Apparently when kids turn three, they morph into little adults who think they can do everything by themselves.  For instance, today, I guess I wasn’t moving “fast enough” for the bug.  She took it upon herself to open the fridge door and look for something to drink and snack on.  Then, she decided that she needed to have the baclony door open, to let a cool breeze in.  Just open a crack though.  That’s what she wanted.  She also wanted to paint.  She marched over to the pantry closet and instructed me to get down her paints from the top shelf.

Her will is strong and her independence is notable.  She’s showing signs that she’s starting to understand the way the world works.  We have spent a lot of time lately talking about the seasons.  On our way home from our babysitter’s house the other day, she mentioned the leaves falling.  I explained to her that they would all fall down and winter will come and then when spring comes, the leaves will come back.  I didn’t hear a response, so I looked in the rear view mirror and she had a very sad look on her face and was tearing up.  As she looked out the window, in a sad little voice she said, “but I don’t want the leaves to go away”.  At that moment, I knew she was making sense of “change” and my heart hurt for her.  Sometimes change is good and sometimes it leaves us feeling sad.  It took some convincing but I reassured her that winter is full of fun things to do and when spring arrives, there will be beautiful flowers everywhere.  She perked up soon after.

She’s proving her maturity in other ways too.  Like, not wearing a diaper during the day and last night, for the first night ever.  It wasn’t an uneventful night but she was determined.  She has been taking it upon herself to use her very own “restroom” and then proudly showing us what she has accomplished.

Oh, it’s wonderful watching her and listening to her.  She has a very creative imagination and is quite obsessed with Tinker Bell right now.  I caught her pretending to be a tinker fairy earlier today.  I just sat quietly and listened.  Listened to the little person we created and loving every minute of her.