Brilla Post and Where is My Dinner?

My husband left about 2 hours ago, I kid you not, to go get our dinner. He has not come back yet! I wonder if a phone call is in order :P

Meanwhile, I've decided to post about Brilla. She is officially 3 now and oh.so.mature. That comes with the good and bad, I'm afraid. She is so smart, it blows my mind. Today I said,"Sweetie, let's see how fast you can run to class (at Bible study, which is down a long hall - I was running a bit late)!" Response: "Mama, we don't run in the hall, we walk." Oh yeah, what was I thinking? ;)

Like I mentioned last time, she absolutely loves talking to Baby. Almost 3 times a day. And she asks, "Is Baby still in your tummy?" She gets it about losing Amelia, which is sad, but also precious at the same time. We don't give our children enough credit for understanding things.

She is singing at the top of her lung whenever she gets the chance. And I mean, singing. Today, in the middle of Target, she was seeing some Gospel song, really getting into the Gospel part. It was hilarious...and a little loud....which is why I asked her to quiet down some. But then a gal in the aisle said, "Oh no, don't stop, I'm lovin' it!" Haha. She doesn't have to listen to it 24/7. :)

My daughter also loves animals. Everywhere we go, she is meowing like a kitty, talking in a "kitty voice" (whatever that is), and making sad kitty faces. She loves the neighbor's dogs, and pets her cousin's guinea pig when she gets the chance. In fact, yesterday, guinea pig almost won her freedom because Brilla was attempting to open the cage, in great eagerness, all on her own. Even at Old Navy, she goes in and pets and talks to the dummy dog that stand with the dummy people. Know what I'm talking about, right? "He's sooooo cute, Mama. It's okay, Doggie, it's okay. Awww, Mama, he's soooo cute." I really was not planning on owning any animals, but I guess we'll have to see. Right now, I'm completely satisfied with her enjoying others' animals.

We've been struggling with disrespect, first time obedience, and whining. Things I'm sure will come up every once in a while. I think the hardest part is not training Brilla, it's training me. I really have to make sure I'm consistent, because she knows when I'm not paying attention/when I'm angry and might overreact/when I'm tired. Today I think we made excellent headway in the first-time obedience. I've also discovered that much misbehavior on my daughter's part occurs when she is unoccupied. So, I have invested in several workbooks, sticker books, puzzles, etc. All that coupled with BSF, is keeping her quite busy and happy. Parenting is quite the journey, isn't it?

Potty training is going super well. She stays dry during nap time. And usually during the night. Sometimes in the middle of the night she'll let me know she has to go potty. I then remind her she can get down herself, and she does it. And she even flushes, washes hands, and turns out the light! Can you believe it? That's one of those things I taught her, but didn't think she'd remember it all. My daughter's personality is one that has to have everything just right, but besides that, she's a toddler.

Well, no husband so far, and no dinner. Hope you enjoyed this post. Time to make that phone call!

Edited to add: Mystery solved - in the middle of getting dinner, my dear husband remembered he had his chiropractic and deep tissue massage appointments. Thus, we had a very late dinner tonight :)