Anecdotes from toddlerland

Last night, Evie was having a tough time; it was nearly bed time, she had a fever, and she was as a result, a touch cranky.
She was trying to tell me something, but I could not understand her and so she began pulling on me and grunting in frustration: "ugghh, uggghh, ugghhh.." to which I responded,
"I'm sorry honey, I don't know what you need..."

So, she responded by smacking me on the leg.

I grabbed her little hand, looked at her sternly in the eye and with a very serious voice, told her, "noooo, you don't hit mommy."

She looked me right back in my eye with just as serious a look as mine and, never breaking her stare, cocked back her hand and hit me on the leg. Again.

I said, "oh, oopsie, you need a time out."

But before I could take her there, she stood up herself and marched over to the bottom step firmly sitting down, crossing her arms across her chest.

I watched, stunned.

I turned my eyes away for a moment, and then looked back, and as I made eye contact, she lifted her finger at me (as if to wagg it,) and said:

"no, momma!"

I can't wait until she's three.

Later, after all was right again, her jammies were on and we were snuggling with the evening bottle (doctor's orders as she has now lost two lbs due to all the sickness) she cozied there in my arms, singing to her bottle:

"Oh, boddle, boddle, boddle, boddle, Boddddddddddddle!!!!"

There was a melody to her "ode-to-bottle", but not one I had heard before, and the final note was quite jubilant, complete with her holding the bottle out in love and admiration.


This evening, we went to a band/orchestra concert @ the school where I teach. I was a little nervous about going since it started at 7:00pm and that is right at the witching hour, but I thought we'd give it a try.
Evie was enamored by the music, and after three songs, asked to get down (I was holding her in my arms, standing against the wall) I told to wait, and once the song finished, I let her get down, telling her she had to stay right with me.

She climbed down, and then proceeded to sit on the floor, cross-legged with folded hands on her lap, listening attentively. Other tots were running around, clapping and yelling like sillies, and there was Evie, sitting like a princess, enraptured, as if she was at performance at Carnegie Hall. It was both adorable and astonishing.