Lily's loves

Food: We went through a phase around Christmas time of loving pears and clementines. Now she wants donuts and ice cream. Boy, have we taken a turn for the worse. Overall, she is still a pretty good eater (other than at the moment due to illness). She really enjoys all types of rice (white, brown, saffron, spanish) and has a newfound love of shrimp ("shrimpies"). The most reliable foods at the moment are yogurt and applesauce, but she will try almost anything.

Activities: Lily loves to be outside still. This is a bit more challenging during the winter, especially when the new snowsuit, snow boots, and waterproof gloves that Santa brought her have been used one time - in Indiana. No fun flurries for us so far this year.

When inside, Lily can often be found engaging in dramatic play activities. She cooks up creative feasts in her play kitchen or stands next to me on a chair while I'm prepping for a meal. She is a great mommy to all of her babies, although I often get stuck babysitting while she goes to work or goes on the "hairplane". She can also frequently be found talking on her play cell phone, just chatting away.

Her favorite indoor activities, however, is anything art-related. She loves to paint, color with crayons, sculpt with playdough and floam, and draw on her aquadoodle. She has also recently taken to stickers, which can be used on artwork but more likely will be found on every inch of her body and all over our floors.

Outside of the house, Lily loves school, so much so that when I tried to leave for work this afternoon, she absolutely insisted that she go too. She hadn't spiked a fever all morning, so we tried it. Three hours later Carl had to pick her up due to fever. Such is life.

Lily also loves Gymboree. We are going to try gymnastics and swimming classes this spring, both of which I think she will really enjoy.

Books: As anyone with young children knows, book preferences change quite frequently. Lily is really into nursery rhymes right now, so the beautifully illustrated Mother Goose book given to her by her Grandma Janet is a big hit. She also has several song books titled Let's Move, Let's Sing, and Let's Dance with rhymes that she enjoys. Other favorite titles include Goodnight Gorilla, Panda Bear Panda Bear, Brown Bear Brown Bear, Gossie, Olivia, The Right Number of Elephants, The New Alphabet of Animals (given to her by her cousins Lucy & Lainey), and Shiny, Touchy, Smelly Colors (given to her by Tori). In general, Lily enjoys all books, and our story time before bed is always my favorite time of the day.

TV/Movies: Lily still does not watch tv programs or movies, which is both a blessing and a curse. Occasionally, we will put on a cartoon, but the interest is mild at best. We knew that she was truly sick this week when she actually laid down and watched a couple of rented movies.

People: Obviously, Lily loves her family, immediate and extended. She is also totally taken with other kids her age. She goes on and on about her friends at school and all of her cousins. She loves to look at other blogs as well, and often requests to see Mary & Katie and Lucy & Lainey on the computer. (As a side, she has classified Mary & Lucy as "big girls" and Katie & Lainey as "babies". She, of course, considers herself to be a big girl.)