While giving Anna a bath, I tell her, "You know what? I think you are beautiful," hoping for a sweet mother/daughter moment.
She looks intently at me and says, "Well, you look tired."
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Getting Anna dressed one morning, I called her "my baby girl." This immediately offends her as it would any 3.5-year-old girl. She is NOT a baby. I reply, "I know. I know. You're my big girl."
She gasps, "I can have a cough drop now?"
(There are cough drops in my bathroom drawer, which she often looks at and dreams about ingesting. She's been told she cannot have cough drops until she is sick and much bigger. Apparently, she thought THAT day had arrived.)
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We've enjoyed a mild summer for the most part . . . until August hit. It's been too hot to do anything. In other parts of the country, people go stir crazy in the winter because they can't go outside; they feel stuck at home. Not so in Texas, my friend. We go stir crazy in the hot summer because it's too hot get out . . . like even to walk to the car. LOL. In the winter, the temps are bearable.
So in efforts to release some of Anna's energy, I send her and the nanny to the mall one morning while I worked. A few bucks can get ya ride on the carousel, a trip around the mall in the train, and some fun time in the play place. And there's a fountain to toss coins. You get the idea. Cool, cheap fun.
Because Anna's been reaaaaallllyyy struggling with overheating (think vomit), I asked the nanny to but Anna a soda before they left. A cold drink with ice to help keep her temp lower while riding in the car waiting for it to cool. I may or may not have told her to get Anna a "coke," which every Southern woman knows means a soda not necessarily a Coca-cola.
They get to the Chick-fil-a counter. The nanny asks Anna what she wants to drink. Anna says tea. The nanny says we have tea at home and to pick something else. She lists off the soda options. Anna picks a coke. She takes one drink of it--and with glee-- informs Ms. Kristi that her mom doesn't let her have caffeine. And then she takes another drink.
Um, Anna isn't allowed to drink caffeine. She only drinks Sprite/7-up/Ginger Ale for special treats. Ahem.
They arrive home with the coke; I hear the story. I chuckle because Anna thinks she has really pulled a fast one over on the nanny. The nanny laughs in this all-too-familiar grandmotherly tone . . . the oh-that's-okay-boy-did-we-have-fun-what-mama-doesn't-know-hee-hee.
After another sip, Anna looks directly into my eyes with great seriousness and say, "Don't tell Dad."
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Speaking of Ms. Kristi . . . .
I've been talking with Anna about boundaries and being kind . . . and telling me if anyone is ever mean to her, hurts her, ask her to do something wrong. That type of thing. I ask, "Has anyone ever been mean to you?"
"Yes."
"Who. Tell Mama."
"Ms. Kristi."
"What did Ms. Kristi do to you?"
"She put me in time out when I wasn't listening."
Face palm.
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Gymnastics was a big hit this summer. She learned to do a forward roll, walk on the balance beam, and jump and hop like a crazy lady. And she even learned the first steps to the cartwheel:
Oh yes, this little gal is VERY proud. She will do it over and over, asking me, "Mom, you want to see the biggest one? The biggest in the whole world?" And then we field a lot of, "Watch me. Are you watching? Look at me."
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Today Anna rocked the first day of school in the "big kids" class. She didn't miss a beat. Ran up the sidewalk excited. Went straight in the class, no tears and no fuss. And she even almost forgot to kiss her mother goodbye. (Gasp.)
In the 3-year-old class, there are two teachers and 16 kids. So this is a big adjustment just in size. Also, they have cubbies outside the classroom where the kids are responsible for hanging their backpacks and lunch boxes. And the BIG kicker (for mama) is that parents drop off the kiddos at the classroom door. SO BIG.
Here's the obligatory first-day photos:
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