My love.

** I wrote this one month ago and never posted it... thought I should for posterity - even though it's a bit late...

I love our daughter.   She never seizes to crack me up.  I can totally see why people get addicted to having children - they are a constant escape from being an "adult" and remind us just how fun the simple things are in life. Here goes another list of Mattie these days - no particular order, all important.

She's still on her toast kick ... hardly eating ANYTHING but toast.
I take that back, she asks for "suckers" too ... See's Chocolate suckers to be exact.
She calls the kids that live next door to Nona and Jimpa, "the boys" - and always asks what they are doing.
Ever since her cousin Sam left last week she has asked for him at least 5x/day.  She LOVED him.  She kept wanting to "hold his hand and dance."
She will randomly walk over to Logan and just squeeze him like she can't contain her love any longer - it is so genuine and sweet.
She likes to open up coolers at parties and walk around handing out beer to everyone.  "You want another beer? Ok, I'll be right back." 
Last night Jim asked Mattie to bring Peter a water and she says, "No, daddy wants a beer!"
She is VERY into her "ouches" -- she will grab a cloth or napkin and come over to you if she sees a scratch or bruise (new or old) and hold the cloth on it and look at you with the most concerned face and ask, "You have an ouwie... is that better?"  "You need a band-aid, ok, I'll be right back."
Most answers to questions we ask her or start with an, "Ok... I will feed the dogs" or "ok, I'll go get my shoes on." 
She still has NO clue about colors.  Everything is "blue."
Last night she sat naked on her drum set and strummed her guitar for a good 45 minutes - the song selection was a blend of "Tomorrow" from Annie, "ABC's," "So Long Farewell," "I am 16 going on 17," and "Itsy Bitsy Spider."  It was QUITE a show!  She even told me I needed a microphone - apparently I wasn't loud enough.
She loves to kiss and hug.  She never hesitates to give a kiss or a hug - requested or impromptu.
We LOVE our chickens and constantly ask to "hold them."   She does this very funny jumping-chase action with them.  She flaps her arm like a bird and jumps at them and then laughs hysterically.  She will follow them around talking to them ... I am still not real sure what she is saying, it usually involves trying to hand feed them something she thinks they would like.
She has really been enjoying her friends lately - particularly Camille and Audrey O'Connor.  They all play in the yard, on the swings, have pretend tea parties (where they eat hamburgers) and play dress up with princess dresses.
She has been napping on our bed, but sleeping at night in her own.  She likes for us to lay down with her for a few minutes before she will go to sleep.  She sometimes even say, "Goodnight momma, you can go now" when she is ready to actually sleep at night.
She sometimes gets overwhelmed with those she loves and will just walk up to you and squeeze your face with both hands and give you a kiss or say, "I love you!"  - she does this to Nona, Mom and Dad alot!
She plays this funny game with JimPa - using her dry humor already- she will see Jim and they start this banter back and forth, claiming ownership over someone - ex. Matine:  "This is MY Nona."  Jim:  "No, she's my Nona..."  and it goes back and forth over and over and then moves on to "My Annie," "My Momma."  ... etc.  She starts doing this game from the car as soon as she sees JimPa coming out the door to greet her. Very funny.
She likes to say, "Tulsa, Oklahoma" and when you ask where either Uncle Clark, Grandpa, Sammi or Aunt Shell live, she will say very proudly, "Tulsa Oklahoma!"
She is a whiz at her animal matching game.  There are momma animals and baby animals on separate puzzle pieces.  They are all laid on the floor (like memory but right side up) and she has to find the mommas and babies and put the pieces together.  She loves to play this and I think she is almost bored now that she has mastered it.  She has even figured out the Frog / Tadpole connection ... pretty smart kiddo.
She is the SLOWEST waker.  It takes a solid 20 minutes of fussy quietness before she is ready to get after her day.  This is after naps and each morning.  We usually deal with this by sitting quietly on the couch for a while ... toast is often requested and needed for proper wake-up.
You get really excited about dressing up.  You love your "party dress" and my fancy glittery purses.  I am not sure where you got this flair for fashion, but it's hilarious and she takes your clothes, shoes and accessories VERY seriously!
You really like playing with the dogs now and they are your buddies. I catch Oliver sneaking in your room to nap with you in the middle of the day and you will chase them around the yard and wrestle with them when they get roudy.
You also can't resist bossing them around when you get the chance - "Oliver, no, sit, no begging" or "Gaucho stay, you can't go with us today."  They seem to get your leftovers and extra treats from you too.