I did not pose this baby. She did all those things on her own. This is how sassy she is.
As we leave the confines of quarantine and make our debut in to the world of playdates and baby gyms and visits to the park, I am learning all sorts of new things about my baby girl.
Like how apparently, Scarlette is under the assumption that everyone in the entire world is engaged in a perpetual game of chase with her.
It doesn’t really matter if you have been informed of this fact or not. If you are breathing, Scarlette assumes that you want her to chase you. And being that she has teeny, tiny little legs to follow you with, the fact that she can not keep up and is always trailing behind only further encourages her in this vein of thought.
I took her to a baby gym this with my friend T. this week. T and I had a long conversation about asking people for permission to write about them on the internet, mainly because I am convinced that the reason I have been denied entry to our local mom’s club is because no one wants to be friends with me for fear that I might write about them on the internet. Which is a story I’ll tell you another day but the thing is, after that conversation about asking people permission to write about them on the internet, I promptly forgot to ask T permission to write about her on the internet. Thank goodness for initials, that’s what I always say.
Just kidding. I never say that.
Anyhow, T’s little boy moved nicely around the play center, running his trains along the track and acting like a child who has left his house before.
Scarlette took one look at the giant room of play things and then spent the next two and a half hours running from one side to the other shrieking “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA” without ever taking a single breath.
Occasionally she would pause to throw some trains off the track or launch the pretend food out of the pretend kitchen but for the most part she just ran after the other children screaming nonsense words and giggling at them. Remember how I mentioned that she loves other kids?
She LOVES other kids. Adores them.
Even when some of the kids were rough with her or flat out mean to her, like that one little monster girl who put both hands on Scarlette’s chest and shoved her backwards so hard that her head hit the floor for no reason at all, she interpreted that as “YOU ARE INTERACTING WITH ME SO YOU MUST WANT TO PLAY WITH ME! LET ME GIVE YOU A HUG! AND ANOTHER HUG! AND ANOTHER! NOW I WILL CHASE YOU SOME MORE!”
Some of the older kids were playing in the bounce house and when I wouldn’t let Scarlette go in after them, she stood outside of it, bouncing up and down and chattering excitedly as though she had no idea that she wasn’t actually doing the exact same thing the older kids were doing.
Scarlette isn’t the child I expected to have. Jeff and I were both very calm, quiet children and I assumed our baby would be too. Instead, I’ve got this sparkling, sassy little bundle of energy who doesn’t stop from the moment her feet hit the floor in the morning. Actually, before her feet hit the floor as she chatters animatedly to, I don’t know…the wall? immediately upon waking. Also, she’s taken to giving me a rousing round of applause when I go in to get her from her crib. Which is really very flattering when you’ve yet to shower or brush your bedhead, I might add.
It’s so beautiful, watching her explore her world. It almost makes me want to sing a few lines from “I Hope You Dance” except that I kind of hate that song. Or at least, I did until I had a baby and now I just pretend to hate it while I secretly cry when it comes on the radio. Because I really do hope she never loses her sense of wonder.
Nicholas Sparks got it all wrong. Not only is Zac Efron incapable of pulling off a serious, romantic lead in a movie but also? I’m the luckiest one.
About Kayla Aimee
isnt Mommyhood wonderful??!!??? She is so beautiful – and I L O V E your stories!! Have you ever heard Martina Mcbrides in my daughter’s eyes???? Get the kleenex before you “google” it LOL I love watching you guys grow. And i love that Scarlette has so much sass!!
Oh yes, that one’s a tear-jerker as well as “Somebody’s Hero.”
KA- It is such a pleasure reading about Scarlette and also your joy at being a mother to her! I love how present you are with her and mindful of everything she does and is! You are a great MOM!
I love your stories, Scarlette sounds like such a darling little girl. Those photos of her are too cute!
“she stood outside of it, bouncing up and down and chattering excitedly”… Can’t. Stand. The. Cuteness.
KA – Scarlette is stunning! I love the stories you share. I only hope and pray one day soon I am blessed with a child of my own so I can begin to experience the wonders of motherhood. I want that more than anything !
My daughter wants to hug her friends SO BAD. And since she’s a little bigger than most of them, the hugging usually ends with a full body slam. We are working on teaching her just to give high fives. It saves me a lot of time yelling “gentle! Be gentle! Hug gently! LET GO!”
She sounds sooo much like both of my girls (thankfully there are 9 years between them!). Since she does, there is a book you have to get her, if you haven’t already. It is by Sesame Street and it is called Shake a Leg! Sooo adorable to watch them follow the actions of the book. The first line is “Everybody Ready?” and she brings the book to me and says, I ready! It is also short, which is good for the attention span of my child who pretends like she sees bugs everywhere in the house (I swear we don’t have any) and tries to kill and catch them. She is much more clever than me for sure!
I will look at that book, thanks!!
I was shocked at how much my first daughter was NOT like me. She’s tiny, blond, a perpetual motion machine who never stops talking and LOVES being around people. She is everything that I am not , she has forced me to stretch who I am as a person and brought me into her world where everyone is worth knowing and everything is worth talking about. I love it and I’m grateful for her every day.. .
Kayla, bought you blog ebook a few weeks ago but the download won’t work for me. I have emailed several times because the download link has now expired because of trying to get it to work. Please help!
That’s so odd- I just searched my email and can’t find anything
Anyhow, I just emailed you at this email addy and attached the blog book to it- hope that helps! Sorry for the inconvenience!
I feel exhausted just from reading about all her little (well, big!) antics now she’s been set free into the big wide world! That description of her shouting “AAAAAAAAAAA” in a room full of toys and kids is the most fantastic way she could have expressed herself after all those months of quarantine – I’ll bet every new day feels like one great big adventure to Scarlette! Oh yeah, and about Zak Efron, here in the UK I saw his latest film preview on tv last night and my brain went all scrambled – I had to rewind it because Zac Efron + a beard(?!!) + serious role – nope, just nope, wrong. Not going there.
Ellie Maggie x
Hi! Visiting from Kelly’s Korner. I live in the Atlanta area as well. I tried joining a mom’s group when we moved here last fall and wasn’t exactly welcome with open arms either
It was like a adult version of the movie Mean Girls.
Hi, I found you on Kelly’s Korner. I live in GA also. Look forward to reading your blog more.
Hi! Love your blog!! Your daughter is absolutely adorable!! I look forward to following along!
Found your blog! Love these little stories. Your pictures are stunning!
Perhaps your daughter and my son, Apollo, should have a play date. Apollo is 22 months old and only leaves the house to visit the doctor or Children’s Hospital. He was diagnosed with rare heart defect in January, but has been kept in isolation since fall because of chronic respiratory issues (caused by his heart defect). Sound familiar? Now that the weather is warmer, we try heading out occasionally. And he really doesn’t know what to do with himself. I totally get it, I really do.
just what a needed this Monday morning…I love catching up with you and Miss Scarlette!
Beautiful….just beautiful