Mobile, Coordinated, Thoughtful, Curious and Fearless

As I sit here watching Marea play in the back yard, these 5 words come to mind. She loves to play in the rock walkway area and has figured out how to pick up the rocks and lift them up to a pot that is turned upside down on a bin and stick them through the little hole and it makes a 'thud' sound as it hits the bottom. She's really enjoying that. But she also found a long iron hanging plant holder that she is now banging against the rocks. And i'm sitting here wondering, how long do I let her play with this potentially dangerous object and give her the satisfaction of exploring her curiosity without hurting herself? I want her to explore everything around her, and i'm glad it naturally seems to be part of her personality. She's no girlie-girl (yet). She seems to be pretty rough and tough, willing to take a few bumps and bruises for the sake of doing something she just HAS to do. Like I said before...the toddler years are upon us, and although I see her little attitude emerging when I have to play safety cop, I'm more excited about her boundless desire to figure it all out. I guess we'll figure it out together.

Potentially the most dangerous of all...sticking her feet in Homer's water dish! (Hey, it bought me about 10 minutes, which I then used up trying to get the most perfect photo!)