natalie, natalie...

i have to be honest. i tend to lose my patience with natalie. more often than i'd like to admit. she will talk your ear off about the most random things, in her tiny squeaky voice, ask the most random questions, and interrupt you from whatever you're doing, even if it is with an "excuse me?" she does this constantly. all day.

okay, so, i'm sure i'm exagerrating just a bit...maybe not ALL day, but sometimes it sure feels like it.

apparently, natalie is just like i was when i was a kid. my mom says all the time: "like mother like daughter!" and all i can think of when she says that is "mom, i'm sorry i put you through that!" because now i know how it feels. (mom, i know you are just loving this post!)

with all that being said, i try so hard to look past what i consider "pestering" to find what truly lies beneath in natalie.

she is so loving, so sweet, so considerate, so SMART, so creative, so corky, so goofy, so beautiful, and so much more.

every day she does something or says something so AWESOME that makes me forget about all the other things that i get annoyed with.

i thank God for her.

... and i thank natalie for helping me to strengthen my patience. we are all a work in progress and i am reminded of that every day.

here's what she did the other day.
i walked into the living room to find this set up just so:


(this is just one of the bazillion crafts she does WEEKLY)

here she is working on crafts today:

i love you natalie. you never cease to amaze me!