Eva's Blossoming Personality

The past few months have been all about Eva's emerging personality. Oh what a ride it has been to go from a totally dependent infant to a head strong toddler who expresses pretty strong likes and dislikes. I've tried to put this transformation into words for you who are watching Eva grow from afar. Here's a list of a few things we have recently discovered about our little spunky girl:

1. Eva LOVES Cherrios and pretty much anything that crunches, ESPECIALLY pirate booty but it has since been banned when I was told that its nutritional value could rest easily on the head of a pin. As far as Eva knows, Pirate Booty has disappeared from the planet. .

2. She also loves strawberries, tangelos, hummus, and her father's homemade chicken noodle soup.

3. Eva adores dogs. Anytime a dog walks by our house (which is often), she starts smiling and shrieking with joy. Her third word was "ruff."

4. She loves her Papa and lives for the moment in the day when we watch him pull in the spot in front of our house. She shrieks with anticipation even more than when she sees a dog. "Dada" was her first word. She said it as she saw him walk up to the door.

5. She also loves her Mamma; so much so, in fact, she won't let me out of her sight. I've tried to drop her off at my new gym a few times but the Kid's Club staff had to page me after fifteen minutes because she was so hysterical. She says "mama" pretty much all day long. Mama was the second word on her ever-growing list of words.

6. Eva loves to eat books. We have to police her time with them and make sure that she doesn't choke on all the cardboard. Voracious reader takes on a whole other meaning with this kid.

7. She loves people and seems to be quite the extrovert. We pretty much leave the house for some errand or activity every day. When I take out the Bjorn baby carrier her eyes get wide with anticipation and she lets out a cry of joy because she knows that we are going on an adventure.

8. Her favorite book used to be "Where's Spot" but now she seems to be gravitating towards "Peekawho" and the finger puppet series. We now read together before every nap and before bed. She runs over to me as I get the basket of books and curls up with me. It's the only time of the day when she stops for a cuddle. I adore this time with her.

9. She's a good sleeper. I'm thinking God threw us a bone to make up for the four months of sheer misery when she was colicky. Once again, it's the only time when we can cuddle and she seems to use the time when she takes a bottle to recharge.

10. Her newest thing is a huge wide jawed grin that cracks people up. She's a huge ham and really works the crowd with her "Oh, my gosh, seriously?" look. She does it to just about anyone that looks at her. Even the most sullen hipster in Seattle can't help but smile in response to it. How could you not?

11. She still hates her carseat and pretty much anything that fences her in. I bought a play yard to contain her while I cook dinner and she stands on the perimeter and cries until I pick her up. I haven't figured out if I'm going to push this one or not.

12. Her favorite thing thus far is a mobile that I got on the Etsy website. My niece, Maria, who is savvy with all things design oriented recommended it. The mobile is handmade, Alexander Calderesque with felt birds in the color scheme of her room. It's the first thing that we go to when she wakes up. She pats her "birdies" before she goes down for a nap and when she wakes up.

Can you tell that I am totally in love with this girl?