101 Things to Love About Lyla Celeste

1, She speaks her own language, 2, Her Grandma's fantastic blue eyes, 3, The way she baby-talks to her brother with the biggest goofy grin of all, 4, She believes sharing to be nice, therefore will share anything you have that she wants, 5, She calls macaroni & cheese "roni's," 6, The way she says, "Oh," during a conversation like a three-year-old going on 30, 7, She is bound and determined to be bound and determined to do what she wants, 8, She can't not get the floor soaking wet during bathtime, 9, Best. Snuggles. Ever., 10, The silly way she makes her voice deep and rattly when she's talking about something funny, 11, All critters she rescues are released to the grass to "find their Mommy," 12, She thinks meat is ridiculous, 13, She doesn't understand why being naked could ever not be good, 14, When she tries to make a "yuck" noise it sounds like she's choking, 15, She greets Daddy after work with hysterical giggles, as if his mere appearance was meant to make her laugh, 16, She wants to go to the moon, 17, Events occurring at times other than the present are "on yesterday" or "on Saturday," 18, Mercer Meyer clearly wrote the Little Critter books "just for her," 19, Thick head, 20, Kind heart, 21, Almost always eager to help, 22, Refers to people as her possessions (my Faryn, my Aidan), 23, Has hobbit feet, 24, She loves monsters, robots, bugs, getting dirty and running, but thinks princesses are cool, too, 25, She appreciates a good Miyazaki film, 26, She makes sure nothing on the floor is "too small for baby brudder," 27, Prefers painting with her whole hand to using a brush, 28, Enjoys discussions, 29, Talks to her toys like Mommy talks to her, mostly when Mommy isn't around, 30, Isn't quite sure whether when she locked a dragon in her bathroom it was a dream or really happened, 31, Loves a good game of hide-and-seek, 32, Thinks getting dressed means we're going somewhere, 33, Repeats phrases she probably shouldn't, like "That's ridiculous," "What am I going to do with you!" and "Knock it off!" all in good humor, 34, She is clumsy to a fault, but most boo-boo's don't faze her, 35, Her hair gets longer when she brushes it, 36, Wears and abandons Mommy's shoes that click-clack all over the house, 37, Manhandles the cat and bosses the dog, 38, Cannot determine the difference between breakfast, lunch, and dinner, 39, Thinks steeples are "Jesus towers" or spaceships, 40, Prefers her milk warmed, thankyouverymuch, 41, The way she drags people into her room, closes herself inside with them and attemps to block the door to ensure her playmate's presence, 42, Her bold nature and willingness to try most things, 43, She loves, wants and needs her mommy, but has no trouble leaving her, 44, She swims like a fish, 45, Any kid her age is "her friend," 46, She can operate any techy gadget, 47, Eats popcorn by the mouth-explosion-full, 48, Collects all collectibly smallish items and contains them in various containers, then pours, spills, shifts and recontains them just for the sake of containing, 49, Drinks hose water, 50, Wants to live in a a lighthouse. Or on a farm. Or in a castle, 51, Points out cows and "baby cows" from the backseat, always followed by a squealy, "So cute," 52, Has a Gia and Pap-Pap, as well as a Nonna and Papa, 53, Thinks McDonald's is a farm, 54, Likes to put things in the fridge that don't belong there, "so they can be cold," 55, Adores her cousins, 56, Has difficulty not smiling when she's in big trouble, 57, Has never been jealous of her baby brother, 58, Wild child, 59, Burrows her feet when she sleeps, 60, Has an appreciation for cleanliness, 70, She is a thrill-seeker, 71, At three years, she already has great arguments for her case, whatever it may be, 72, The way her nose crinkles a little when she smiles, 73, Her compulsion to spread things out frantically when they are in a pile on the floor, 74, Her utter heartbreak over her lost balloon, 75, She can operate (and enjoys it) a vacuum cleaner, 76, How she asks, "What's that says?" when she sees written word, 77, She has a strong desire to attend school, 78, She insists upon wearing a dress or nightgown in order to dance, 79, She watches the credits at the end of movies, 80, Says "gotfor" instead of "forgot," 81, Going for walks is "her favorite," 82, Red is her favorite color, 83, Says things she cares about are "special for me," 84, Is stubborn, impatient, demanding and authoritarian, but says please and thank-you, 85, Asks for popsicles for breakfast, even though the answer is always no, 86, Always stops at the creek to throw pebbles and big rocks, 87, HATES bubbles in the bath, 88, Giggles when she brushes her teeth, cause it tickles 89, Enjoys making mud, 90, Plays in the rain, 91, Removes all clothes if even the smallest drop of liquid gets them wet, 92, Constantly asks to go to the beach, 93, She wants to walk on power lines (like the Catbus), 94, Doesn't like when it's "sweaty outside," 95, Would rather multitask, 96, She loves her aunts, uncles, grandparents and great-grandparents and wants to visit them every day, 97, She loves to help bake, especially if it involves licking the batter from the bowl, 98, Wants to swing higher and faster, 99, Provides a running commentary as her nails are being trimmed, 100, Calls any item she sleeps with a "dolly," even if it's a book or piece of plastic broccoli, 101, She turned two happy, ordinary grown-ups into two over-joyed, over-proud, over-amazed, over-crazy-in-love parents.

We love this kid.