Saturday, July 16, 2011

Costumes, Overnighters and Expecting the Worse

This afternoon, when Olivia and I got back from buying groceries, she hung out with me in the kitchen for about twenty minutes while I put groceries away and started white beans and ham for dinner. By the time I was about the mix the cornbread batter she asked if she could watch something on tv.

Since it was just me and her in the house (Alyssa's already left for the rodeo with her Gram and cousin Julie) I said yes. She asked for Barbie's Fairytopia.

I put it in and went back to he cornbread.

A few minutes into the movie, she asked, "Can you find me an Elina costume?"

Well, of course I can!! Alyssa's been into 'being' characters from the movies she's watching since she was all of two years old.

Olivia and I made our way to the dress-up bin and found the perfect fairy costume for her.



The costume has a pair of wings that can be velcroed to the back of the bodice but Olivia declared, "Elina doesn't have wings, I don't want those wings on my fairy costume."

So off they came.

I love watching her do these things. I know, it's television and it's BARBIE for Pete Sakes (heee, that makes me smile everytime) but it still opens her imagination, makes her think, lets her pretend.

She told me, "Elina wears shoes because she doesn't have wings. She has to walk."

How clever is my girl? So, so clever, right?

Right before my mom got her, Alyssa ran frantically about the house, working herself into a tizzy because we hadn't packed an overnight bag.

I tried to remind her that she wouldn't be all that far away and if she forgot anything, I could bring it to her in less than ten minutes.

Gram's house is the only place she's ever spent away from me and Tom. I'm okay with that. But it's still funny to watch her pack for a single night away. We were just zipping her bag, full of outfits and pajamas and several pairs of underwear, just in case she doesn't like the way one pair feels in the morning, she'll have a spare.

I'm trying not like to imagine what the teenage years are going to be like.

The priming wasn't nearly so bad this morning. Yes, I got sweaty and yes, it was boring, but...I guess expecting the worse and just getting blah makes for a nice surprise, right? How's that for a flip.

While I was upstairs, Olivia discovered the bathtub in the second bathroom, the one I was going to be priming. It's as if she hadn't noticed it in the eleven months we've lived here. She asked if she could take a bath. Why not? I was right there, priming the hall and then the very room in which she was bathing. After she soaked for a while, she announced with glee, "This bathtub has a shower in it!!"

So amazing, huh? After that, she wanted to shower.

Alyssa informed Olivia about fifteen minutes later, "You cannot possibly get any cleaner."

I'm thinking that's not a bad state to be in.

Of course, it's now been six plus hours after the bath/shower and she's noticed that Elina is wearing purple eye shadow and lipstick. At this point, I do believe that little miss O could very well be cleaner.



But isn't messiness part of being a kid? I could probably remind myself of that a little more often.

Just like how things more often than not are not nearly as bad as I expect them to be. But I wouldn't want to go little miss sunshine on anyone. Where's the fun in that?

1 comment:

Julie said...

It makes me giggle every time as well!!!