Little Miss Thing

Finally, a Sophia update. I know that this is what you have been waiting for. Who cares about me and my job? We know that its all about Sophia.

I am slowly discovering what it means to be the mother of a little girl. How, do you ask, does this differ from being the mother of a baby girl? Plenty. A baby girl is sweet, cuddly, with short burst of drama. A little girl is drama with surprise bursts of sweet and cuddly. And, as you will read, Sophia is all girl.

Yesterday morning I walked into her room all ready for work. I actually had a dress on. This is not common. I own maybe 3 dresses that I wear maybe once every few weeks. Sophia smiled when she saw me, caressed the front of my dress and said, “I like the dress, Mama.” I know, right? Not possible. But it happened! It sounded more like, “I yike da dwess, mama,” but it meant the same thing. My 20 month old started the morning by complimenting me.

This same little girl will spend a half hour trying on all of her shoes, brushing her hair, playing with her tea pot, singing, dancing, spinning in circles. She covers her mouth when she coughs. She covers her mouth when she giggles. Yesterday evening she made up a song about her Teddy Bear. Well, truth be told, I am not sure if it was made up. Maybe other parents can tell me if this is an actual song because I had never heard it before. She danced her Teddy Bear around and sang, “Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear don’t you bite.” Clear as day. Where had that come from?

How is all that for sweet and cuddly? Now, enter, DRAMA.

Her new question for me in the mornings when I wake her up for school is, “Mama, why you here?”

She wants to be the center of attention and is constantly telling us to, “Look at me!”

Heaven forbid that I am either late with her dinner or change something without consulting her. The tears start, the wails start. Last night, she laid her hand on the table and proceeded to lay her forehead on the top of that hand while wailing the whole time. Why? Because I had the nerve to dip her hot dog in ketchup instead of letting her do it.

This morning, before I handed her a mini-muffin, Sophia actually said, “Eww. Yucky.” Just because she can, not because she thought the muffin was yucky. I have no idea where she learned that one.

I think little girls are prone to drama. As I have no little boys I cannot tell you if this is true for all children no matter their gender. Maybe for little boys its called something different. Sophia is very attached to me lately. When her father actually attempts to hug the both of us at the same time (while I am holding her) she actually pushes him away and says, “No. Mooove, Dada”. We thought it was because of me. The other night our roles were reversed and when I hugged them while my hubby was holding Sophia, she did the same thing and told me to move.

There is something awesome in all of this. A parent’s love for their child knows no bounds because whether Sophia is being sweet, cuddly, or dramatic – I am completely captivated. Yes, this can quickly switch to exasperation but the fact that she thinks to do or say these things leaves me in awe of this little person she is growing into.