Countdown Days 15-19

Countdown Day 14

I love watching Kaylee's relationship with Mike. She seems so free, outgoing and open to being silly with him. I wouldn't say that she's never that way with me, but her bond with her daddy is just something special.

I know that she looks forward to nights when Mike puts her to bed because of the unique routines that he's established, and she loves waking him up in the mornings with a tickle or a kiss.

Kaylee is lucky to have such an amazing daddy in Mike.

Countdown Day 13

I know that I already mentioned some of the funny things that Kaylee says, but there are a few more that beg to be documented for all time.

While sitting on the toilet, "Can you give me a privacy?"

When she wants something from us, "Can you give me a favor?"

I just love how her structure is just barely off, but she loves using these two big-girl concepts. I think I may cry on the day that she straightens it all out.

Countdown Days 8-12

We just came off a particularly hectic weekend, but our weekends are pretty much all looking that way until we get out of October. So I get to start my Monday with five more reasons that my daughter is the greatest little almost-3-year-old there is.

8 ~ Kaylee always says the funniest things. This weekend she spent several hours outside watching her cousins play soccer and football, and she informed anyone that would listen that her eyes were cold. The rest of her was warm and toasty, but her eyes were cold.

9 ~ I love the way Kaylee tells jokes. Right now her favorites are knock-knock jokes, and she has two or three that she can tell correctly. She just gets so tickled with herself!!!

10 ~ I adore watching Kaylee's relationships develop with her cousins. We are lucky to be in the same city and get to see them often. Every time she knows that she's going to see her "boy cousins" she gets so excited and giggly. They all get along so well and love each other so much.

11 ~ I have so much fun watching Kaylee play with her babies. Yesterday I sat back and watched her play for 25 minutes, repeatedly taking off and putting on a diaper on one doll. Each time, she would exclaim her disgust, whip the diaper off, wipe the baby's bottom, give her a little snuggle and a kiss and replace the diaper. I should have counted how many times she did it.

12 ~ I love how quick and bright Kaylee is. This weekend, she switched the words from "Mary had a little lamb" to "Mary has a dog named Clover," referring to one of my good friends. I was just so thrilled with her ability to take a song that she's heard a million times and make up her own lyrics.

Countdown Day 7

I love the way that Kaylee "reads" me. She always seems to know when I'm not feeling great, when I'm super happy about something or even when I'm about to lose my patience with her for some reason. She has a knack for knowing the perfect moment for an "I really love you, mom," and a hug or kiss.

Countdown Days 3-6

Why am I not surprised that I'm already playing catch-up. To be fair, the last three days have been especially hectic, but that's no excuse...

3 ~ I love the way Kaylee is so verbal and so articulate. She's almost always talking...to herself, to us, to the animals or her toys. And she always has a millions questions. She's curious about everything.

4 ~ I love the way Kaylee greets Mike and I when we've had an absence from her. She is so enthusiastic and loving! She makes me realize how much we are the center of her world.

5 ~ I adoring singing with Kaylee. She has really been interested in music lately and has several songs that she enjoys singing. It always makes me giggle when she requests a certain song, asks for a song to be repeated or "turned loud".

6 ~ Kaylee's also quite the little dancer. She loves to dance and twirl and shake her booty with no inhibitions. That's the way it should always be. I love this side of her and hope every day that she doesn't loose that spirit and confidence as she grows older.

Countdown Day 2

I adore the way that Kaylee gets so excited about feeding our pets. This has been her chore for a couple months now, and she is so proud of herself. I especially loves the way she talks to the animals sometimes...especially Kitty. When he's mewing first thing in the morning, she says, "I know, I know Kitty. I'll feed you in just a minute." I do believe I've heard those words come out of my mouth before.