Mary

Right after I say all this stuff about Mary...what does she do? She proves me wrong. I pigeon-holed her into this child who does nothing if it doesn't involve me. One who obsesses over where I am at all times and needs to be right in my face or right on my lap. While this is true most of the time, today it was not. She actually went downstairs with Ben!!! Without me!! I couldn't believe it. I started having fantasies about how this could happen someday more often.

I watched her today and saw what she played with. She picked up a book, paged through it. She brought it to me to read to her and I read as she turned about five pages at a time before I was finished with the page I was on. She picked up Ben's trains and rode around with those. She rode his hotwheels cars around on the coffee table. Is my daughter a tomboy? She never plays with the toys I have in the room for her.

She could be your typical girl...a social player. No one else is playing with the dolls...why should she? She wants to do what she sees us do. She wants to play with the broom when I sweep. She wants to talk on my cell phone. She wants to brush her teeth with MY toothbrush. I was using my palm pilot and I saw her watching me with my cell phone in her hand and she tapped on the screen with a pen as I would use my stylus. So funny! She is constantly scribbling on paper with a pen or crayon. She comes in when Ben goes potty so she can "supervise" him like I do. But she really doesn't play with toys. She'll empty my drawers, she'll unroll the toilet paper roll and she'll chew gum and spit it out wherever she wants. She poors out cereal and goldfish and drinks bottled water like a drunken guzzler...but the girl doesn't play with toys.

Mary's birthday is November 2nd. My last fall birthday to plan. I've already told the relatives she likes to imitate and things like a broom and dustpan, grocery cart with fake food, and other imitation type toys should work. She loves Dora...so I was thinking the little Dora Doll House. Hopefully I can some of this shopping done on my "day off".

For her party, I'm thinking Chili. Chili, Chicken Chili, chili nachos, chili mac, chili dogs. The fixins for all. I could make it in advance which should be pretty easy. This week will be preparation for that and then I'm done with birthdays until Spring when Ben turns 4!