Julia Bear The Mechanic

A few days ago Julia started pretending that she was a bear. At first she tried to scare me with her claws and constant "raaaawrs". Considering she's at that age where she'll play a game for hours and days on end, I told her after a few times that I was really scared of "Julia bear kisses". Well, now the game consists of her stalking me with her claws in the air, growling, and trying to kiss me. Of course, every time she kisses me (head, arm, back, wherever) I grab her and then flail around on the floor with her in my arms. She finds this hilarious, of course. I find it fun because I get free kisses and hugs from her and can usually sneak in a few tickles for good measure.

In related "news", Julia helped me fix my truck this afternoon. While I was changing my oil I discovered that the bracket that holds the tailpipe snug to the underside of my truck was completely rusted out. She helped me fix it with a new part. After I was done replacing the bracket she wanted to continue using the tools (screwdriver, hammer, pliers) on my truck while I went to water the flowers. She's smart and compliant enough to only use the tools on the areas I tell her she can (e.g. the hammer on the tires but not the wheels) - so, I don't worry she's going to hurt anything or herself. I watered the flowers in the front yard and went back to check on her in the garage. Without missing a beat, she looked up and said, "hey man!". That's not exactly the kind of greeting she usually gives me. She's already one of the boys...