some things I love about Lily, in this phase

1. Most of you know, Lily is VERY opinionated and particular about clothes. 95% of the time, her outfits are her creation. I have very little say in the process and I'm ok with that. However, she has a little bit of OCD when it comes to her clothing. She needs all loose threads cut off immediately and no string goes unnoticed. Stains are deal-breakers. And holes? Forget about it, that piece is DONE. For example, today she put on a brand-new pair of tights and found a fuzz, which turned into a microscopic hole upon removal. The hole grew in her mind and literally, until we had to take off the tights so we didn't have to talk about it anymore. I don't know why, but I love this about her.

2. This isn't intentional, but it's common. Whenever Lily throws something away in our kitchen trashcan, she almost always finds something she wants to take out. I have to escort her to and from the wastebasket, because on her own, she will pluck out whatever brightly-colored, food-stained item her eyes land on. Sometimes it's something like wrapping paper ("Hey! I wanted that paper!"). Or...one of her crafts from preschool that literally has only ONE line drawn on it ("Heeey! I was gonna give that to Dada!) It's just so funny. She puts something in, she gets something out.

3. Another favorite thing: If we are going down the stairs at the same time, she will race to the bottom and lay on the last step so that I have to pretend to (which is dangerously close to almost) step on her. I don't know why she thinks it's so fun, but she does. Every time.

4. This girl LOVES hugs. I get so many, every day. So, so many. I'm so lucky.

5. I love her outfits. All of them. (see above picture) One time when I had to walk across the entire ETSU campus with Lily; she wore the most outrageous, brightly-colored, mismatched ensemble in the history of the world. It was so loud that I was almost embarrassed. And then I was proud. Because she is simply herself. Stripes and polka dots, orange and pink, different plaids, opposing shades of green. That's my girl's style. Go You, Lily-girl.

6. Lily has long been a fan of rigid nighttime routines. Remember the Christmas Medley days? And the 45 minute routine that we had to wean her out of last spring? Now, the finale to the goodnight routine is this:
(and she must start it, if you start it, she starts it over)
Lily: (normal voice) Goodnight!
Response: Good night!
Lily: I love you!
Response: I love you!...
Lily: (in silly nasal voice) Goodnight!
Response: (in silly nasal voice) Goodnight!
Lily: say-i-love-you-really-loud, (in silly voice) I LOVE YOU
Response: (In silly nasal voice) I LOVE YOU.
Lily: I can't hear you, say it loud I LOVE YOU
Response: (in silly voice) I LOVE YOU!

7. I love The Hands. Their names are Sophie (left hand) and Bree (right). Sometimes they fight and grab and yell and man oh man, occasionally one of them gets in BIG trouble. Other times, they "love each udder" and give each other big hugs. Last week, they were even getting married! Most of the time, they just help Lily eat by putting food in her mouth, or help her put on socks, etc. They like to climb and dance as well. Oh, yeah, The Feet like to dance too - that would be Vicki (left) and Marco (right).

8. ID: It's a sad day when you have to teach your child for the first time that there are bad words - things that you can say that hurt others. For example, Lily picked up the word "stupid" in a movie a few months ago. I wouldn't care that much, except for the word is primarily used to belittle others or something others care about. So, Jeremy and I decided we'd go ahead and start talking about bad words. She understood right away that she shouldn't say it, but sometimes her Hands say it. I never catch them, but she promises it's them. She will say things like, "Mom, I'm not gonna say stupid, ok?" Once she figured out that was not ok, she started calling it "Id". So, now in our house "Id" is a bad word too. Occasionally, people will drop the Id-word (except the real version) around her and her eyes get really wide and she whispers to us "______ said ID!!!"

9. I cut Lily's hair in the bathtub the other night. She thought it was only one snippet, but it was the whole go-round. Jeremy distracted her with a game with "Bootsy" and was making her laugh hysterically while I tried to cut discreetly. We've been putting this off for a while, and technically, it's her first haircut. It's so uneven, but the curls hide it. And...about the curls...I think their days are numbered. Since the trim, her hair looks more like a bob than a Shirley Temple. But....even though it's symbolic of her getting older...I love it. She's just a gorgeous child, inside and out.

And on that note...