in her fullness

I thought I would write about her today. She is 2 and is really 2. Here is what today was like with her, or as much as I can remember about it. She began the day by waking up at 8:00 and calling my name. I asked her if she wanted to get out, she grabbed her blanky, her baby, and the book she was looking at and stood up for me to take her out. I did and brought her into the living room. She has been doing this wonderful thing lately. She will spontaneously come up and scream "Daddy" and hug my leg. She also pulls on my hand till I bring it low enough for her to kiss and then she does so. That later bit developed during my whole hurt shoulder/back thing.

She turned on the tv, the stereo, switched the input on the tv to tv and followed that by asking for a show. I said no tv. Then she threw an earth shattering fit, screamed "MY TV!" and wound up being punished in the pack and play. And that is pretty much how the whole day is for Nora. She exists in two realities. One is the sweetest, cuddliest, big-eyed, big hug world, and the other makes me want to lock her in her closet all day long and take her out when it is time for bed. She hits Henry, tried to bite me today, she threw a piece of race track at Henry, threw her food off of the table, let the cats outside, sat on the cat until it yelped (do cats yelp) and ran, bent the antenna on a portable radio I have... this is today... and the list goes on. But, in between the fits of rage, she is so loving and sweet. I have to tell Henry over and over again that she doesn't fully know what she is doing.

Recently, when I was changing her, she said distinctly, " I have a big ass." and then she repeated it twice more. I was freaking out!! She said it almost every time we changed her for a couple of weeks. Jen started accusing me of telling her that! I couldn't figure out how on earth she would have heard that! It finally took Henry to tell me that she was saying "I have a big rash." And that is parenthood for you... sweet and sour and fraught with danger.