There was a little girl

There was a little girl

Who had a little curl

Right in the middle of her forehead

And when she was good

She was very, very good

And when she was bad, she was horrid!

You know, I once heard, that boys were easier to raise than girls. I never really understood why until recently when my sweet angelical princess turned into a drama queen.

It all started on our trip to Mexico. Grandma and Grandpa of course provided plenty of fun opportunities. In this case it was a ride on the mechanical convertible. When the car stopped I picked Emma up and put her back into the grocery cart. She threw such a tantrum that her cries became hypersonic and her face started turning a maroonish purple. Grandpa Garcia was in shock and just kept saying "Que potencia! Que potencia!" ie. "Wow, what a strong will!" (not a great translation, but the best I could come up with).

One Sunday at church when Emma was turning red in the face and doing everything she could to squirm off my lap and get where she wanted to go, one of the sisters who had always praised her for being such a happy sweet girl, said in utter disbelief, "What happened? I've never seen her like this before." Sergio likes to tease that our trip to Mexico ruined her.

Here's Emma with her most inseparable friend -- her fuzzy pink polka dot rag. She can make it through almost anything as long as she has it and her thumb to comfort her.

I think one of my problems with the tantrums is that when Sergito threw them at her age, it was just that, a tantrum. I didn't have too many qualms about taking him to his room or crib until he could calm down, but Emma . . . When she gets upset, especially if I'm telling her "no". She looks at me as though I have broken her heart with my betrayal. It's like she is saying "How could you do this to me mother. How could you be so cruel?" I thought the emotional roller coaster didn't hit until puberty, but sometimes I wonder. . .

All in all though I must say, she's still my little fun loving, chubby, cuddly princess. And I guess considering all the drama I put my parents through, it's my turn to ebb the girly waves of emotion. So here are some pictures of the happy side of life.

Playing with daddy. No one seems to need toys when he's around.

Talking on the phone

Here she is water coloring. Unfortunately she felt the need to taste it. Good thing everything is nontoxic nowadays.


Emma has figured out how to walk this month. It only took her about a week or two after our trip to Mexico. I guess she figured that without all the willing relatives to walk her around she had better figure out how to do this on her own.

My sweet princess right before the tantrum she threw earlier in the post.




Splash park -- doesn't get much better than this! As you can see Sergito is right behind her. Usually it's the other way around. Her greatest concern these days is trying to keep up with her brother. Now that she's more mobile they play together better and of course that includes becoming partners in crime. Nothing beats pulling everything out of the cupboards and going through mommy's wallet. And when they do . . . everything gets really quiet and peaceful . . . or so it would seem.

Fun in the sun at the zoo! Emma screams with delight every time she sees the animals.