Accident prone...

Not Dylan, even though my last post was about his accident at school. I'm talking about my delicate and dainty daughter, Edith.

She is, and I'm not exaggerating, fearless! She climbs on everything, and loves to go exploring. I'm glad she's adventurous, but it has resulted in some pretty nasty bumps and bruises. She's broken her arm twice, had a carpet burn the size of a dime on the tip of her nose, had an assortment of body bruises, a couple of fat lips...well, you get the picture. She currently has a big bruise on her cheek from falling against the hymn book holders on the pews at church and a swollen nose from tripping and falling on one of her bowls (she must have caught it just right). It will be a miracle if we make it to her second birthday without a visit from social services. As I'm typing, she was just running across the front room and tripped and face planted on the carpet.

Of course, the people who know us won't worry that she's being abused. Everyone knows what a delight Edith is, and just how cherished she is in our house. She's been an angel from day one. And she's especially fun now that her personality is developing and showing a lot more.

Dylan was Mr. Personality at quite an early age. Edith has been slower to develop. But she's making up for lost time. She loves to dance and wiggle. She loves to climb. She shamelessly begs for treats like chocolate and crisps. She can't talk much yet, but she manages to communicate very well. My favorite is how she hands me bowls and plates when she's hungry. She just keeps doing it until I get her something to eat. She already knows that Dylan gets in trouble for hurting her, so when he takes something away from her she looks around to see if we noticed and then cries so he will be forced to give it back. She also runs up to me at random to give me hugs and kisses. She's stubborn, manipulative, assertive, and yet sweet at the same time. 17 months old, and already a complicated woman.

I really do love to watch my children growing up. It is one of my biggest pleasures in life.