Well, hello everyone! You've already seen my favorite photos from the shoot above, but these are too cute not to post. Plus someone took the remote from me and figured out how to do it herself:

She is just so funny sometimes. I found this particularly hilarious. Toilet paper stuck to her shoe. She walked around with it for awhile, and finally when I pulled the camera out, she realized it was there.

It was warm enough this past weekend that someone put on a pair of shorts. Look how cute her legs are!

Lemme post a picture of Mara playing outside:

Oops, well same difference. Here's the real one:

And she helps out with weeding...

And gets a little carried away...

And then...

She's been in a major Daddy mood.

And they pick flowers together.

My sweet baby.

Happy Birthday to me!

I'm a big girl now.

Uggh, Mommy is getting so sentimental. All she talks about is how big I'm getting and how old I am, and how I'm not a baby anymore and this toddler thing crept up on her.

We went to the park on Sunday and Mom clearly did not understand that I needed my jacket in the 70 degree weather. 

Where is my jacket, woman! You're hiding it from me.

Oh jacket, I need you.

(Mara can kind of SAY jacket - or at least it's a two syllable word that sounds similar to jacket).

I am in a Daddy phase right now and looooove my Daddy!

I got to meet baby Max yesterday and I think that's partially what made Mommy realize just how big I am. Compared to a newborn, I'm a gigantaur!

And I have my own hobbies. I like to garden.

And select small stones to give to Daddy.

And I hop through the hose and up the stairs.

I find treasures and wonder about their origins.

And then I ask the mighty God why he put this here.

I haven't gotten an answer yet... but we'll see. Do YOU know?

Well, have a great start to your week! I'm practically running now! Mom and Dad won't know what hit them.

A whole new world

I don't have a baby anymore. I have a full out toddler. Where did my baby go in the matter of a week or two??

Why do some milestones take so long to reach and come along so gradually, and then others, it's BAM and she's 16 and driving and has a boyfriend and I have a gun safe with a secret combination to keep Daddy at bay? Okay, slight exaggeration and flash forward... but it sure seems like it happened so fast.

I mean, can't you see her coming around this corner with a backward farewell to Mom and Dad - I'm going out for the evening with friends and I'll see ya' later? Or her little prom dress??! Sigh. I must stop this.

Sunday started out overcast here, and the perfect weather for a promised stroller ride. I took Mara and the pups around the neighborhood, but misjudged the NC weather and got stuck in a little downpour! You'd think the investment in a stroller with a retractable hood would come in handy... but my child hangs out as far as she can to get wet. I'm pacing along with a jacket hood that won't stay up and soaked jeans, the dogs are pulling me with their ears flat back in complaint, and my daughter is hanging out the stroller, eager for more. I had to convince her once we got home that we couldn't go back out in that weather (Dad tried to rescue us but chose the wrong end of the neighborhood to patrol). What did I get? Disappointed Mara. This just makes my heart ache.

What really tugs at my heartstrings is she will go find her jacket and bring it to you, or try to put it on.

Daycare's note from today - "Mara is really growing up - today she took her coat out of her cubby when it was time to go outside - then when we came in, we took her coat off and gave it to her and she walked and put it in her cubby." 

I think I make up for that disappointment, though, by allowing her in the shower with me. After I let her come in once, the second time, she was at the door banging to get in, and when I opened the door, she was immediately stepping over the ledge before I'd gotten her clothes off. She mostly sits on the floor and plays with shampoo bottles and splashes around, but if I'm holding her, she'll open her mouth to catch the water, like you do when you catch snowflakes, and we giggle and giggle. Those moments are so much sweeter than these:

Scary, right? 

So on rainy days, we stay inside and read well beyond our age level.

(Or just try to rip the pages out, same difference.)

And then snuggle with Daddy.

And this cute stuffed animal is from a nice lady at work (thank you, Diana!)

Happy Monday!