Being Born and Growing Up

While in the car on our drive to MI this past weekend (more photos and stories from that adventure coming soon), Eva told us quite a long story about being born and growing up. It was fairly random - she started the story while we were on 90/94 downtown and she was looking at the skyscrapers, and it was fairly long - what follows is the general recap of what I remember, wit direct quotes where I remember them. It was a very sweet little story that had Peter and I both grinning though, and I wanted to remember it. Snippets of her story relate to us having a friend over last week that was 9 months pregnant and talking about that, and she and I visiting the pharmacy together in the hospital where she was born and me pointing out the floor where my doctor was. Eva's little story went something like this:

"Momma, did you know I was born? And I was just a little baby, a teeny tiny baby, but not right now. Long time ago, I was born. And I was born at the hospital, and I was in Mommy's tummy, and I was sleeping. And then, I WAS BORN! Now I am not baby. Now I older, I am big girl. I am getting bigger and bigger!"

(me) "That's right babe, you were born just a tiny little baby. And how old are you right now?"

"I am two and half, I am big, not like when I was born. But then I keep getting older and older, and older and older, and then I can go to school and play outside and see my friends! When I get older though, I not older now."

(me) "That's right hon; did you know that everyone starts as a tiny baby and then gets older? Daddy was a baby - and then he got older - and now he's grown up. Mommy was a baby - and then I got older - and -"

(Eva cutting me off) "..And now you're MOMMY! Awww, mommy is all grown up. Are you two and half?"

"No, I am older then that. I am thirty-three!  Really old!"

"Wow, thirty-three?? That is WONDERFUL!" (said emphatically!) 

Super Grammy!

Last week was one of those whirlwind weeks, followed by a full weekend, and then followed by crazy full start to another week. It was just one of those sequences where fun, and work, and church, and household-ey things, and two flat tires, and deadlines all piled together to make a very full week and a half. In the middle of this full calendar, and contributing to the fullness, Peter left town for a conference for 3 days. I was planning on just using extra sitter help and winging the Sunday-Wednesday stint on my own, but then my mom got off of work and fabulously volunteered to come to town and help out while he was gone. Tonight, now that she's gone, I am realizing just how much she did while she was here!

Grammy Lou did all the dishes and almost all the meals for me while she was here. She left us homemade apple crisp, pumpkin pie, and shelves full of groceries and Target items. Grammy cleaned up the playroom and kitchen each day, and tidied up other rooms, clothes, and stuff on tables strewn around hourly by our two year old. She re-sewed two pairs of curtains for our bedroom, hemmed my dress pants, and took us girls out for Chinese and shopping at night. She helped me pick up our car from the mechanic's lot, provided a second car for a few days in general, and watched Pirates of the Caribbean with me in the evening. All this was on top of, and not an expected/required part of, me asking her to come and help out with Eva while I was pretending at single parenthood. She got up with Eva in the mornings, watched her while I was teaching or at work, and made up games, songs, crafts, and homemade cocoa with marshmallows for her grand-daughter. It was SUCH a relief to have her help and I kind of can't believe all that she got done. BIG THANKS to you mom. :)

I told her when she was leaving today that I should get her a cape - since she's Super Grammy!      

         

I love that...

... every night at bedtime, after Eva and I read two stories together, she wants me to sing her a specific sequence of songs. First, it's (a short version of), "Chim - Chiminey;" second, it's "Feed the Birds;" and then the grand finale is her favorite, staple, always and seems ever will be the last song she wants - "Baby Mine." She visibly relaxes when we get to the last song, closes her eyes, sighs out loud dramatically, clutches her lambie and looks up at me so gratefully from her little bed. Then she gives me a big sloppy kiss, then a cute little nose kiss, and then she turns over under her covers and says, "Good night Mommy, I play with you in the morning."

I love this little girl. I love that she knows the words to each of these songs. I love that she sings "Baby Mine" to her babies when she's playing. I love how tender and sweet and creative she is, and how all those things flavor our bedtime rituals. I love how she scrunches up her nose for a nose kiss and then giggles. And I just love that I get to be her mom. :)

    

Literalist

We recently started trying potty training around here - very recently. Eva picked out a treat at Target yesterday for her to get whenever she successfully used the kiddo potty, and she chose gummy worms! So last night we got home and headed for the bathroom, after talking up using the potty all day and now there was the promise of a gummy worm. So, Eva quickly took off her pants, had me help her pull off her diaper, and then sat down on the top of her potty with the lid down while saying, "Ok, I get a gummy worm now!" I said, "Babe, you have to go pee or poop in the potty, remember? That is why you sit on the potty." She answered, "No, you said worm if I was on the potty. I am on potty but I don't PEE on HERE??? Worm! Worm please!"

So yeah, we have a little ways to go....