The Funny Side of Emily

Emily will be 14 months old next week. As she gets older, the more I can see that this girl has a funny side to her. She enjoys a good laugh and finds joy in simple things. Lately, I have been finding Emily in some silly self-imposed situations. Here's a few examples:

The Dishwasher

Emily can hear the dishwasher being opened from a mile away. When she hears it, she drops everything and comes running. Her favorite pastime is "helping" me unload (whether I am loading or unloading) the dishwasher by pulling everything out and throwing it on the ground. She also likes to climb up on the dishwasher door to get a closer look at what is in the dishwasher. As I'm sure you can imagine, I love these dishwasher games.

The other day I was in the kitchen loading dishes into the dishwasher. Emily was promptly unloading the dishwasher. She has been teething and was particularly cranky and clingy that afternoon. (It was beginning to take its toll on me and you might say that I was feeling a little less than cheery.) I stopped what I was doing and looked down and started laughing out loud. Emily had put the colander on top of her head, wearing it like a hat! She was grinning from ear to ear, clearly proud of herself. The comic relief couldn't have come at a better time!

On another occasion, I was loading the dishwasher. Some of the glasses had grape juice that dripped out of them as I put them on the top shelf. Emily kept trying to climb up on the dishwasher door and I kept taking her off. I would look at her and remind her that it's not safe to climb on the dishwasher. I redirected her attention (to the pots and pans she unloaded from the cupboard and were now all over the floor). This seemed to work. I turned to the rest of the dishes and quickly began loading them. A minute or two had past and I looked down to find Emily up on the dishwasher on all-fours licking a stream of grape juice that had landed on the door. HA! Chad and I are amazed by her determination. She seems to enjoy a challenge.