advances this week

This is what three year's worth of stuffed-animal accumulation looks like:

This is what a two-year old fashion-merchandiser's skills look like:


This is what a two-and-a-half year old writing her name looks like:
1st attempt - she wrote from right to left (maybe she was fluent in Arabic in a past life?). I know it's hard to see b/c she wrote with yellow crayon on pink paper, but all the letters are there, I SWEAR! I only wish I'd taken a video so you could've watched her write it!
2nd attempt: Watch & see for yourself!



I only wish the video was complete. Alas, the camera batteries died just before the end of her song. Perhaps, though, that was for the best. If the batteries hadn't died, I might have caught the largest freak-out she's ever had in my presence. She was upset because her handwriting didn't live up to her exacting standards. She tried to tear the paper and when she couldn't tear it, crumpled it up and flung it across the room. She screamed and cried and kicked her feet when I asked if we could hang it up. We told her it was beautiful and we were so proud of her writing and gave her some sweet tarts. That seemed to boost her self-esteem. I'm hoping this was just a 2 year old episode and not the beginning of a lifetime of OCD over handwriting!