evy-girl.

every time evy eats an orange she has me start the peel, but she does the rest. she delicately lines each slice and eats them in order.

often i will go into the bathroom or my bedroom and she'll come running in with me. she'll slam the door shut behind her and look up at me with her intense eyes. "girl time," she'll say in a tone like we're commencing a classified meeting.

evy draws pictures from sun-up to sun-down. people are her specialty. she signs her pictures and includes the word "wow" on each one. she tells me, "look, it's your name!"

she loves girls. her cousin ella, her church friend louisa, her exercise-group friend prairie dawn. she loves them and talks about them all the time. she also loves her aunties and any older girls she meets. evy believes that all girls are princesses.

evy gets emotional when she's even slightly tired. little things set her off and then only rubbing her legs with lotion and putting her down for a nap will bring her back to her senses. she loves it when i tell her that her legs are talking to me. i hold them up to my ears and say, "what's that? you need some lotion and then a rest?" evy giggles and giggles when her legs start talking.

evy wants me to hold her. if we go somewhere new. if she doesn't have shoes. if she's feeling sad. if she wants to dance. if she has something to tell me. if i start to leave the room. if i come into the room. if we need to go to the car. if someone new talks to her. "howd me, howd me," in her tiniest voice.

oh, my heart. i love my evy-girl.