Charlotte takes a walk (around the block, that is!)

Don't get me wrong when you read the post below about just how much I love Charlotte. I think perhaps there is one true love in her life and it is not me. Its Daddy. For you see, they are the same joyful ones that we all strive to be. Only they get it,while Lily and I try to figure it out with our own complicated passion and enthusiam. Darin and Charlotte are much more simple. And just happy. To be happy. Because its who they are. Don't you just love them? I could eat them when I look at this picture of a regular evening "I'm gonna getcha" game.





T
he picture below has nothing to do with the walk I speak about in my post (because for once camera wasn't in hand). Its just Charlotte looking so grown up to me with her bow (to start to corral the crazy hair that is mimicking big sisters's) and a moment of her and I alone while Lily is at preschool. Charlotte is thinking she is pretty fancy, stealing Lily's electric toothbrush while she is away, and I think its cute to know this secret, of Charlotte taking the house into her own hands while Lily is gone. Shhh!

Charlotte is a bit of a late walker. I am SHOCKED by this as she is a "second" . I thought every "second" spent their time trying to keep up with the "first". But not in my world. You see, when you have the doting and wonderful (and at times, smothering) big sister of Lily and you are as resourceful as Charlotte, there has been little need to learn to walk. Until now.

Seeing your baby walk... like really walk... for the first time is AMAZING! And it happens slowly, you see the first drunken sailor steps, and you celebrate them! And then you see the couple wobbly steps to follow (and then the quick return to familiar crawl) and you celebrate it! So who really knows when baby has taken their "first steps"? Or when your baby is "walking" like without furniture or a finger to hold on to? Well I am here to say, we walked around the block to drop off a picture of our block party to neighbor Evelyn the other day. For the first time, I didn't bring a wagon, a stroller, a carrier, or accessory for Charlotte. I only fitted her with a cute pair of shoes. There she was, walking on her own waving to every car, neighbor, biker, and squirrel that passed her with an enthusiastic "HI" (wave included), as if it was her own personal parade! I couldn't be more proud with my girl than at this exact moment. The thing about Charlotte is...she INVITES joy into her life at every possible moment. She is much like Dear Darin in her way, always happy, always interested, always full of glee, and yet...the more we go about, the more people say she looks like ME! ME?! Yes, me. Guess what? The greatest compliment of all times because I don't always think so highly of myself, but really...I think she is just darling! And really...could it be any other way? So there she is tumbling on her bottom more times in a day than I can count. And there she goes, lifting herself back up. No more interested in the safe and familiar crawl and ready to view the world upright. And there are more cliches and lessons to be learned with this feight than I dare to voice on this blog. Dear heavens my "baby" is walking!