Here's the Diehl

There are a lot of things that Julia likes to do. She loves to paint, play soccer, bake with Mommy, and play dress up. There are also things that Julia does that we, parents, don't like so much. Like whine and fuss. She seems to be just at that age where she just about defies everything. "I don't like that", "Nooooo", and "But I don't want to" seem to be regulars in her verbal set. And let's not even start on bath and bedtime. It's almost as if she's a, I don't know, princess. Or a teenager. Fortunately, she doesn't quite fit the stereotype of a princess. We're not royals after all. She's too independent and strong and athletic and smart to just be a princess. Which is fine by us. But in the meantime, a little dress up never hurt anyone. Gotta encourage that imagination, you know. I'm sure next week she'll be into something else entirely.

Valentine's Day was a big hit this year in our house. We kicked off the celebrating with a little cookie decorating. Our friends Jamie and Bridget came over for some high sugar fun. Needless to say, Jamie and I firmly agree, that more sprinkles landed in the mouths and on the floor than on the cookies. But these girls have a knack for decorating. Once we got started, we really started churning out some good cookies. And they tasted great too. Personally, I think the secret to a great sugar cookie is using a mix. The powdered kind in the baking aisle has a nicer texture than the roll our refrigerated dough. But either way, homemade sugar cookies never come out as good. And who doesn't love frosting? Frosting makes everything better. But to these girls, apparently it's sprinkles that make everything better. So many sprinkles that the girls had to jump on beds and couches and trampolines and run around for a while to get some energy out. It's fun to watch Julia grow up ...