Bronte 3.5

Time for another update on Bronte. Little B is almost three & a half, well into the "threenager" stage. She still really likes to help & is often willing to do exactly what I ask her to do... unless of course she isn't. Then nobody, nothing can make her change her mind. I keep trying to remind myself that her assertiveness will serve her well when she's older, but man it can be hard to parent a kid this fiery.

I'm really enjoying how much she's been into drawing & painting lately. She paints several pieces every day with the tempera paints on her little easel set up in the kitchen. Most of them are black & white, lately they're portraits of people or bunnies, often painted with a particular recipient in mind--her friends, preschool teachers, mama, papa. I recently saw a photo of her & a little drawing she did a year ago--her illustrations of people have come a long way. They still look a lot like potatoes with limbs, but there is a lot more complexity, with things like eyelashes, pupils, hair, ears, fingers, etc.

She's still really into singing & does it often throughout the day, improvising new lyrics to the songs she's learned in preschool. Her current favourite is one about rain turning into lemon drops & gumdrops.

B has also been pretty excited about all the snow we've had in the past couple of months. She seems fairly immune to the cold (she's got a lot of northern European blood in her, clearly) & will often refuse to wear warmer mittens or even a jacket when out in single digit temperatures. Whenever Oli or I go out to shovel the sidewalk, she has to come out & help, leaving clumps of salt on the steps or moving the snow around with a little toy shovel.

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