In This Moment

My very talented photographer friend sent me this picture she snapped of Riley while we were all out enjoying the day together. She has an absolute gift for capturing children candidly and she's done it again with our princess. I wish I could share Riley with you all in person everyday and that you could see her as I see her, but second to that I offer you this. Our princess in this moment. Just as she is. Darling baby hair flying, deep brown eyes staring you down, one wondering eyebrow raised and her sweet mouth poised to unleash a verbal firestorm on you sharing her latest thoughts and world observations.

In this moment, in all her 20 1/2 month old glory Riley is growing by leaps and bounds.

Words are becoming phrases and phrases are quickly becoming sentences and questions. She comments on the weather and she loves to give a running commentary of what she's doing. She searches for things and people and calls "Wheah rrrr u?" Her manners abound and she consistently says please, thank you and bless you. She has learned to say her name this month and if we ask her what it is she will take one sweet baby finger stab herself in the belly and say "RIYEEE". Last, but not least Riley has finally given in and calls me Mama and I love nothing more than putting her to bed and having her say "Night Night Mama, uv you."

Faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. Well, sort of. Physically she's still tall and she's still big and very, very active. She runs, and "sumps" and climbs and slides. She swings and hangs and tests the very limits of my heartrate and reflexes with her endless daring. But she's tough too and it takes more than just a bump or a spill to get more than a pause, rub of the area, and "ow" before she's off and running again.

I can't wait to see where her talents lie as she grows, but for now she has so many interests. These days it's mostly active things like the park or playing outside in the cul-de-sac with a bevy of children. She sings too and will often just belt out "e i e i oooooooo!" or "row row row". Pretend play is high on her list and Riley spends lots of time with her baby dolls and loves giving them her version of mama snuggles. And although more often than not she eats her crayons, she can be found coloring occasionally.

Sugar and spice and everything nice with just a pinch of cayenne is what little Riley's behavior is made of. She is happy, still loves to laugh and is full of life. That "heat" she inherited just kicks in sometimes and she gets angry and has plenty to say when she is. Tantrums are less frequent now and most days we just giggle our way through start to finish.

In this moment, I think Riley is beautiful, smart, and captivating. I love her more than I thought was possible and I'm just so proud she's mine.