the ponytail and barrettes in and then Kayla posed for pictures. It was so cute.

Later on when we went out to the grocery store, everyone made a fuss over her. I won't lie. I ate it up! She did too. She was a little ham.

I can see now understand the old saying about little girls being made of sugar and spice and everything nice. Kayla definitely is!!!

Nona

Nona
Mom and I took Kayla yard saling over the weekend. She fell in love with a baby doll at one sale and Mom bought it for her. It cost a whopping $0.50...

Kayla LOVES this doll! The poor little doll has seen better days. It is kind of pitiful but it has been loved and played with by another child so it is worn for a good reason. The very first night Kayla had it, she started calling it "Nona". She carries this doll everywhere with her. She loves it!!!

Please join me in welcoming the newest member of our family, Nona! :)

Miss Independent

Kaylas favorite new word. She has gone from an agreeable, delightful child to "Miss Independent" over night. It is the "Mother's Curse", imposed upon me by my mother. You see, my most renowned expression from my childhood was, "Mother, I'd rather do it myself."

And now... a very abbreviated version of my own infamous expression is now rining in my ears, out of the mouth of my less-than-2-year-old daughter.

She is climbing the steps to the slide on the playground.
Mom: "Kayla, let Mommy help you."
Kayla: "Self."

She is spilling milk all over herself at the dinner table.
Mom: "Kayla, let Mommy help you."
Kayla: "Self."

She is dragging the brush upside down and backwards through her hair, messing it up even more than when she started.
Mom: "Kayla, let Mommy help you."
Kayla: "Self."

You get the picture. I can't complain about having a strong, independent child. Not when I think about it. But during her moments of stubborn antidisestablishmentarianism... it is not so easy to be patient and understanding.

Thanks, Mom. Your curse is working beautifully. Sorry I was such a pain in the butt!