"It's Pretty!" -- A Phrase Worth Repeating In Life

Lately my two year old has a dozen or so expressions that she repeats throughout the day.  Vivian is very much a broken record. Sometimes I want to throw that record against the wall or beat my head with it.  Still other times I want to listen to it over and over again like I'm mourning over a lost love. 

I love Viv's voice at this age.  Well most of the time..... as long as she's not whining, yelling or crying....  But when she's just trying to converse or express herself, it's truly funny and entertaining.  You can see the wheels churning in her head and she is thinking.  I'd like to jump right inside that brain of hers on some occasions. 

One of the joys of being around children at this particular stage is their constant awe and wonderment at the world around them.  How the littlest things bring them such joy where as we adults are complaining over bills coming in the mail or the season finale of a television show. 

My child is at a point now where she's talking all the time.  That has its good and bad points. 

Her frequent phrases lately include the following:

• "MOMMY!  What are you doing?"
• "Ummm, sure...."
• "Get away, get away!  Shoo!" (to bugs and flies)
• "Don't do that!" 
• "Where's Vivian?  Where is she?" (when she plays peek a boo with herself or anyone else)
• "Come'on, Let's go!" 
• "See you later alligator.  After while crocodile."

(Note: I wanted to write down these words from her now and commit them to memory before she starts saying, "Mommy, I hate you!"  "Mom, you just don't get it!"  Or "I don't care what you say." )

But the phrase that has stood out in my mind this week is "It's Pretty!"  Vivian will call nearly anything she sees pretty. 

As I dress her in the morning, no matter what color shirt or dress I place over her head and belly, she says, "It's Pretty!"  After she goes to the potty, even if she releases a giant, brown log -- she'll say, "It's Pretty!" 

When we're outside blowing bubbles or using sidewalk chalk or molding shapes with play-doh, "It's Pretty" is on the tip of her tongue.  As we drive through town, the stop signs and traffic lights are "pretty."  A giant chocolate chip cookie from Panera Bread is "pretty."  (And well, who can argue with that? :-)

To Vivian, her mommy's glass of water is "pretty."  The dirty tire on daddy's truck is "pretty." 

You get the idea -- the whole world around her is pretty.  

That notion seems so simple, doesn't it?  Sit back, stand still and just take in your surroundings.  When you do this, and I mean really do it, things are quite "pretty," aren't they? 

Of course there are a lot of UGLY things around us too.  Just yesterday I watched a disturbing video of a pelican covered in oil and barely able to move from the recent spill in the Gulf of Mexico.  Very sad.  It's so easy to get sucked into the negative news you see and hear about in daily life.  Politics.  Religion.  Addictions.  Abuse.  Death. 

Right now I'm reading "The Catcher in the Rye" by J.D. Salinger.  (I have 100 pages left and I will post my review on it soon).  But I have to admit that so far I don't like the main character Holden.  Sure I get that he's a teenager and is at an awkward point in his life. However, every other word out of this kid's mouth is calling everyone a moron; every thought depresses him.   Wow!  It's hard to read that kind of talk for 277 pages.  It's hard to live in a life where you don't find anything interesting or joyful. 

That's why I'm glad to have my own personal reminder (Vivian) that the world and even humans can be beautiful.  Just when I begin to feel too cynical or jaded or sarcastic, my little curly-haired midget gives me a dose of reality.  Sure she's a pain in my arse sometimes, but Viv can also be a voice of reason. 

Lately I think she's the one schooling me in life instead of me being her teacher and parent.   Who knew that a toddler could cause me to admire things like wilted plants, bowel movements, wrinkled shirts, muddy cars, scrapes on knees, and so much more!?

As corny and silly as it may sound, "It's Pretty!" are two words that we should all say and think about more often.  Thanks Viv!   Next time I see your dad's goatee hairs all over the sink or Sammy cat's vomit on the floor, I'll try to think of it from your point of view....  Before I roll my eyes and let out a huge groan, I'll stop to remember that actually, "It's Pretty!"  :-)


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Speaking of "pretty," here she is - my little sidekick, the portrait of beauty: