Smile!

Miss Norah Grace is proving to be a bit reserved with people she doesn't know very well. She'll laugh and play with mommy and daddy, but she needs to get used to a new person before showing that side of herself.

However.

She loves making strangers smile. Not to sound too arrogant about it, but she generally doesn't have to do much to light up someone's face. With her bright pink clothes and big, bright hair bows, this little one stands out in a crowd of German babies. She gets "ooh" and "aah" and "how sweet" any time she ventures out. People ask if she's the birthday girl.

Nope, this is just how she rolls.

Some aren't so quick to turn the frown upside down. This is where effort comes in. And awkward staring. The usual situation is this: Norah Grace will be riding on the bus, tram, or train and choose a stony-faced target. She will stare at them, sometimes smiling, sometimes making goofy faces, always awkwardly, until they break. 

Even the most stoic of East Germans can't hold out forever. Three to four minutes seems to be average. Not being able to hold it in anymore, they smile at the cute little baby. Men, women, old, young. Doesn't matter. And then, in true shy/awkward Norah fashion, she looks away and won't smile anymore.

Last week, though, Norah Grace met her match. She and Amy were riding on the tram when Norah sighted her next target. She stared. The woman looked at her. Norah made a face, continued to stare. The woman didn't flinch. This battle of wills lasted minutes until Norah finally saw the futility in it and gave up. With big, dramatic sigh, she broke eye contact with the woman and looked up at her mom, as if to say,

"Some people are just hopeless."

Leipzig, 2012