Back in March there were some beautiful magnolia trees that bloomed in a Columbus church yard, and even though I didn't have a session to shoot there like I wished, I decided to do a few pictures of Eva instead. One of the perks of having a child is getting a little model whenever you need one, except that mine isn't quite the cooperative one.
Our sweet Eva Rose. She's so full of life. She wears a colander on her head and calls it a hat. She dramatically says "I can't" when we tell her to do something, even going so far as to stop in her tracks and let her arms go limp, like she really can't. Allllllll the drama. I know she's been sneaking gum or candy when I find wrappers stashed around the house. Her favorite things to watch are Veggie Tales, Winnie the Pooh, Frozen, Ariel, and Strawberry Shortcake (just to name a few). She's all girl and loves dresses and frills. She's stubborn and independent to a fault (noooooo idea where the stubbornness comes from). She's got the cutest little scrunchy nose and mischievous smile. And boy does she know how to get into mischief. Just today she got into the pantry all by herself, took out her box of lucky charms cereal, and spread it all over the floor. I walked into her room to find her gleefully tossing it up into the air. She hates naptime and bedtime, but that hasn't changed since she was a wee little thing. Because she's still learning to share and be nice to others I'm constantly telling her to be nice whenever she does something bad, so now she thinks whenever I discipline her in any way she has the right to say, "Be nice, Mommy, be nice!" I'm grateful she already has a helpful attitude, because every time I do laundry or dishes she has to help. But getting her to pick up her own mess is a different story...and she takes about five years picking up one toy. So right now her room is a disaster.
I guess I now know how my mother felt when I was a child, particularly in regards to the stubborn rebellion factor. Payback? Pray for me, I'll need a lot of help in the coming years.
But, I love her despite all the stress and worry and frustration. Because every night before bed she melts my heat all over again. Without fail she repeats after me, "I love you. I love you so much. I love you to the moon and back. I love you the mostest. Sweet dreams. Night night." And then Dannie and I tuck her into bed. If it's past her bedtime and she's actually willing to go to bed, she snuggles under her blankets all cute like and I get all melancholy that my baby is getting so big. Every now and then she cons me with her big blue eyes and "please" into laying beside her to read a book before bed. Sometimes I'm more than ready to send her off to bed so I can have a few minutes of quiet, but then I miss her when she's gone. Children are such a joy...ful terror. I'm probably learning more patience than I've ever had in my life. Hopefully the next one won't be such a handful. In the end though, these struggles we're going through now may be her greatest strengths later in life. I pray that I do a good enough job of being her mother to mold her into the woman God would have her to be.
