Changeable

The most predictable thing about Emma is that I never know what she's going to do next.  She was born in a big hurry...the doctors wouldn't hook me up to the epidural (though I begged) because they said the baby was still "hours away from coming".  She was there 10 minutes later.

You never know with Emma.

One day she's social and the next she's snarling at her brothers to get OUT of her room.

One day she's chatty in the car and the next she asks me to stop talking please so she can write.

One day she tries her hair in a myriad of fanciful swirls and braids and the next she has bed head that resembles an 80's rock star.

I've been able to count on the fact that she is grumpy when she wakes up.  She always has been.  As a baby and toddler, she'd wake up in the morning or from a nap and I'd wrap her in her favorite green blanket and rock her and sing to her until she was able and ready to greet the world.

Braeden never understood that.  He was amiable the minute his feet touched the ground and always tried to convince Emma to be cheerful too.

It was the beginning of Emma snarling at her brothers.

Emma's the only one that I wake up every morning.  The boys are up and bounding around making noise before the sun. But not Emma.  She wakes up groaning and greets any friendliness in the first minutes of the day with distaste.

This I've been able to trust.

Yesterday morning I went in her room to wake her up.  I talked and coaxed and then realized that the Emma shaped lump under the covers was a little on the short side.  Mark was by my side, ready to pounce on Emma with his bouncy good mornings.  I said, "Mark, do you think she's in there?"  I pulled back the covers and saw stuffed animals and pillows then I heard Emma giggling and she emerged from her closet.  She told me cheerfully that she'd been up since 6:00.  She'd showered then hid in her closet until I came in to wake her up.

This morning there was a note on her pillow.

OUTSIDE SINCE SUNRISE

How did she become a morning person all at once?

Mark and Braeden are thrilled by this change in their sister.  They went outside too.  I know I should call them in for school but they're having such a good time out there.

Braeden's the only one smart enough to at least be wearing a sweatshirt.

In the meantime I'll continue to puzzle about my strong willed girl.  Sometimes I think she's so much like my sister Olivia that I'm in for the ride of my life.

And by that I mean a very good ride.

At least it will be interesting.

This is my pretty girl after she convinced me to put some of my make-up on her.  (Adam wasn't home.)