Kelly and I decided to take some pictures of Bailey today and we were shocked to realize how grown-up she looks. It's really hard to do a post on your grandaughter and not be absolutely obnoxious - so I'm not going to worry about it. I'm perfectly okay with being obnoxious. I waited a long time for a grandchild and I intend to finally take full advantage of the perks.
Bailey will be 15 months old on Saturday. I still pinch myself when I see her - she's almost too good to be true. When a rare day goes by that I don't see her I physically ache to hold her and get those sloppy kisses and hugs. There's a small, low window by our front door that is just the right size for Bailey to reach. Her routine is to put her face up to the window and wait for Nannas to open the door. The minute she sees me she screams with excitement. Can't get better than that.
Bailey is definitely her mother's child. She never walks. She runs...and climbs, and tries very hard to jump. She is never still. Never has a child been so excited to land on this planet. Her curiosity is insatiable and she greets every day with genuine anticipation for her next discovery. Seeing the world through her eyes has given me new perspective. Rocks and leaves and water and lizards are a little more interesting. It's a wonderful gift to witness the beauty of discovery.
Here are some facts you may not know about Bailey.
1. She's such a girl. She loves shoes and jewelry. Yesterday at Nordstrom Aunt
Lindsay put a necklace around her neck. She promptly walked over to a mirror,
smiled, and patted her hair. Three women said, "She is adorable and she knows
it, doesn't she?". Can't argue with that
2. She's a girl who knows what she wants - and she's quite vocal when she doesn't
get it. If yelling doesn't work, she falls back on her stand-by - bite anything
and anyone. Very cute.
3. She's been using sign language since she was about 8 months old. She knows about
15 signs. We mostly see "more" and "please" - even when she doesn't know what
she wants! Kelly says she wakes up every morning and, with her eyes barely open,
signs "MORE!"
4. She gives the greatest kisses in the world. But, Jon gets a head butt.
5. Her language includes lots of vowels, but almost no consonants. She can give the
sounds of most animals, but insists that the cow says, "BAAAA". Who am I to
argue?
6. She loves books. She'll pick out a book, back up until she's snuggled in my
lap, lean against my chest, and turn the pages until she's "read" the book. The
whole process takes about 2 minutes, but is repeated several times.
7. She loves to be outside. When I go to her house, she grabs my finger and walks
me to the door. At my house, she's outside most of the time, usually playing
in the fountain until her fingers freeze.
8. Her favorite thing to do is drive my car. She knows how to find the nob for the wipers (and window wash), how to open the door, how to move the seat up and back, how to flip the seat warmers on, and how to turn on the signal. What she doesn't know is that she can't "drive" two hours a day.
9. Her favorite foods are spaghetti, mac and cheese, any juice, ice-cream, Nillas,
fruit, and french fries. Sounds kinda like my diet.
10. I could stare at her all day. There's finally someone in my family who can
live up to my Irish roots. She's very fair, has big brown eyes, and red hair - and a great-great grandmother named McAllister. She's absolutely the most
beautiful thing I've ever seen. We're never going to let her see a bottle of
beer.
11. I've never seen such a light sleeper. Circulating air wakes her up. I remember
my kids sleeping in the car, on the stairs, on the sofa, and about anywhere else.
Bailey only sleeps when the Earth stops spinning.
12. She loves escalators, but mostly the down part. I think she likes the people at
the bottom saying, "Look how cute!".
13. She likes to push, pull, and haul. We're quite sure she could challenge Baby
Huey. Once, she walked through the house carrying both of Dave's five-pound
weights. No kidding.
14. She loves Lindsay, but we figured out it's because Lindsay does her make-up.
15. Everywhere she goes people stop and talk to her. She, however, will not be
bothered with the serfs. This breaks Kelly's heart.
16. Kelly always wanted a cuddly, social child. She got a kid who doesn't liked to
be touched and only likes HER people.
17. Bailey believes that anything that looks like hers, is hers. And, she doesn't
hesitate to reclaim it.
18. She thinks she's a grown-up. Strollers are for her to push and high chairs are
for babies. She prefers a big person chair.
19. Her laugh is pure music...and she laughs constantly.
20. She loves the Black-Eyed Peas and chimes in with "Boom Boom Boom" when she hears
"Boom Boom Pow".
21. She does lunges every morning with Kelly. Her thighs have definition.
22. When Kelly tells her it's time to get dressed, she runs to her dresser to pick
out her outfit, then she chooses her shoes. When she's completely dressed she
checks herself out in the mirror.
23. She watches Handy Manny every morning. She actually brings the remote to Kelly.
24. She's intrigued by other children. I think she thinks they're dogs. She treats
them just like she does Oakley.
25. She's the closest thing to perfect I've ever seen.
Submitted by a truly obnoxious, totally smitten Nanna.
