Growing Into It

Now that Cedar is growing out of babyhood, it's fun to speculate on who she might become.  She was a fairly easy baby, and has always been quiet and shy around strangers.  She understands everything, and seems to be taking it all in, perfecting just what she wants to do in her mind before execution.

Partly because of this quietness, and maybe partly because Molly talks incessantly and in her place, and maybe just because, she isn't talking as much as a two year old really ought to.  A lot of the time, she doesn't need to talk.  But lately, she's been getting frustrated with me.  She is wanting to tell me things, and I have no clue what they are.  So the speech therapist is coming to our house next week.  And we will see if it changes my quiet little baby.

Yesterday, I took Molly, Cedar and a friend to the playground.  The older girls were busy running around, and Cedar took a fancy to this little bit of equipment where you balance on a rubber coated chain.  There are more chains to grab onto, and you walk across like on a balance beam.  There weren't many kids around, and she stayed there: walking across, then starting over, walking again, over and over.  She seemed to be taking it seriously, one foot in front of the other, not falling off.  She practiced this same skill for almost half an hour straight.  It was odd to see so much concentration on a child so young.  But she seemed very proud of herself, and who am I to judge?

Also, as an addition to this sweetness, she also recently bit me in the face.  Hard.  I screamed.  And as my sister put it, "hmmm, monkeys do that."  So who knows what she will turn out like in the end.  I like to imagine her as an artist, leaning over her easel for hours.  But I think she still has the whole world of possibilities in front of her.

In the world of cooking and eating, you have to try this: Crockpot Chicken Tikka Masala.  I think chicken thighs hold up better in the crockpot, but otherwise, wow.  So easy.  No precooking of ingredients.  Makes a lot.  Makes your house smell great for hours.  Yum.