Born to be Wild?

There are times that Lucy frightens me to death. The powerful combination of her determined nature and her desire to be mischievous has more than once pointed her towards danger. Such as the times she has run away laughing in the direction of a road. Or her refusal to listen when I told her not to lean into Oliver's big toy box to get a toy and she almost toppled in head-first, finally ending up stuck upside-down (before Daddy quickly came to the rescue).

And there are times when Lucy absolutely melts me. When I pick her up and she throws her arms around my neck with her head on my shoulder. Or when my arrival at home is greeted with "Daddddyyyyyyy" as she runs into my arms. Or when she tells me to "get Oliver one, Daddy" referring to whatever I've just given to her. Or when she joins in with her big brother's play despite having no idea what the game is. In fact the list of these times is substantially longer than the first, so I'll stop there (for now).

For me this picture, taken this evening, somehow captures both sides of Lucy. She looks sweet and adorable, but there is no mistaking she wants to take possession of this bike and ride away on it. (Indeed, despite its rear wheel being locked she got it half way across the showroom.) And if I were the shop assistant, I'd be too charmed to stop her.