layla

i'm having a hard time figuring out which personality of layla i'll be interacting with, hour-by-hour. she can be the most imaginative, helpful, loving, sweet little thing. at times, the opposite is true (like probably most 3-year-old girls). i'm learning to laugh, and to let her see me laughing, at her intensest of tantrums, because they're done with such flair. but her moments of goodness are so very endearing that i'm hopeful this is just a phase. (can someone back me up? pretty please?) either way, let the record show: i ADORE this little blondie.

layla has taken a liking to doing my hair with "pretties," which, not surprisingly, include nearly every hair accessory in her bathroom drawer. paul showers me with compliments after layla does my hair, which only feeds the fire. it's fun; i remember doing the same to my mom, and i felt very grownup. layla will also come up and randomly rub my back or gently comb my hair with her fingers before giving me hugs, which is sweet. my favorite part of nearly any day is this little game, where layla out-of-the-blue says, "mo-om," to which i must respond, "wha-at?" to which she replies, "i love you."

she climbs into bed with me every morning and gets into my jar of lip stuff. what you see below is the typical result. i suppose i could hide my lip stuff, because it really startles me to turn my face toward her in my morning grogginess and see this, but i can't bring myself to put any kind of damper on her pride in making herself so beautiful. the sparkles wear off on our pillowcases and the post-breakfast washcloth, anyway. i'll be sad when this mess stops being made.