Twenty Months with Edith

Twenty months old! I really don't think that this will be much of a post. It's not that Edith isn't still fabulous and adorable, but that I have already posted most of her pictures as a part of my Friday Favorites and I don't think my brain is working well enough to actually think of anything to say. It's just so much easier to let my pictures do the talking.

Speaking of talking, Edith continues to get better and better at it. I guess that's usually how it works. I'm glad she doesn't say everything perfectly, though. There's just something about the way she walks up with her arms outstretched saying, "Mama, holdee me." that makes my heart melt. 

Edith is still such an outdoor girl. She loves going to the park and on hikes. Even just running up and down the driveway makes her giggle with delight.

Art is beginning to become a real passion of Edith's. She draws or colors almost every day. I know that it makes her happy because pretty much the whole time she's doing art she says, "Mama. I love you. Luva you." I'll let her do art when ever she wants.

Edith continues to be a real nurturer. She loves playing with her baby doll she calls her 'little sister' (kinda creeps me out) and when we were all taking turns being sick recently, she adored making sure Bud was entertained when he was home from school.

Reading to herself and others is still one of Edith's joys, but she'll allow me to read to her more than she used to. She loves books with a good story. Those baby board books are only used by her to try to learn how to read. "Tuh, tuh, tuh... train! Tuh, tuh, tuh... boat! Tuh, tuh, tuh...girl!" We need to work on it a bit, but we have time. One of the interesting things Edith will do is point to a word in a book and command, "Mommy say. Mommy say it." She studies the word as I tell her what it is, as though trying to memorize it, and then will move on to another for me to identify. 

Edith also seems to love playing the role of damsel in distress, lying on the floor with her arms reaching up, crying out, "Heellllp! Hep, hep! Help up!" She just loves being saved. It got a little old in church today when she kept slumping down in the pew, calling, "Heelllp! Help up!" And last night she learned a little bit of what it means to cry wolf-- since she usually doesn't really need help when she's hollering for it, her brother and sister ignored her pleas as she slid her upside-down-self part of the way off the couch. Sorry you tipped the scales too far and landed on your head, baby. I'll teach your siblings to recognize how the tone of your voice changes from fake asking for help to real asking for help. 

As she has gotten older, Edith has let more and more of her silly-cheesy self emerge. It can get a bit frustrating when she's determined to be silly and I'm just as determined to get her to do something else, but she always seems willing to listen to reason. I'll say to her, "Edith. Mommy really needs you to be obedient and do what she asks right now. Mommy needs you to be nice and hold still." Edith stops her unhelpful behavior almost immediately and responds in a drawn out, slurred, remorseful way that actually makes her sound kind of like a drunk. A really nice drunk. "Okaaaay. Love you, Mommy. Luva you." You'd have to hear the tone in her voice, but it's hilarious. And, unfortunately, her vow to reform her behavior never lasts long so we'll go through that whole interaction more than once pretty much every time I change her diaper or get her dressed. Luckily it's so dang funny or I might get even more frustrated than I do. 

We love every cheesy bit of you, Edith! Happy 20 month birthday!