Thursday Thirteen

Thirteen Traits That I Love About My Three Year Old:

1. She is intelligent. She memorizes books and "reads" them back to you word-for-word. Which is great unless you are trying to skip a few paragraphs to make bedtime come sooner. ;)

2. She is expressive. She is constantly telling me how she feels. A new toy makes her happy; a crushed juice box makes her sad; a screaming sister makes her mad.

3. She has meticulous attention to detail. She loves lining things up, stacking things perfectly, and doing things in a particular order. That's amazing to someone like me who is so not detail-oriented.

4. She is a negotiator. I swear she tries to negotiate for things she doesn't even care about. I think she just likes seeing if she can do it. She is pretty good at it too, and surprisingly, when she does get me to agree to a negotiation, she always follows through on her end of the bargain.

5. She is caring. She gets so upset if Hailey is crying and I don't immediately run to her rescue. She will literally stand by me and say "Hailey is upset" over and over again until I fix whatever the problem is. She also constantly asks me if I'm happy and if I am annoyed at something that she has done, she apologizes without being asked and offers to fix the problem.

6. She is polite. Pleases and Thanks Yous all around here.

7. She is observant. She notices when Daddy is trying to pull out of the driveway and Mommy doesn't have her seatbelt on. And she corrects it.

8. She is fearless. She loves all things "scary." You would think she would shy away from it but instead she thinks it's great fun to talk about ghosts and monsters. Amazing!

9. She is imaginative. She plays house with her dolls, walks her stuffed dogs, talks on the phone to princesses and Peter Pan. The older she gets, the more realistic it is. For instance, she actually pauses on the phone and occasionally says "uh-huh" like she is really talking to someone.

10. She is helpful. She pitches in and cleans. She also helps with things like Hailey's diapers, picking out Hailey's clothes, and making sure Hailey doesn't put small things in her mouth.

11. She is adventurous. She loves to be out in the world doing things. She gets so upset when it's time to come home. I also get bored easily at home, so it's nice that she likes to be on the go.

12. She is articulate. She loves to talk about anything and everything and will talk to other kids. She is learning to make friends easily.

13. She is independent. She asks for privacy and wants to do everything by herself. She recently learned how to open the car door and strap her 5 point harness so now there is no helping her. I love watching her learn something new and she is never afraid to try!