Maya to her brown bear and cat bus:
“You dry? Did you pee on the potty? Good. Good, good, good! You stay dry!”

Maya in general, to no one in particular:
“No more diapers for Maya! Stay clean and dry and get FRUIT SNACKS!”

Maya to me, just after using the potty:
“I dry. I get fruit snacks!”
Me:
“Nope, you only get those if you stay clean AND dry all the way until lunch and nap.”
Maya:
I’m hungry. Let’s eat lunch! (It’s 10AM.)

Can you tell what we’ve been doing around here?

The emotional rollercoaster of three is unlike anything I’ve ever encountered. We missed out on Trick-or-Treating (as IF Maya needs more sweets?), but did indulge in a princess dress. Maya was in preschooler heaven. She spun in circles. She admired her sparkle shoes. She asked me to dance with her during the waltz in Cinderella.

Then it was time for bed. Uh-oh.

Oh, the drama. The torment. The evil, evil mommy who made her actually take off her princess dress to eat dinner. *GASP* And, once she realized I wasn’t taking her seriously, she started yelling at me, “NO CAMERA, MAMA!”

For what it’s worth, this happened TWO nights in a row. Two. As in, both nights that she got to wear the princess dress. I’ve warned her that if she eternally makes this so hard for me, she won’t get to wear it at all!

And, this morning, she’s a sane human being again. Or was, at least, until I asked her to wait while I finish writing a story about her.

“I DON’T WANT TO WAIT!”

Here we go again…

Yes, yes. I’ve been quite the blog slacker, no?

Maya continues to morph into this amazing and astonishing creature. She’s funny, smart as a whip, and can charm nearly anyone she meets. That’s good, because with her current phase of yelling “NO! MINE!” at people who come near (No, Maya…that old gentleman isn’t going to steal your cookie. Relax, already.), she needs all the charm she can get. This phase passes, right?

Last night, I put Maya into some new size 3T (!) jammies for the first time, and they were so darned cute, I had to do an impromptu photo session. Rather than running around, being the moving target, Little Miss actually *posed* for me. What a character.

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This isn’t a first. Recently, she’s taken to making all sorts of faces during any given photo-op.

Off to school recently:

Given jellybeans from a care package from Grandma Collins:

Contrary to appearances, these photos were immediately followed by, “more pink jelly beans, PEEEEES!”

Eating her beloved mac-n-cheese:

Strike a pose, much?

Shhhhh is one of Maya’s current favorite sounds (good thing I don’t curse too often anymore, huh?). New “hot” words:

• shower (and bye-bye shower! when I’m washing her hair)
• show - when begging to watch yet another DVD
• shoes

That last one was repeated as a mantra over and over as Maya tried to wear Mike’s runners…but just couldn’t quite get them both on at one time.

Little Miss has decided that the computer is something I should share with her. She asks up onto my lap, then says over and over again, “Baby! Please? Baby!” This means — what else? — that she wants to see her own blog, especially the videos.

While I’m delighted she likes the blog, her determination makes it a little difficult to get any real work done — without letting her cry, that is. Eh, sorry kid. Those’re the breaks.

Seriously snotty noses seem to be the malady du jour in our home.

As I removed Maya’s pj top for a bath, she let a big “flow” release, and it pulled the excess upward. You’ll understand that I *had* to take a photo before washing her hair for this one.

Here’s to bodily-fluid hair gel!

As I mentioned before, Maya and I recently took a roadtrip through the Southwest to return Clay to his breeder in Tucson. The exchange went very well, and when I left the dog park, Clay was racing in circles with a large group of other basenjis. It was a sweet (if bittersweet) parting vision.

Maya and I also picked up a travel companion along the way, Mike, who is now the “man in my life.” Cute couple, no? “Inseparable” would be the best way to describe how we are with each other, and that’s a happy, happy thing.

Driving home from a hike at Templeton yesterday, Maya gave him the sort of adoring looks she usually reserves for her grandfather, and I knew instantly that I’m in trouble. At least it’s a good kind of trouble.

Anyway, before I left Santa Fe, Mike, Maya, his dog Bonnie, and I got to wander through a portion of the Santa Fe National Forest on a 4-1/2 mile trek that took us on some pretty soggy trail. Since I was wearing trail runners (rather than hiking boots), I searched for a means of crossing the first big water without getting wet. Those attempts fell flat, and I resigned myself to a soggy final 2 miles. As it turned out, we crossed unavoidable water perhaps a dozen more times before the trail dried out, and it was great to not worry about getting wet — I already was. My new trail runners (3 weeks old, maybe) have already had their first washing. Ah, well.

Maya has a thing for Bonnie. Well, honestly, Maya has a thing for all things furry and four-legged. It just happens that Bonnie enjoys (tolerates, at least) Maya’s attention, and they’ve quickly become friends. After our hike, Bonnie curled up on the seat against Maya’s carseat and allowed Maya to catalog her face:

Eyes. (accompanied by a poke)
Ears. (with a sharp tug and Maya! Gentle! from me)
Nose. (with a kiss from Bonnie)

Awwwwwww.

I recently added The Parenting Post to my mommy blog read list (daMomma writes there, and I love her to bits), and this post by Daddy Daze cracked me up. I am *so* going to use that term.

Maya’s favorite part of Monsters, Inc. isn’t in the movie at all:

It’s the THX intro. MOO.

Maya runs into the office and starts reaching for pens on the desk.

Me: I think it’s time to get you dressed. You need a clean diaper.

Maya runs away as quickly as her legs can take her. This does not bode well for eventual potty training.