PlazaJen: Passion Knit

I returned a call yesterday afternoon to my friend, Rob, and his wife answered his cell phone. We rarely get a chance to talk, so we chatted for a few minutes before he came to the phone. She said, "Remember Julia? The one you made the sweater for? Well, she has some news! Do you want to talk to her?"
I said, "Sure!" There's something about hearing little kids' voices during the workday that's just awesome, like a reminder that there's this whooooole other world out there. Given that I really don't see children very much, I take extra enjoyment in the experience.
A high, teeny voice got on the phone. "Heh, hehlO?"
"Hi Julia! How are you?"
In a breathy rush, at top volume, she replied, "I GO POTTY IN THE TOILET NOW AND WEAR BIG GIRL PANTIES!!!!!!!"
I don't know what news I was expecting, but that wasn't it. I tried to contain my laughter, because I didn't want to put a single mark on the pride that was surging through the phone.
"You DO? That is great!"
"YEP!"
(me laughing, I couldn't help it.)

"I GO PEE IN THE TOILET AND I GO POO IN THE TOILET!"
I could hear her mother in the background laughing, and she got the phone back from Julia. "She is very proud!", I said.

"Oh yes. We've been trying everything, and then she just made up her mind to do it, finally. But I tell you, we were at Target today? And there was a man there, probably 80 years old, and Julia walked up to him, put her hand in her pants & pulled her panties way up out of her pants and told him 'I WEAR BIG GIRL PANTIES NOW!' and I thought he was going to fall over."
Now we're both laughing. It turns out there were some young girls shopping there, too, and she went up to them and did the same thing.
It's funny, to think about the world from a three-year-old's perspective. After months of offering bribes, cajoling, begging, beseeching, and with three older sisters as models of the desired behavior, some switch inside flipped, and she knows what a big deal it is. And boy howdy, is she proud. We could all use some trumpeting, and I'm going to blow mine over the smallest things today. Starting with taking a shower. Did you know I do that all on my own now? I DO!