Lils

Well, the title of this post is what our toddler has decided she'd like to be called. Not Lillie Anna, not Lillie, not LA. She's emphatic: "I Lil's".

"Lil's" is a hot mess these days. I lovingly refer to her as my ragamuffin. No matter how hard I try to doll her up in dresses, skirts and hair bows, within minutes she will somehow manage to have dirt smeared on her face, crumbs smeared on her clothes and her feet ...lord help me....those feet! They are filthy! She refuses to keep her shoes on and is perfectly content to run outside in the dirt and mud barefoot. My Fleming Island friends claim its due to having a mother from Arkansas! Lol!

And she's rough!!!....I promise you she's rougher than me!!! This is most assuredly from having two older siblings who wrestle her, tickle her, bounce her high to the sky on the trampoline and who treat her like their equal. She has no idea she's 4 years younger than Rauly...if Rauly or Shep are doing it, than by golly, she should be able to as well! She's riding a bike, (with training wheels...but still!!!), swinging herself on a regular swing and throws a FIT each and every time I buckle her in her carseat....oooooh how she wants to be outa that thing!

She gives new meaning to bear hugs. There is not an ounce of tenderness when she wraps her arms around you....a hug from "Lil's" usually involves strangling. But bless her heart, it's sincere - I love her bear hugs. :-)

I recently took her to Bernie (the kids hair stylist) and said could you please make her look less like a ragamuffin?....he laughed and said "she's TWO!". Yes Bernie....but my other two children never looked such a mess all. The. Time.

Well, she may be a rough-n-tumble-ragamuffin but she's a sweet heart! She's always the life of the party...she wants to be in the center of the fun. She's vivacious and I can already tell she's going to be a loyal loving friend. No-uh (Noah), Aubwey an Caowine (Aubrey & Caroline), Sammi and the Klingenberg kids are on the top of her list right now....she asks me multiple times a day if she can see her "fwinz" (friends). Her zest for life is contagious and her messiness makes me laugh. And actually, that seems to be her goal - she LOVES making people around her laugh!

So next time you see "Lil's", don't judge her dirt smeared face - I assure you she's bathed regularly. ;-) And don't judge me if I don't chase after her with a wet wipe - she's our third kid...I kinda don't care anymore!