Better Late Than Never

She brought all her blankies (which she has become very attached to as well as her lovie) and made a bed in the kitchen. She then said, "take a picture of me."
Happy 4th of July!
The hat and shaker M made at MDO and then wore in a parade there
On father's day morning at church
Giving daddy his cards and presents on father's day morning. M came in our room that morning at 530am and crawled in bed with us. Needless to say it was not a restful sleep after that. She is a squirmy worm, as we call her. I got up to take a shower and M woke up a few minutes later, she rolled right over and gave Lance a big hug and said "I love you Daddy." Lance said it was all worth it for that and that was the best present he got.
Aunt Diane has the best toys. There is also a big pool behind Lance.

So, better late than never. Happy father's day to the best daddy and husband these Poole girls have. And I hope everyone had a happy 4th. We spent the day at a friend's pool with a bunch of folks from church, then ran down to T-town to have dinner with the fam. No fireworks though. Decided to pass. I asked Madeline if she wanted to go see some and she responded, "No, I'll be scared." Girl knows her mind.

Two things that have seemed to creep up lately-M stating she is afraid of things i.e. loud noises, monsters, (thanks stupid shows on Noggin), etc... and her getting up in the middle of the night or rather early morning 3-5am. I think she is beginning to transition into nighttime potty training. She always has to go potty, but has a difficult time falling back asleep, especially when the sun is already coming up. She has been waking up dry from naps for a month, but of course the 3rd day I let her sleep in panties she had a accident. So for my sake, I've kept her in the pull up. Any advice from others on what to do about nighttime potty are welcome.

Funny things M has said/done lately:
1. M always asked me "did you tape (my show)?" Its just much easier than saying, "did you DVR this or that? A little insight into how her mind processes info...The other day she got the scotch tape out of the drawer and went up to the TV. She began pulling tape out and said "Im taping Super Why."
2. We were at Panera the other day when smoke starting coming out of the vent. It didn't last long and we made our way to a table by the door (just in case). The fire dept showed up to check things out. M loved watching them walk around in their gear. As they were finishing up she held her lovie tightly and said "The fireman's gonna take lovie." We had to convince her this was not the case by reminding her that her uncle Garry is a fireman and that he would not take lovie. This seemed to ease her mind and she went outside and waved goodbye to the truck. All the firefighters waved back of course which was such a sweet sight.
3. Today I was getting lunch ready and M was playing with a canister of crystal light. She was taking the packages out and counting them. For some reason, she cannot always remember 4 and 5. I reminded her again about them and added that she knows this and needs to remember 4 and 5. I wasn't harsh or anything (or at least I didnt think I was). M said she was going to her room. After a few minutes of quiet I walked back there. She was in bed under her covers like she was going to sleep. Our conversation was this:
Me "baby, why are you back here in bed?"
M (long pause) "Im just sad."
Me "why are you sad, baby?"
M "because I can't count."

Both hilarious and heartbreaking. Can my 2 1/2 year old really already take my mild criticism so hard? What is 8 or 12 or 17 going to look like?