Seven takes, mostly anecdotes

I feel like I've been complaining a lot about the sleep issues and tantrums that come with having a toddler. But there are some really great things too that make each day a true blessing. Like:

1. Olivia recently unearthed two dolls from her pile of dolls/stuffed animals, and she's been carrying them around everywhere. When she found them, she informed me that "I have two babies!" "Kiss 'em, Mommy." And then she proceeded to "kiss" me with the dolls, making a kissing noise while putting each doll up to my face.

2. Olivia was playing with her babies this morning and doing the kissy thing with them, and she put them up to her feet and made a kissing noise. I said, "Are the babies kissing your toes?" Olivia said, "I lub yoo, toes!"

3. This morning, I was watching something on TV, and I kept pausing and coming back to it (the joys of DVR). Olivia wanted me to play with her, and she was doing her darndest to get me away from the TV. "Mommy get you?" Which means, let's play Mommy's going to get you...our chasing game. So I started playing, but she didn't want to play in the living room. "No, Mommy get you...room?" Meaning her bedroom. She has her way of getting what she wants. Plus, I guess it should have been some sort of hint to me that I should turn the TV off. (Bad Mommy.)

4. The going-to-sleep thing isn't really getting any better except that we don't do rocking anymore. Instead, I sit next to her as she lays in bed and I threaten her (usually with being held and rocked, which she has decided that she hates) for 45 minutes until she finally decides to lay still enough to let sleep overcome her. *Sigh* It's exhausting. She tests my patience a million times by trying to get up and escape. We listen to her "go-to-sleep" music, which she calls "Arise, arise!" because it's the first song on the CD. She always ends up getting me to lay down with her even though I would rather not get into that habit. But I can't resist when she sits up and points to her pillows and says, "Mommy's pillow, Libby's pillow." (She can't do a 'v' sound.) "Mommy hold you? Mommy lay down?" OK already!

5. We are going to visit the wee baby cousin this weekend, along with all of Olivia's other young cousins from my family. The baby is being baptized this weekend. I've been telling Olivia about it, and she talks excitedly about her cousins, using their names. So verbal, this child.

6. Grammy & Grampy babysat yesterday while I had some meetings, and they were tickled by her because she's recently begun to use polite speak regularly, and in proper context. They told me that any time they gave her anything or did anything for her, she said, "Thank you". She also uses "please" for almost any request she makes, and when she was dancing around and accidently hit Grandma's leg, she quickly said "Sorry!" Yeah, she's pretty remarkable.

7. Olivia follows along with meal prayer now, mumbling the few words she remembers. She always says "night-night" to Jesus and kisses him (crucifix on the wall) when we go to bed. Last weekend, Daddy was getting her dressed for Church, and he told her where we were going and asked her who we were going to see there. She said, "Go to church, see Jesus."

Yep, she's a pretty sharp cookie. Sweet too. Love ya, babe!