Lia

Lia is constantly keeping us on our toes. She is always up to something and often on the verge of trouble. You just never know when she's going to try a new trick and might decide to climb something or balance on something she shouldn't. She's also the sweetest child ever with genuine apologies and will give her beloved Duck to her baby sister in the mornings to keep her from crying. When Z may be having a mean streak, Lia will come to us with tears in her eyes and say, "Zadie say I'm not her best friend." She is passionate and does nothing half-hearted. Lately, she has developed a new talent of crossing one eye while keeping the other looking straight ahead. 

She also has distinctive look of self-assurance that accompanies phrases like, "yeah, I know," or "yeah, I'm pretty great."

While at a Vietnamese restaurant the other night, we ordered Pho which comes with a small plate of veggies for garnish--sprouts, cilantro, jalapeño, etc. The small plate of garnishes were delivered to the table before anything else, and I guess while we were talking Lia just helped herself to a fresh bite of "spicy cucumber." The next thing we know she's trying to wipe off her tongue, has tears coming down her face, and saying "hot!" With plenty of water, rice, and chicken she finally got the burn off and told us that she did not like the spicy cucumbers.