Marianne the Great and Terrible

This post is full of Marianne Goodness. (And Badness. You'll see.) The Bug is a mess of contradictions these days. She still loves her bananas, but only the peel (not the inside). This is not okay with me because the peel makes her gag. Her gag reflex is powerfully strong and she seems to enjoy making herself throw up whenever she's buckled in her car seat and I'm driving.

She loves to play in Colonel's water but hates to take a bath. She wants a bottle in her mouth at all times, and although she prefers it full, she'll suck on it empty all day if you let her. She wants to be snuggled, but don't you dare try to hold her like a little baby - she wants to see everything. She is a momma's (and daddy's) girl, but lately she will happily snuggle a total stranger if given the chance. She loves you to tell her she is so pretty, but will not keep a hair clip in her hair for more than two seconds. She will beg for yogurt or applesauce, but only wants to play with it, not actually eat it. She loves to throw toys and climb on top of any obstacle and possess any and all stuffed animals within a two mile radius. She loves music and loves to dance and loves to have people sing to her. She'll even chime in every now and then with a cave-man style singing voice.
And now for the photo gallery:
Here is Marianne with a blanket her Grandma MaryAnne made her.

I can't remember what she was inspecting on her hand. I was just so proud of being able to get her hair into a braid! Isn't her outfit cute? That was before I accidently shook an open jar of marinara sauce in the kitchen and got half of it in her hair and on her clothes. I forgot that I had loosened the lid and...It's times like these I wish I knew how to get stains out of clothes. I also loved that she fit into those boots - the same ones Beau got to wear.

Her eyes look so blue here. They are set off nicely by her super cute hooded vest! I love that furry little thing - especially the ears and bows on the hood.

 Marianne loves Colonel. He gets a little nervous around her (I think he's seen her power and lack of finesse...), but he's still really good with her.

 And here is the Marianne Badness. This happened the same morning that I was making cinnamon rolls for Jacob's birthday, cutting out wood and etching glass for teacher gifts, packing up a half dozen graham cracker gingerbread houses for Jacob's class, packing up the crock pot, milk and hot cocoa for Jacob's class, and trying to be dressed so I could run the kids to school. Notice how she was even dressed? It's no wonder my heart rate quadruples some days when I'm trying to get too much done at once.

 Yes. So proud.

 And here is Marianne a few nights ago. Excuse the toilet and trash can shot. What is she doing, you might ask? Well, I told her she needed to take a bath and I was running the water. If sound could accompany this photo, you would hear her crying like someone had chopped off her leg. She DID NOT WANT TO TAKE A BATH. She cried throughout the whole ordeal while I held her down and poured water mercilessly over her. If I let go for more than two seconds she would try to penguin dive out of the tub...and with her slippery little body she would have had her way a couple of times if I hadn't caught her.

 Oh how I love this crazy little monster. I'm so glad she likes me. I'm so glad she is chock-full of personality. I so hope I can survive her toddler years and still have a little left to hold on through her teens.
We shall see.