My Bets, Bay-ets, Munch, Little Munch. I love her. Sometimes I think that I love her so much someone is going to take her away from me, and it scares me. This may be due to recent tragedies I've been close to...but I can't help it. I just eat her up and think she is so fantastic (as I do all of my kids at this age, and all of them in general of course, but this age is something special for me every time) that it worries me she will disappear somehow and I will be left without her. Sorry for the sad start to this post, but it does cross my mind all the time in moments when I can't take my eyes off of her or when she is welcomed into our bed almost every night or when she tells me she loves me or flashes me the sign language for I love you with her fingers after using one hand to push down and pull up the fingers to get them in the right position. (She did this at church on Sunday to Chris, who was sitting up on the stand...waving around her little I love you sign.) Anyway, this is a post about who my Betsey is!
Betsey is very independent. She rarely becomes frustrated when she is doing hard things that I am standing by to help her with. She gets dressed on her own and gets into the car by herself and puts most of her buckle on in her car seat. She doesn't like to walk anywhere though, and always asks, "I wanna hold you" to be carried everywhere...which being pregnant, I don't ever do. Nope. We hold hands though. I am impressed by her young ability to do so much by herself...she definitely potty trained herself EARLY and she will wake in the night and come into our bathroom and go to the bathroom by herself and then come get in bed with us.
For her birthday breakfast, she asked for green "panpakes"...but she also went for some string cheese, which is a staple for this girl.
Betsey wears "lightgowns" everyday, all day. She is NEVER dressed five minutes in our house. She gets dressed (by herself, in clothing she approves of) before leaving the house and literally she doesn't take fifteen steps in our house before she is stripping down and hunting for her lightgown. Great.
Ruby got Betsey a Dora doll. She recently discovered Dora, which is the first time she was ever shown anything other than Sesame Street (she will only watch the Elmo's World part) that was geared for her age. She LOVES Dora now. She is my first kiddo to like the mind numbing shows...now she's ventured into Wonder Pets and Super Why.
Betsey is tricky. For example, when she is getting dressed, she will ask, "This way mommy?" to be sure she isn't putting her clothing on backward. I'll agree or correct her as the case may be, and she'll get her feet for example in her undie leg holes just right and then she'll say, "Wait" and reverse the progress, turn them the other way and say, "Is this the right way?" Repeat that for every article of clothing and you'll understand why I mostly encourage dresses.
Betsey sometimes breaks into a southern drawl. I don't know where it comes from. I think it is hilarious, and I worry I'll never capture it on video (bideo). Usually this comes about when she's exclaiming something, she'll say, "He that hurt may (me)!"It happens pretty often, and it's really random and cute.
Betsey's actual birthday was on a Monday and we opened gifts just as a family and had the Wilcox family come over for another special reason, so they joined us for presents and cake and ice cream. Alice randomly decided she would be Betsey's gift opening table. Huh. Sounds uncomfortable and weird...but that's my quirky girl!
Betsey has a major lisp. She can't say her "s", "ch" or "sh" sounds for starters. It all comes out "th". I love it when she says essential oils, "ethenthial oilth." Watch this=wath thith. It's pretty significant and we don't try to correct her...yet. It's too cute!
She was thrilled with opening presents. She got a cloth house with 5 little kitties that live in the house (below) from us.
She got a fancy new lightgown from Sage and Mike's fam and another from Pam and Matt's fam. The theory was that she needed some new lightgowns since she wears them so much and since hers have been through her sisters before her.
This is her "couldn't be more pleased" face. I love this face!
Two lightgowns!!
Betsey is a bag lady. She wants to be able to carry all of her beloved things with her at the same time. Here she is attempting to carry our gift, the lightgowns and some great new bath toys from Grandma and Grandpa Pierce (the frilly dress is what she got the day before from my folks).
She had an especially large cupcake, but the guests had a few smaller ones to devour each.
Betsey is often to a fault obsessed with my mama. She tends to get clingy and whiny around my mom, trying to manipulate her into doing whatever she wants her to do. It can be really annoying! Recently, she began saying her own prayers from start to finish, and she pretty much insists on being the one to do all the family praying. She prays every single time, "Bless (bleth) that Oma will come to my house (houth)." or "Bless that we can go to Oma's house." She prays almost as often "Please that daddy will come home soon." or "Bless mama to be safe." I love her prayers. She frequently wants to call my mom and she gets super chatty and long winded and scattered train of thought...like even I have no idea half the time where she's headed or where she is coming from. It's super cute.
This is a Betsey expression. She is very expressive.
She got Dora bath toys from Alice and a few other bath toys in addition to what Grandma and Grandpa Pierce gave her from us...including bath water color tablets and bubble bath. Of course before going to bed, she had to use her new toys in a big sister filled bubble bath!
If you ever ask Betsey if she wants this or that and she doesn't, she'll say, "No, I'm good."
Betsey loves to spell her name, "B-E-T-S-E-E-Y" is as good as it gets. It's super cute. She calls the letter "B", a Betsey. She loves doing her school when her sisters are at the table working on theirs. She has dry erase letter pages and she mostly likes the letters "T" and "O".
She loves to pretend to read books to me. She especially and almost exclusively likes the books of animal pictures that are simply animals with their labels below. She calls them "Aminal bookth" and because of those books she knows many animal specifics...like Chimpanzee and Parrot. It's super cute.
Betsey is three...she is such fun...she has had a few opportunities this year to comfort me when she finds me crying. She will come in and ask, "are you sad, mom?" I will confess, "yes." Then she will say, "Do you want cuddles?" and I of course do. Then she will ask, "Are you still sad?" A few seconds later. When we discuss why I am sad, she will say, "I'm not sad!" I know we are supposed to be like children, and I think in the whole grieving process, she's a pretty good example of how I should be. She will say, "Stoney is in heaven, I'm not sad!" I love that.
Betsey has a blue blankie that my mom made her before she was born. It is her most treasured belonging and it is that minky-ish fabric with a thicker pile. She always takes a section and rubs it lightly over her lips. This is something she does for comfort, and she calls it a "yip". She started offering me "yips" when I am sad. "Do you need a yip?" So sweet and simple.
