Stubbornness and Random Photos

I am stubborn.  Sometimes this is a good thing and sometimes it can be a stupid and bad thing.  It can be bad when I really need help and can get a task done much more quickly if I just ask for help but I just won't admit to myself or anyone else that I need help.  It can be a good thing when I do ridiculous things like sign up to do a sprint triathlon and realize it is just a week and a few days away and I have done little to no training.  My stubbornness with carry me through and get me across the finish line.

Lilly has her own stubborn streak (some may say I am being generous by calling it a "streak").  She can't say it yet, but "me do it" is not far off (or "back off mom").  When she is having yogurt, she has to feed herself.  I can do nothing to help.  Not even hold the bowl to make it easier for her.  She makes an angry nasally "eh" sound and will push my hand away.  If we are walking on a sidewalk and I take Lilly's hand, Lilly feels that she is big enough and old enough to do that on her own and will push my hand away.  Luckily I am bigger than she is and can scoop her up and carry her.

I hope that Lilly's stubbornness is more productive than mine and she uses it to her advantage, getting her to take on challenges and overcome them and push herself to be better at everything she wants to do, rather than getting in her way and preventing her from getting help when she needs it.  I think most parents wish this though - that they take what we give them and develop their own sense of purpose, achievements, and become even better, more wonderful people than we are.

My friend Emily always has nice arrangements of her photos on her blog.  I am supposed to be working on my Professional Development Plan (PDP) for my teaching license.  Instead, I downloaded Picasa and figured out how to make collages and post them on my blog.

Here are some pictures of Lilly from the last few weeks in collage format:

Having fun in the garden!  Lilly loves playing in the garden - pulling weeds, digging in the dirt and wandering around.  Nick snapped these while I worked in the garden.

Playing at the beach at Bono Creek.  Lilly wouldn't go in the water but loved playing in the sand.  When the wave started crashing on the shore, she stood up, backed up, and sat back down.  We did go to Long Lake about a week later where Lilly did get in the water.  Slowly but surely we are making progress!

My mom came up and watched Lilly for a week while I took a class towards my reading certification.
Swinging at the park and eating bunny crackers.  What could be better?

Upper left - Lilly at messy class playing in mud.  Center - Lilly fishing with her bike helmet on.  Notice, the bike is put away.  Upper right - Lilly wearing 3-D glasses.  Bottom Left - Lilly ringing the bell we were given at our friend's wedding.  Bottom right - Lilly chilling on the deck steps taking a break from the pool.