"Almost Big" - Emma

Blogging slumps... so easy to fall into and so very hard to get out of! My last post was a month ago and it's not like I haven't had anything to blog about. Sir reminds me often of my ghost posts that haunt my draft folder. But that's what happens when you have to write a 'perfect post'. It doesn't get written and then it's too late to write it, and then you can't remember what you were going to say and it gets left for ever and ever and ever after.

But that's not what I was going to write about today, and if I don't get my act together I'm going to miss getting even one post up in January!

Back in September, on the 22nd, Emma turned 3. I took forever getting her pictures scheduled, and then she went and split her chin open one fine October Sunday (I think it was the 24th), and ended up getting stitches. After another couple weeks for her chin to heal, I finally got her pictures scheduled (for November 20th I believe it was..) and then it snowed all day long the day before her appointment so I cancelled it. By the time I'd rescheduled and we got her pictures taken, it was the very last weekend of November - two whole months later than the ideal plan. But we got them taken and she was not bruised, scratched, cut, or any combination of those possibilities at the time! At times, I am convinced that child is set on destroying herself!

Anyway, Emma wants to be as big as Dolly, and so she's "Almost Big". Whenever another child tells her she can't do something because she's too little, she gets all upset and after finding me, makes sure I still believe that she's 'almost big' despite what other kids say. Being 'almost big' is very important to her.

For her last picture I went with the portrait shot for the package choice. It's the first time I've done that, and I'm not too sure I like it all that much. It just seemed that all the full body shots that were taken that day, just weren't as good if you wanted to get a good look at her face. The day we got her pictures taken, Sir and I hauled a van load of wood that had been posted on Craigslist the night before, and the whole day seemed rushed because of it. I didn't put very much thought into Emma's outfit for getting her pictures taken, and instead of requesting we keep taking full body pictures, I settled for the first one we got that I thought might work. In the end, one of the 'other poses' turned out to capture more of her personality. Below is the package picture. I did get a single full body picture as well, but you have to know her more to see her character from a profile point of view.

"Then said Jesus, I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved."
John 10:9

Of course, being unorganized and all, I didn't have a verse picked out that sort of summed her up or that I'd like for her to become more like, so I chose a verse she'd learned for Sunday school earlier in the year. This was the first verse she learned well. Well enough to recite all the way through without any help. She was (and still is) very proud of this accomplishment. Many times since, when she's asked to recite or practice the current memory verse, she'll try getting away with rattling this verse off instead.

Emma is still just as complicated as she ever has been. She loves that her hair is finally starting to grow. When she's self conscious, or trying to charm someone, she'll bounce her curls and tip her head without realizing what she's doing. Not too long ago, Sir told me about part of a conversation he had with her one morning after dropping Dolling off at school. It started out a bit like this:
Emma: Daddy,
Sir: Yes,
Emma: A long time ago, when I was a boy... (she paused, probably because that didn't sound quite right that way)
Sir: When was this?
Emma: A long time ago, when I didn't have long hair... um... (and I never did find out what she was trying to tell Sir, because I was too busy trying to memorize that part of her conversation to blog later.)

She's probably the most bossy of our children, and she has the most opinions (or at least the most outspoken ones). Emma loves to play with Butler, and is very good at keeping the games at a level he can enjoy. She loves to sing, dearly loves to color and she's probably the one I hear "I love you, Mommy" from the most. At least I seem to always be saying, "I love you too." back to her more than the rest. One of these days I'll manage to say it first. Most of her days at home are spent in complete dress up attire, and when she can't be in dress up, she's usually negotiating with me about when she can be. "Mommy, when we get home, can I put dress up on me?" Don't worry, she does wear regular clothes too, because dress up is not allowed at the table at mealtimes.

In her own way, Emma is also the most challenging of my children. She always has her own agenda, and is happy to fit what I've told her to do into it, but usually when she feels it most convenient for herself. We're working on that. She often tell me, "Mommy, I like your baby in your tummy." This has been ever since I took her with me to a prenatal visit and she got to hear the baby's heartbeat. Actually she was terrified at the time and told me later that she thought there was a lion in my tummy and she was scared it was going to eat the baby. And the smile she beams is priceless when you surprise her with a hug or give her an unexpected smile.

Well, it's getting late again, (ok, it's been late for a while) and I need to be getting to bed. Someday I'll actually wake up and want to get up - that still happens doesn't it? Besides, this post is getting more and more sporadic the more I get written.

Below is the full body version of Emma's 3 year old picture. She was trying so hard to be good for her pictures that day... you can see her curled toes where she was concentrating hard in order to stand 'just like the lady told her to'.

I love you, Emma!