Can I get an "A-MEN!"

As much as I complain about Aiyana's difficult nature, I just have to emphasize how much fun she is -- which is why I feel bad to complain. She really is so energetic and spunky -- traits I don't want to squash by over-disciplining her (yet how to keep her from running the show . . .??) Some fun highlights from my little girl:

• I can't remember if I wrote about this or not, but since she still does this on a daily basis, here it is: When ever we eat dinner, she is the first (usually) to remind us to pray (even as Dad and Mom have shoveled the first bite or two into their mouths). Sometimes she will pray as we guide her what to say. In the end, as we start to conclude with "In the name of Jesus Christ . . . ", we peek at her with our eyes slightly open, and watch as her own eyes light up in anticipation. No matter who is saying the prayer, she concludes the sentence with a boisterous, from-the-back-of-the-throat holler, "A-MEN!!" To picture it accurately, think along the lines of  Evangelistic enthusiasm. = ) It's highly irreverent but we can't help but laugh every time.

• Being anchored down while nursing has created some interesting scenarios. Take yesterday, for example. I was nursing Aaron in the living room and could hear Aiya rummaging around in the pantry, but I wasn't too concerned because I put every opened bag on the shelf out of her reach. Or so I thought. Next thing I know, Aiyana comes pattering into view, leaning from one foot to the other with a full hand in her mouth and carrying an open bag. "Aiya, what is that? Is that the bag of goldfish?" (If that had been the case, I didn't really care too much. It was time for a snack anyway) She slowly pads her way towards me, looking particularly pleased with herself as she fists another handful into her mouth, her teasing eyes waiting for a reaction. Finally, she comes close enough that I catch sight of the brown smudges all over her mouth and her fingers, and realize why she's so pleased. She was fisting hot chocolate powder into her mouth, one after the other! On any other day, I might have yelled at her, maybe interrupted Aaron's feeding and chased her down, growling at her about getting into the pantry. However, I was feeling particularly calm this day (and had just written the day before about not wanting to be so grumpy at her all the time), so I let out a laugh and let Aiya have her fun for another minute or two. I cringed when she dumped a couple handfuls on the carpet (then reminded myself that fortunately, I hadn't gotten around to vacuuming anyway). I even took the time to get the camera, just before frantically yelling out, "No! Don't touch the couch!!" I don't think too much damage occurred, when all was said and done.

• She is our little talkative myna bird! She may not pronounce things accurately all the time, but she's consistent enough that I can still understand/decipher what she's saying. i.e. "Poh!" When it finally dawns on me, "Oh, you mean PLAY-DOUGH", she responds with enthusiasm, "Poh!", smiling and jabbering away like, "That's what I said!" This past month, she's starting to put more than two words together. Most of the time, it consists of, "More please", which has developed into, "I want more please". The untrained ear may not catch all her words, (especially when it sounds more like, "Ah unt moh peez") but she intends those sounds to be words, so I'm pretty proud of her. Tonight, she mimicked Dan saying, "Oh, crap", so maybe that will clean up his potty-mouth a bit!

• We think she's a bit of a genius (but don't all parents?). She just picks up on things to where I'm wondering, "How in the world did she know . . ." Like tonight, one of her light-up dolls wasn't working for the first time. I've never put batteries in there before, but she went to our junk-drawer, pulled out the batteries and tried to stick them inside the back of the doll. She must be very observant!

• In nursery, they told us she cries every time they sing, "I Am a Child of God" and "I Love to See the Temple" and couldn't figure out why. I explained with a laugh, "oh! Those are the songs I usually sing at bed-time!" Poor girl associates them with sleep. In that arena, other than the first minute after we drop her off, she plays quite well in nursery and we were unable to feign our surprise when they said how sweet she is, hardly having tantrums. Err... whaat?  

• "Rower": Hands-down, the highlight of Aiyana's day is taking a "rower" with her daddy. I bathe her in the garden tub in our bathroom, and other days, Dan allows her to shower with him in the standing shower. It's pretty adorable and Dan enjoys the bonding time because it's become "their thing", and she is just thrilled to high-decimal shouts of gibberish joy when they spend time together. At some point, Dan knows he'll have to cut her off, but for now it's fun for them. (And one less thing I have to do!)