3.5

Our little lady is now 3 1/2 years old...and boy, did we work hard in this half! I would challenge the "terrible twos" claim and tell you that 3, so far, has been MUCH more challenging. Lucy is very independent, and very smart. A deadly combination. She is working overtime to test limits and learn which buttons to push, and I admit, mine are sometimes very easily pushed. Especially my patience button. Getting this girl out the door in the morning has at times reduced me to tears. I feel like it takes her 5 times longer than any reasonable small person to do something. She easily (and purposefully?) gets distracted. "I want this! No, I want that!" Tears. Tantrums. "You're not my friend." Hiding from me. Refusing to stand up. SIGH...



But what gets me through those times is the good stuff, and there is plenty of that! There are days when she is simply delightful. There is no other word for it. So funny, so smart, so creative, so FUN! She is learning so much about the world and has questions about EVERYTHING. She spins her own stories using bits and pieces of anything we happened to be talking about the past few days, combined with things we did a year ago, sprinkled with things from school. She loves to talk, which is sometimes exhausting...but also fascinating. I love how her mind works, and seeing the look on her face when she makes a new revelation is priceless. She's very expressive and her facial expressions are sometimes quite hilarious.

During the winter we like to keep Lucy active, so she's got a lot going on. She was able to start Sunday School this fall, which has been very fun for her and for me, as I am one of her teachers. :) She is enrolled in dance class and swimming class. Dance class she likes, swimming class she loves. They must be paying off, because she's a strong little girl and can often be found carrying bulky objects up and down the steps! She is still around 40 pounds and has gotten a little taller in the meantime, just over 40 inches or so.

Some of Lucy's favorite things these days are:  talking about babies (lots of pregnant people/new babies in our life right now),  making meals for us ("Jessica, your food is ready!"), creating scenarios with her stuffed animals, leggings ("they're not pants, they're leggings!"), yoga with mom, singing (she has a great little voice), Barbies, breakfast with Daddy and his friends on Saturday morning, anything that has to do with her brother, Super Why, talking to Grandma and Grandpa on Skype, books about Christmas, chasing Buddy, and maybe most of all, art projects.

There are tough days, and it's with a combination of resignation and pride that I admit that part of it is because she's a lot like her mama. :)  The good days are SO good and balance all the rest of it out.  I thank God every day she is our daughter!