Dolls and Purses - Yes, she's a girl

With Christmas coming, a few people asked if I was planning on getting a doll for Becca. I was not planning on it, mainly because she has a Curious George stuffed animal and she treats him a bit like a doll. She pretends to feed him and put chapstick on him. She also wraps him up and puts him to "bed" (typically on a rug or something). However, when I went to pick her up from daycare last week, she had a doll in her arms and she was feeding it a bottle. She really did not want to let it go so we could go home. She didn't throw a full blown tantrum, but it was very difficult to get the doll out of her arms. I called my parents that day. I had saved a few of my favorite dolls that were in good condition with the thought that my daughter(s) could play with them someday. Since I have a daughter, I figured now would be a good time to put that thought into action. My friend Jennie came up last weekend and brought my dolls and some other things with her. Becca immediately took to one of the dolls. I even had a toy bottle in a bag that I washed and let her use. She immediately "fed" the doll and tried to rock her. It is adorable! I love that Becca is already so nurturing.

Becca also has recently taken a liking to purses. I put my purse on her shoulder last week, and since then, she loves to have a purse. Due to the fact that my purse is quite heavy, especially for a 1 year old, Kyle got one of my old purses. We've put a few things in it, including her now favorite doll. Becca was actually the one to request the doll in the bag. It's so funny to see her carry it around. I gave her a choice of purses yesterday to make sure she had a say in the matter. She still chose the one Kyle had originally found for her. It is a black purse with a Chinese design on it, so it's a bit more colorful than the others.

I'm so glad my daughter is such a girl. There's a family at church whose 2 year old daughter is very girly, and the mom is so puzzled, almost like it's a bad thing. I try to remember that I also thought being girly was not cool once upon a time. That was when I decided my favorite color was no longer pink, climbing trees and skinned knees were cool, and baggy clothes were much more comfortable than regular ones. My mom helped me get over my aversion to fitted, cute clothes; getting older helped me get over the thought that skinned knees and scars were cool, and my husband helped me realize that pink is still a very fun, cute color and it's okay to like it. I always liked nail polish and jewelry, even when I was pretending to not be girly. So, it is with satisfaction that I watch my daughter take to the girly things in life. I'm so excited for the days when we will get to have girls' nights and do nails and hair while we watch chick flicks. I didn't ever have a sister growing up, so I love that I have a daughter. Hurray for girls!