stella bella

From day one, when Stella started attending her current daycare she has favoured her teacher Beatrice. Beatrice not only calls her Stella-Bella, a name which Stella has grown very fond of, but Beatrice is also "Stella's best friend!" It is very cute watching them say bye to each other at the end of the day. There is the ususal "Bye, bye, my Best friend!" and the "I love you, Beatrice!" Followed by "Who is my Best friend?" and the "I am, I am, I am Beatrice's best friend!"

Beatrice is a gorgeous, tall black woman (Jamaican, I think) who dresses with utmost care every single day. If you met her on the street it would never ever cross your mind that this woman spends the day working with a handful of snotty toddlers, changing diapers and wiping up spills. I honestly think that her influence on Stella goes way beyond "best friends" or "stella-bella". Just look at this picture! Stella dressed herself for daycare this morning and I did not have the heart to make her get changed. I figure I might as well let her express herself now, maybe she will rebel less when she's a teenager.

A few weeks ago in the middle of the summer heat wave, Stella decided that she will be going to school in tights, long pants (Yeah, on top of the tights), a down filled vest and a pair of gloves. Occasionally I do have to insist on a change of clothes for her own good, but it never goes over too well. It taught me a lesson - pack away winter clothes for the summer...