Walking the Thin Blue Line: September Status Report: Our Little Firecracker

Many things about Paige have changed since the last time I wrote and yet, she seems the same. Of course, she has grown in her height and weight (she's not a small child either!) but it is her growth in other areas that stands out!
Her speech has gone from changing every few months to changing by the minute. I will always remember the day her pronunciation of 'Daddy' changed. She had been squealing about 'Da-yee' all morning long. That afternoon, as I laid her in bed for her nap, she was telling me about seeing "Da-yee' when he got home and about reading a book with him. Fast forward 3 hours and he had suddenly become 'Dad-deee' (said with an awesome southern drawl, I must add). She hasn't said 'Da-yee' since and we have missed it so! Every once in a while, something is said or done that shows us how quickly...no...how instantly she is growing up. Being our first, we never know what to expect from her and she is a constant learning curve.
At the moment, I am working on teaching her lots of new things. For example, she absolutely loves to help me with anything. Her favorite things are cooking and unloading the dishwasher. When she sees me open it, she runs to get her step stool and comes struggling up the hallway with it, all the while, telling me, 'Help me! Help mee!!!'. (That is her version of telling me that she wants to help with whatever I'm doing. I guess it comes from my asking, 'Do you want to help me?') You should see her face when I say yes! It could light up Pluto.
There are a lot of areas in which we are struggling with Paige as well as learning. She has entered the 'everything is mine' stage and I completely hate that. I can't stand a selfish person and I will not allow my children to be that way. As believers in Christ, we are called to be servants and givers. I know that Paige is too young to grasp that but she will learn it if it kills me. She is old enough now to realize that she can say, 'no' but, thankfully, we realize that she is also old enough to recognize that she doesn't get to say, 'no' when we tell her what to do. We are also working on teaching her good manners...'Yes, ma'am....No, sir...Please...Thank you'...so on and so forth. She is starting to get a handle on saying please and thank you. I'm sure that 'ma'am and sir' will not be far behind. They are still a little difficult for her to say but she willingly repeats them every time we say it. It always comes out, 'Yes-am' and Yes-shur' and usually makes me giggle. I am enjoying her chatter so much. Don't get me wrong, the child will talk until she's blue in the face so I do require a break, but I know how much I shall miss her baby talk when it's over. It's so darn funny! Most of the time, when she repeats things, it comes out backwards and reminds me of Yoda.

Can you get me out of here, Sis?!

Paige's adoration for Taylor remains constant. She now believes she is big enough to take care of Taylor all by herself. She tries to pick her up, make her food, and often tells us that she is going to get Taylor out of her crib! She had been telling me this for days so I decided to see what she would do. One morning, when Taylor woke up and started fussing, Paige turned to me and said, 'Dit Tayder. Me. Wait. Otay? Otay.' I told her I would wait on the couch but followed instead. Little Momma went into the kitchen, got her stool and carried it to Taylor's room. I peeked around the corner as she struggled to get it as close to Taylor's crib as possible and then climbed on top. Taylor, who could see me, is now fussing harder than before and Paige is telling her, 'Tayder, hush. Dit out. Way-tin. Hush.' (translated, 'Taylor, hush. I'm getting you out. You're awake. Hush.') Paige then got her hands on Taylor and stiffened her whole body while not actually lifting or moving anything. She repositioned herself twice and did the same routine while I stifled my laughter and Taylor gave her the evil eye. When Paige realized that it wasn't going to work, she told Taylor, 'Tayder, wait. Momma help. Way-tin. Otay?' (code for,'I'm in way over my head. I'm going to get Momma.') At this point, I couldn't wait any more so I came in the room and Paige begged for help. When I picked Taylor up, Paige grabbed her as soon as she cleared the rail and told me, 'Otay. Piper. I change.' (Meaning, 'Thanks for your help but her diaper needs to be changed and I can handle that.') By this time, Taylor wasn't impressed anymore so I had to give up my little experiment and take charge again. I can say, with all honesty, that I will never be able to contain my laughter when I remember that scene. Oh, Paige, how you brighten the world!

Puzzles!

There is no doubt that the only person she loves more than Taylor, is her Daddy. She anxiously waits for his return from work every day and can't contain her excitement when he walks in. If he isn't home by his usual time, she is constantly asking for him and often requests to call him. I love to hear the joy in his voice when she says, 'Hey, Dad-dee!'! She absolutely loves to go fishing with him. She will sit on the couch for hours watching fishing videos with him when he gets lost in YouTube world. Paige never sits still so you know that's love! She begs to go for rides in Daddy's truck and hates getting out. She brings him book after book after book to read to her. He is the king of her world and nobody can touch him. It brings joy to my heart!

Precious time with Daddy!

I cannot say that Paige is easy. I will not call her a walk in the park. However, I can say that she is an amazing, hilarious adventure every day and I always look forward to her smile in the morning. I continuously wonder what story she will give me today and I do, and forever will, treasure the beautiful joy that is Paige.