My 10 Favorite Things About Being Ellie's Mommy

I am the mother of a two-year-old. It's happened so quickly, but I have to admit I’m relieved I can now say, “She’s two,” when I’m asked instead of having to keep track of the actual months. It’s amazing how my sweet daughter went from being a baby to a little girl. Just like that. I love that she’s company now; everywhere we go she has questions and makes interesting comments. I have a feeling my own nonstop, inquisitive behavior as a child might be coming back to haunt me sooner than later.

I’ve narrowed all of the crazy wonderful things about being Ellie’s momma down to 10. Here goes:

10. She's a chef in the making. 
Every single time I’m cooking, she wants to help. She pulls one of our dining room chairs over to the counter so she can help give a stir or add a pinch of salt and pepper. She’s been known to give me a little too much help on occasion, but it warms my soul that she’s so interested in something I’m passionate about. I’m thrilled to share a kitchen with her for years and years to come.

9. She’s a little kamikazi!
A couple of weeks ago we went to a nearby bounce house. After going up and down a huge slide with me a couple of times she insisted on going by herself. I prayed she wouldn't fall the whole time she was climbing. I was terrified, but she was fearless.

8. She's a little lady.
It’s so ironic that a tomboy like me can have such a girly girl who's so interested in jewelry, feather boas and makeup. She got her very first haircut recently, and I was worried about how she would deal. I shouldn’t have; she hopped right into the chair by herself and soaked up every ounce of pampering!

7. She's a dog person. Thank God!
She’s crazy about Shelby, our family dog. They’re best buddies.

6. She knows what she likes (and what she doesn't).
The girl has a voice and wants it heard, and she's tenacious enough to stand by her decisions. In the mornings she likes to have a choice about what she wears. Every. Single. Day. As long as I narrow it to two outfits she can decide. I'm trying hard to embrace this because I don't want her to second-guess her decisions like I have a tendency to do. Plus, this gives me ample opportunities to practice my yoga breathing.

5. She's an artist.
My daughter loves crayons, paint, markers, etc., but she’s not a big fan of coloring books. She likes plain paper so she can create her own images.

4. She thinks cleaning is fun.
Ellie has her very own broom and likes to use it. She also loves to help me empty the dishwasher and assist her dad with the vacuuming. I’m wondering how we can preserve her interest in this and not squelch any cleaning enthusiasm. I’m probably a little too anxious for when we'll really benefit and too naïve to acknowledge she’ll hate it once she’s old enough to really help.

3. She knows and loves her tunes.
I adore that she loves to sing and does so at the top of her lungs. What I don’t love is when she sometimes asks me to hush so she can sing louder. (We’re working on that.) She likes music of all types; she digs everything from The Beatles to Nickel Creek to The Black Eyed Peas and of course all tunes from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.

2. She doesn't want to miss out. 
She’s not much of a sleeper, my sweet baby girl. But I don’t ever want to miss the party either, so how can I really fault her? That's what I remind myself each morning when the alarm blares and Bobbi Brown herself couldn’t cover my dark circles.

1. She's a girl who likes the simple things. 
I bought Ellie a new Cookie Monster toothbrush the other day, and she jumped up and down and pranced around like it was the greatest thing on Earth. And of all the wonderful Christmas gifts she received from friends, family and Santa, would you like to know her favorite? Bubbles.

Ellie exceeds all of my expectations every day and is the greatest gift I can ever imagine. And while she honestly drives me absolutely insane at times I wouldn’t want her to be any other way. I’m the luckiest momma in the world.

“I always wanted to invent something that would move around & make funny noises & would change the world as we know it & I forgot all about that until we had kids & now I see I came pretty close.” storypeople.com