a man in her life

Stella woke me up yesterday with a frantic yell from her room: "Pino, Pino, good morning Pino! I just got up!" I walked into the kids room and saw her little face pushed against the screen in the window, arms waiving, big smile plastered across her little face, hair matted and sticking up in the air... cute really cute! She had opened up the glass herself and she really was greeting our neighbor across the street. He was really there, checking out the work that was being done around his place. She loves Pino!!! It's a love that borders on danger occasionally. For instance, the fact that Pino's house is across the street itself creates a bit of a dangerous situation, because Stella looses all sense of right and wrong, when she sees Pino... She simply runs to him. It does not matter if she has to cross the street or watch out for cars. Nothing matters, but Pino!

I think Stella is going through major daddy withdraw. Yes, daddy has been on the road a lot in the past few months, but Stella's first signs of "daddy withdraw" began already in Latvia, where she was in her godfather's arms (picture above) as soon as she saw him and would not give him up easily, trailing behind him most of the day, asking "upp-y, upp-y" and "more, more!" She was like a little suction cup half the time, attached to the nearest male figure or sitting in the lap of an uncle or even better climbing on the shoulder's of somebody and sticking to that spot until the chosen person had to leave.

It's interesting to observe changes in kids' attitudes. If I am the "parent of choice" for pain and bedtime stories and comfort of all sorts most of the time, then for sure, the first week that dad is back in our lives - I can no longer compete. It's all about daddy, especially for Stella!~