Growing and moving.

There is something so fascinating about development. I consider us extra lucky that Lilly allows us to see all those in-between steps that many parents might take for granted. Lilly takes her time with each milestone and I love watching her thought processes and the way her body and mind learn how to do things one step at a time until she's accomplished something really cool.

The easiest place to see development is physical - like this year she's learned how to do amazing jumping. And her dance moves are constantly improving, of course, but actually she's always been advanced at that so that's not a surprise.

And in speech, we see Lilly not only say a million new things each day, but pronounce words so much clearer. Total proud moments, as our daughter fascinates us with her new language and communcation skills.

But what I don't always see is the totality of her brain development, because it's not black and white. It's not a concrete "one day she can't do it and the next day she can" the way it is with jumping, for example. But when we do see that she totally gets a concept that we didn't previously know that she knew, it is such a cool thing.

Yesterday, Lilly and I were talking, having a little mommy and daughter time. And Lilly said "Where's daddy?" And I said: "Where do you think?" And she said: "Daddy getting a house." (Jon was actually at work, but the week before she knew that he was in DC looking at houses for us to rent.) So I said: "Yes, daddy got us a new house." And she said: "Mommy, daddy and Lilly go on airplane, to the house."

And it just struck me as being so interesting, that Lilly understands that in a few months we're actually moving to DC to the new house, and that even though I never told Lilly we're taking an airplane to get here, she totally gets the concept of relocating, and that we'll go on the airplane and then live in a new area in a new house. That she took the little information I gave her, and paired it with the fact that a year ago, she got on an airplane and moved to a new house in NY. And two years ago, in NZ, she got on an airplane and moved into her house in VA. To Lilly, if your daddy gets you a house, then you get on an airplane soon and move there.

I don't know, it was just a funny moment where I realized Lilly totally gets the world more than even I give her credit for. Like last week, when I first told her about the house, and I told her that daddy would get us a house and we'd get a trampoline for her and she'd have her own bathroom and the house would be so nice... and Miss Lilly responded by singing from Annie: "Easy Street, Easy Street, where the rich folk play..."

I love my little funny girl.