Such a Joy!

This post is about my sweet little daughter. There is no particular thing that prompted this. There are just so many things that she does that I want to remember. Jade is my little snuggle bug. She is very affectionate to me and other people she loves. She loves to hug, but I think she likes to kiss even more. She comes up to us and starts kissing us repeatedly. Then she says, "Say too many kisses!" Then we say, "Too many kisses!" and she stops. She then starts the game over. On the opposite side, she is very good at blowing people off at her discretion. This is especially true when she is confronted with facial hair. She makes it pretty obvious where her feelings stand on this issue. She has really gained a personality over the last year. She is extremely "girly" and loves dresses, shoes, bows, and make-up. I don't let her wear make-up at this point, of course, but she treasures her lip balm and calls it her make-up. After I put it on her, she pokes her lips out and struts around the house tilting her head from side to side and holding her hands out at her sides. She told me she wants to paint her fingernails for her birthday party (it's a little ways off). Her favorite colors are pink and red. I think this is a pretty good choice. I mean, what's not to love about these two colors? One word: Starbursts! Pink and red are definitely the best flavors. However, I digress.
Jade loves to talk. If given the opportunity, she would have a conversation that lasted all day. She likes to use little cutesy sounding words (cup-y, teeny tiny, "Little Daddy" etc) although Spencer and I have never spoken to her that way. It's funny. I have really treasured our time while Braden is at preschool. It's fun to hear her opinions and listen to her ideas about life. She often will say something and then ask, "Right?". She seems really interested in learning about social behaviors. Probably not consciously, but she likes to know the proper response to situations. Jade is probably the most distracted and messiest eater that I know. She's 2 and a half but still gets food all over herself and the floor when she eats. Eating is more of a social time for her. I usually have her help me clean up in hopes that it will encourage her to hold over like she's been taught. So far, there are few results. I'm hoping she gets it down before dating age.
She loves everyone in the family but especially Braden. They've created this game where she says enthusiastically, "My Braden-y!" and then hugs him really tight for a long time. He often requests this game by saying, "Jadelynn, say my Braden-y and hug me forever." She's always happy to oblige, proof that despite their intense differences, they really can't live without each other. Basically, I can't imagine our family without Jade. She holds a special place and purpose, and she's such a joy.