Beautiful and wicked

If you read my posts, and that's the only way you know me, then you may often forget that I have 2 children. I do, in fact, have a youngest, and she doesn't get much attention in my ramblings. Let me tell you about her now, and you may soon see why I don't use the therapy offered here to discuss her very much.
She disappointed me the moment I saw her for the first time. Horrible thing to say, I know, but flat out truth. When the doctors handed Jonas to me, the very first thought I had was "it's Craig!". I was surprised by the shocking resemblance this minutes-old child had to a 30 year old man! So when I was pregnant with Carleigh, and I knew she was a girl, I began to dream of a mini-me to go with a mini-Craig. Dark hair, blue eyes, round face...I knew exactly what the doctors would hand me this time!
And what did the doctor hand me that beautiful, snowy, February morning? Another mini-Craig (with one notable exception, of course)! I was shocked that AGAIN my 40 weeks of work was a tribute to my husband! I was very sad, and it honestly took me several weeks to get over my disappointment.
But that little girl began to become something more than another clone. She began to melt my heart. Her smile...oh, her smile! For months she couldn't smile without opening her entire mouth. It was infectious. And her tenacity. From rolling over to crawling and then walking, she didn't do anything less than well for very long. She has always been determined to things correctly.
The one thing that she took her sweet time about was her hair. She was practically bald through her third birthday and had very little at 4. And the hair she did have was white blond. And curly. A far cry from my dark straight hair...but so cute, I was resenting it less and less.
Today, my daughter is a 6-year old pixie. Her hair grows faster now, but stays short because of the curls, and since I don't know how to do much with that, we keep it short. Her blond curls frame a rounder than narrow face, and show off her big blue eyes. And she now has control over that smile...so much so that she can work it to her advantage. Heaven help us!
So why don't I rant and rave about her here? Well, she's so good, and is still so eager to do things correctly, that I don't need to rant about her, anywhere. This morning, for instance, she made her own lunch. Curious as to what it might entail, I peaked at it before she put it in her backpack. It is exactly what I would have made her, and there isn't an extra smudge or smear of jelly anywhere. Two pieces of fruit and some cheese nips. And her bed is made. And there is no towel on the floor in her bathroom.
She's obedient and thoughtful (wish you could see the picture she drew of us this morning) and charming. She can play rough with the boys, and loves practicing her ballet. She'll occasionally throw in a hip bump move thing that makes me laugh. She has me wrapped around her little finger...
and she'll probably be the one to break my heart in to a thousand little pieces some day.
Needless to say, I am way over my disappointment. I am thrilled to be her mommy. And if I want a mini-me, I'll go buy a Cabbage Patch Kid with dark hair and blue eyes. =)