Christmas time is here again...

....and I have been incredibly remiss in updating the blog. The worse part about my tardiness is that Lily is increasingly full of quirks and character that I want to share and keep record of. These moments are so precious and I don't want to ever, ever forget them. A few anecdotes to share:

- She's now very confident walking up and down the stairs, but of course as a nervous mama I want to spot her. If I get too close she'll throw out her arm (like your mom did if she was going to stop short in the car) and yell out "STAY THERE! STAAAAAAY!" I still sneak closer, so it becomes an ongoing game.
- Exhibitionism. Yeah, she's discovered the joy of running naked. In winter. This morning we slept in till 8:45 (a record!!) and assumed since there wasn't a peep from her room she was asleep as well. Oh no. For the 2nd morning in a row she was running around her room in her birthday suit. Oh, and we have hardwoods throughout the house and her room is over the freezing cold garage. Did this bother her? 'Course not!
- "I know" is now a favorite. "Lily, your coat is hanging in your room." "I know!" "Lily, be nice to Paco." "I know!" "Lily, because of several run-off races the Democrats will not have a filibuster-proof senate" "I know!"
- "I got it!" is the other cutie-patootie comment. It's used both to demonstrate her understanding of a request "Lily - can you bring me your boots?" as well as her competence when we try to help her with something she thinks no help is needed for.
- Bandaids. Who knew so much joy could be derived a $2.68 box of Sesame Street bandages? "I want band-aid" is a common refrain, and I must admit I've used said love of bandaids to get her to do things toddlers don't want to do - like finish getting ready for school. Yeah, I've become a mother who bribes with bandaids....and she is one who is learning the art of negotiation at the tender age of 2.
- Miss manners. She really does have lovely ones...she's become very good with please and thank you and of course my heart melts when I sneeze (which is about 10x a day) and she says "Bless you, Mommy" right on cue.
- Tub time. Lily has recently fallen in love with bath time. She's always enjoyed a nice splash, but now she asks for baths rather than going along with them and typically won't leave until the water is tepid and all the bubbles gone. She does a whole Esther Williams synchronized swimming routine, puts on a bubble beard, paints with colored soaps, etc. She will never be the "stinky kid" if this keeps up.
- Aspiring tumbler. Still a monkey to the core, she's just finished another round of tumbling where she proved quite adept at the rings. She can not only hang for a REALLY long time, she can also lift her feet all on her own, which requires some impressive abs. I tried it...and was totally embarrassed my toddler can school me.
- Shoes. She loves 'em. She adores putting on new ones and hearing how they sound on the hardwood floors, she loves wearing rain boots and she especially loves plunking around in either my or Chris' giant shoes. I have a feeling what is cute now will be pure trouble later. Auntie Lisa better not introduce her to the words Manholo or Blanik.
- Music. Man does she love it. Dance parties in the kitchen, sing-alongs in the car, even my ringtone (currently Feliz Navidad). She knows all the standards - Baa Baa Black Sheep, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, ABC, Wheels on the Bus....sure, half the words are unintelligible, but what she lacks in clarity she more than makes up for in enthusiam!