Things I Love About My Daughter

There are many things that I love about my daughter, and this is by no means comprehensive.  We had a bit of a rough day today.  She's teething (these should be the last teeth for a while, thank God) and hasn't been sleeping well lately, so that doesn't help anything.  Plus she's entered the stage where being told no for anything immediately sets off hysterics of the fling-yourself-on-the-floor-and-flop-around variety.  So, y'know, fun times.  And our driveway is a steep, curvy, sheet of ice, so we're pretty much stuck inside.  And I was tired today, so we didn't go for our usual walk.

Despite all the unpleasant aspects of today, there were, as always, many times when I just stopped and thought, "Wow, I love this kid."  So, without further ado, here are the things from today that made me think that.

1. I love that she waits at the top of the stairs for me, so she can hold my hand as she walks down.  She's getting so good at walking down the stairs.  She sort of skipped over crawling down the stairs backward.  She has always wanted to walk down them like Mommy and Daddy.  At first we had to walk backward in front of her and hold both her hands to keep her steady.  Now, she steadies herself with one hand on the wall and one hand in mine (or Michael's).  So sweet.
2. When she walks up or down the stairs, she says, "Step!" for almost every step.  It actually comes out more like, "Dep!"  So cute.
3. She almost always wants to listen to music.  It's one of the first things she asks for when she wakes up in the morning.  
4. She loves to dance.  This goes with the music thing, of course.  The kid's got moves, too.  For 19 months, her rhythm is pretty solid.  I know adults who can't keep a beat as well as she can.  Lately she's been grabbing her doll and shaking it around and saying, "Dancin'.  Baby dancin'."
5. Spontaneous hugs.  She runs up and says, "Hug!" and wraps her arms around you.
6. Spontaneous kisses.  'Nuf said.
7. Her laugh.  Toddler laughter is so unrestrained and joyful and never fake.  I relish it.
8. She loves pushing the button to hang up my phone.  It's hilarious and adorable, though it can make phone calls interesting.  She's usually ready to hang up before I am, so I have to keep the phone away from her.  If I have it against my face, she literally tries to peel it away from my face as she's saying, "Bye bye.  Bye bye."  If it's on speaker, it's a weird game of keep away until I wrap up the call.  And then she laughs when she pushes the button.
9. The way she snuggles up to me in her sleep.  She still sleeps in our bed because she still nurses at night.  Sometimes I think it would be nice for her to be in her own bed, but mostly I enjoy the baby snuggles.  There's nothing sweeter than snuggling a sleeping baby.
10. She's fearless.  While I sometimes wish she were a little less fearless for her own safety (and my sanity), mostly I'm glad that she's brave enough to try things, and trusting enough to know we'll be there for her.