Oh happy day

Today was a long one. I spent a large portion of the day trying to stop one child from waking the other. Lila feels the need to scream about everything. Sometimes she's being dramatic and whiny and other times it's just her latest version of talking. Carson doesn't scream/talk per say, but when she gets upset or hungry she can wail with the best of 'em. Throw in the fact that Seth came stomping into the house for five minutes this morning (still not sure why) waking Carson from her first nap instantly and you have the makings of a tiring day...for me that is.

Then, I got all ambitious again and wanted to make a dish by The Pioneer Woman for dinner. I had these grand plans until Seth again came rushing in asking when it was going to be ready because he had a fantasy something or other draft at 7. Not only did he have the draft but he had to do it at the office. Really? Sorry honey to call you out, but really? If you know ANYTHING about TPW, her recipes aren't exactly quick or on the low end of ingredients so I was already compromising in many ways. So dinner was pretty much disgusting. Seth left and I promptly went to Dairy Queen which inevitably made me feel worse.

I try really hard not to let Lila watch much TV. I honestly don't think there's anything wrong with TV for toddlers, but I would just rather be doing other things with her. Tonight I decided she and I were going to sit on the couch and watch something on the tube because I was grumpy and it was too early to put her to bed. I chose the going to bed video on the free Sprout channel. Stupidest thing I have ever seen. It's basically characters from all of the shows on Sprout sleeping. That's right. You spend thirty minutes watching cartoons and puppets sleeping. Some are even snoring. As I am about to pass out from boredom I look over and my perfect little girl is entranced in this silliness all cuddled up next to me. This would be why I do not create shows for children. We are quietly sitting in the dark watching and halfway through she starts softly "talking" in that way she does where she isn't saying words but she is SURE you know what she's saying. She's pointing and looking at me in the eyes as I say "oh really?" and "no way!" back to her. She is snuggly and happy and it just melts away the day.

When Katie picked Carson up today we started talking about how fast things go by. People tell you your kids will grow faster than you are prepared for, but people tell you a lot of things you don't fully hear or understand. Now I understand. Lila could have whined and screamed and woken Carson up all day long and at the end of the day she still makes me happier beyond anything I could have imagined. The biggest problem is that I have no way to bottle her up as she is right now...with her she-mullet, whispy blonde hair and roly poly legs....and her never ending list of new and exciting words....and her hugs that make you never want to let go...and her intense gaze into your eyes like that is the only way she can get you to understand. How can I EVER let her grow up?

It's a really good thing I have Seth to save the day when Lila is all grown up and living away from me. He may have frustrated me today, but he has a fantastic way of making me feel better at the drop of a hat. She really is her daddy's daughter isn't she?