Last week, walking with a friend, I noted that Bean has hit a cute period.(It’s like Picasso’s blue period, but with less brilliant artistry and desolation but more playdough and giggles.)

After a few months of…challenging? is that the word?…behavior, we’ve mellowed out and hit our stride again. She is still the bubbly little girl who can’t get enough of people – her teachers, librarians, her friends, her cousins, her aunts and uncles and grandparents — who’s quick to smile at everyone and everything that crosses her path.

Here is our Bean, at three:

She will still hold every mannequin’s hand, but she’s getting slightly self-conscious about it. She sneaks it in when no one’s looking.

She can’t pass up a chance to dance to a street musician. We spend a lot of time in Muni stations. She does not seem to notice the pee smell.

If a new kid comes to the playground, her face explodes into glee. “MOMMY, A NEW FRIEND CAME” before running off to win over a new best friend.

She still won’t leave the apartment without baby-wearing one of her stuffed animals. She’s recently switched to forward-facing, you know, so Baby Gorilla/Bunny/Lemur/Owl can see out.

She just shamed Dave for not getting dressed up for date night. “Oh.” “What?” “Those are your work pants. I thought you going to put on different pants for date night. Mommy’s wearing a dress.”

After months of watching her inexplicably pour water on her dinner/dessert/fruit/milk glass, she finally explained, “I pour water on apple and it can grow grow GROW BIG… like my plant.” Ah.

The line between living and not-living is fuzzy. When Dave complained about his shoes bothering him, she put her comfy sandals in his shoe bin so that they’d grow and fit him, so then he could have comfortable shoes too. She’s also started planting sticks so that they can grow back into trees.

She feels a real concern about Steph Curry’s health. “Curry playing today?” “No, his knee is still hurt.” “It get better yet? It going to get better. He watch his friends playing, Mommy?”

What cute things are your kids doing? Do you also feel that the cute comes in stages?