Big Girl

Yesterday was a big day. A big big-girl day.

At dinner, Eve ate with chopsticks. I made udon soup, with mushrooms and tofu. Eve loved it. I was pleasantly surprised, given that her food preferences are sort of limited these days. I keep offering all sorts of food, but she is mostly made up of fruit and cheese. So to see her grabbing mushrooms and tofu with her chopsticks made me really happy. She slurped her soup out of the bowl, just like she should, and even toasted the chef with a hearty "Kampai!" (That's the Japanese version of "Cheers!")

Last night was also her first night in her "big-girl" bed! We added a few new safety measures to her room, and put a twin-sized mattress on the floor. You should have heard the giggles of glee. There was no coaxing necessary. Once we had it all set up, she climbed in and told us, "You go downstairs, guys."

She's been a little parrot lately. I really have to watch my potty-mouth. On the positive side, she tries out lines of her books and songs as parts of conversations. Yesterday she said, "Let me explain what I have in mind." That's from Your Personal Penguin by Sandra Boynton. Also, it's wild just to hear her say things like, "I'm frustrated." (I hear that a lot, but it's better than whining or tantrums). Or, "Let me get you situated," while pretending to get her dolls ready for their quiet time.

Tonight in her bath, she was scribbling away with her tub crayons. She stopped suddenly and said, "What did I draw?" I made some generic noise to the effect of, "It's very wiggly! Tell me about it!" She said, "I drawed a M!" "Holy cow, you DID draw an M!" I hollered for Dave to come see, trying not to hyperventilate with pride. But she wasn't done yet. Then she announced, "I'm drawing a zero for Daddy." And very deliberately drew a circle.

My girl is pretty smart, I think.