True Beauty... and The Beast

Beauty:

So a couple days ago I was fixing Lilah's hair and she said (in her angelically sweet and deceiving voice), "Mommy, when you are done fixing my hair, I will be beautiful, won't I?" Now let me interject here by saying that Lilah is recently VERY into hair, makeup, jewelry, clothes, and anything girly and fabulous. Who can blame her really? But I want her concept of self to be based on who she really is as a child of God, and not so much on how she fixes herself up. So I thought it would be a good teachable moment to remind her of this truth. I responded with, "Well, you know Lilah, your hair will be lovely when it's fixed. But you are beautiful even when you don't have your hair fixed. It's not really hair, or makeup, or clothes that makes a woman beautiful. Do you know what is the most important thing to be beautiful?" She placated me by acting interested and said, "what mommy?" I said, "The thing that makes a woman the most beautiful is having a happy heart and a sweet spirit." Lilah did not even think about it. She immediately cocked her head to the side, stuck her hand on her hip, and looked at me while shrieking, "what?! Are you crazy?!"

I looked at my dad (who was in the room and had heard the whole exchange). His eyes were wide and he almost couldn't breathe as he worked to stifle his laugh. Apparently, I am crazy. I think we have a ways to go on this issue. =)

The Beast:

Isaac sleeps in a crib because he's only 20 months. I should say, slept in a crib. Yesterday I put him down for a nap and he never went to sleep. I could hear him babbling, but he was EXHAUSTED so I left him in there hoping he would eventually fall asleep. At one point I heard something hit the wood floor in his room. It sounded like a small toy, but I didn't think much of it because he sometimes has little toys that he hides in his crib. I figured he had just dropped a toy out of his crib, because he was still happily babbling. So I left him in there, still hoping he would fall asleep. About an hour later, I gave up and went to his room to get him out of bed. I found Isaac sitting on top of his changing table, wearing his shoes, and playing with a model car that was on the top of the built in shelves near the changing table. The changing pads were on the floor, as was a canvas picture that had been near his crib. My little (or not so little) beast of a boy had climbed out of his crib, used the canvas picture to climb across the wall to the changing table, where he put on his shoes and then climbed the shelves to get a car, after which he sat happily on top of the changing table for about an hour until I went up to get him. Seriously, it's like he's a 30 pound, wall climbing, beast baby that cannot be contained! So, needless to say, last night the crib got disassembled and stored in the basement. His room has been completely child-proofed. He is now sleeping in a pack n play because it's a shorter drop to the floor when he climbs out. We have put a video baby monitor in his room so that I can watch him and door knob covered his bedroom door so that he can't escape and kill himself on one of the stair cases while we sleep. An extra tall, vertical, and permanent baby gate has been ordered for the staircase and we will be looking for a toddler bed. My adorable beast baby gets me on my toes. As you can tell, I am not always ready to stay a step ahead of him.