Carlie Reese

Carlie's post is way overdue. I think it is probably because she is so hard to describe in words and truly get across how adorably funny this girl really is. She makes our family fun and gives us something new to laugh about every single day. She is constantly learning, constantly growing, just like any other 21 month old is. And, there is a spark in her eye that has been there since birth, that makes her very special to us. But, that also makes us crazy on many days! I know she will someday cause me many headaches and might possibly lead me to write the sequel to "The Strong-Willed Child". Hers will be titled "The Strong Willed Child...And Then Some".

But, something about that "will" and that "stubborn streak" makes her so irresistible to me! Mark and I laugh at the fact that so much of what she does just makes us smile, even though it shouldn't. And, I think it's because we see her whole personality as much more than her crazy and sometimes strong-willed nature. She has such sweet ways of loving each of us, and such adorable ways of being "Carlie" that make us love her more than I could express in a blog.

The stage we're in with her is so much fun. She's copying anything and everything that big sister, Kendyll does. She loves playing babies, playing dress-up, pretending to be a ballerina, and watching movies with Kendyll. She loves to roll around in the floor with Daddy, walk around in Mommy's shoes, and draw pictures with crayons. She is so playful and loves to be "side" (outside), she dumps sandbox dirt on her head and pretends it's shampoo, and splashes the bath water until it drenches me, the walls, and the floor. She loves putting on lipgloss and saying "pitty" (pretty), she loves throwing balls and playing cars, and she easily sweats doing anything active. She idolizes Dora (who she calls "Rodis"), Elmo, and Bob (Veggie Tales), and would adopt every dog in the neighborhood if she could. She talks on her play phone all day long and even puts it in her pocket like Daddy. She pulls it out, says "Ho? (hello?) Yes, Yes, Nooooo. Bye" and her conversation is done. When you ask her who it is, she says "Daddy!" with a huge grin.

She is the first to remember to pray at every meal. As soon as we all sit down, her little grubby hands are sticking straight out for someone to hold, and her little head is bowed down, while she looks up out of the corner of her eye to see if everyone is following her lead. Her favorite sentences (actually, her ONLY sentences) are "Tate a bas" (take a bath) and "Heh ya doe" (Here you go.) She kisses every single animal, person, or object in any book we read, which takes quite a while, when you think about how many things are on a page in a children's book! But, regardless, each person or thing gets a smack. She holds my finger and "helps" me count everything, just like I do to her. When we go and get her out of her crib after sleeping, her hair is CRAZY and her pj's are usually twisted around or halfway off. As soon as we open her door, she starts the "crazy bouncing", as Kendyll calls it. She starts throwing herself down in the bed, spinning around crazy, and running into all the siderails. It makes us cackle every single time. My favorite smile is when she says "cheese" and puckers up her lips while squinting her eyes. My favorite thing to watch her do is take care of her babies. She loves them so sweetly and talks "nonsense" to them for as long as she can before she notices I'm watching her. Then, she does her "I'm embarrassed" look where she cocks her head to the side and smiles.

She already acts as the "class clown" and uses humor and wit to get out of answering a question that she doesn't know. I will ask her a color of something or how many crayons she has or to say a certain word, and if she doesn't know, she just starts acting silly to distract us from the answers. This works best on Kendyll...and I'm sure it will show up again when she's in elementary school someday and I get notes home that says "instead of concentrating on her work, Carlie just chooses to make farting noises with her armpit." Speaking of farting, she already notices her bodily functions and tells us "tee tee" or "poo poos" when she has done either one. (I'm hoping this leads to earlier potty training than daughter # 1!). But, with this, comes an awareness of how to pass gas as well. I've never seen a toddler stop in mid-stride, stick her bottom out, push hard, and fart intentionally. But, yes, Carlie does it. It's hillarious.

She loves going on walks in the wagon and will oftentimes just climb straight into the wagon after I unload her from the car since it sits in the garage too. It's always heartbreaking for her to get the news that we're not leaving on a wagon ride right after we get home from church or school or errand-running. If she's in the wagon, she wants the ducks. We have a duck pond nearby and it is her favorite thing to do. She says quack, quack until even the ducks are tired of hearing the sound. She can throw a piece of bread as far as I can...and it almost always makes it to the water. She's very proud of that.

Now, with all of these sweet things, comes a little bit of the stubborn Carlie as well. She has started throwing herself down and banging her head, in an attempt to get what she wants, although she only does it once and hopes it does the trick. (she's a smart one---she knows this tantrum thing can hurt!) She WILL NOT take a bite of something that we tell her to, so that she can have something else to follow. For example, she will not eat even ONE bite of hot dog, if she sees that a cheeto is to follow. She would rather hold out for the cheeto, be disciplined and sent to bed, rather than give into her parent's demands for one measly bite of hot dog. Oftentimes, she will not say "I'm sorry" and instead chooses to scowl up at us from under her eyelids as she looks at the floor. Nice. She will oftentimes flat out do EXACTLY what we just told her not to do. And, then look at us and smile. The nerve! (The sad thing is that we have to MAKE ourselves be stern, when we really want to laugh half the time!) She has a fire in her eyes that we know spells T-R-O-U-B-L-E. But, we love her fire and always will. She makes our family fun and the laughter we have had since she has joined us, has been priceless and unmeasurable.

Carlie, when you read this someday, I hope you know that we thank God daily that He made you just the way you are. We pray that the Lord uses your "spunk" and "fire" for His glory and that He continues to mold you into the woman of God He sees...and your parents see...already in you. You have an amazing sense of adventure, a strong sense of self (was that a nice way to put it?), and a joy that radiates from you. We are so thankful to get to watch you grow and change each day. And, even though we call you "Crazy Carlie", we do it in pure love, knowing that one day your craziness will be what sets you apart from the crowd. (And Daddy hopes it is what makes you into an awesome athlete!)

We love you, Carlie Reese!