As an adult, Nina Dobrev is just about the cutest human around (and she's totally helping the rest of us brown-eyed girls enjoy a resurgence of optical lionization, too, but that's a topic for another day). So, it might come as no surprise that, yes, she was unfairly darling as a wee one -- and she's got the pics to prove it.

Nina shared a couple of back-to-back throwback pics of herself as a tiny tot this week, and after we worked the cricks out of our necks from all the head-tilting-awwwww fawning we did over them -- because, seriously, could she be ANY cuter?! -- we realized that us grown-up types can learn a few things from baby Dobrev. You know, besides how to warm all the hearts with pudgy cheeks and wispy bangs.

Like the fact that all animals are cool.

Nina's buddying up with a pair of rats in this shot, which... is not the type of critter most people would think to bring home for the kiddos. We dig it. Also, she's reminding us here that the mid-part hairstyle is fashionable at every age. Truth.

And it's the little things in life.

Like how good it feels to chew on a juice box straw or throw on a comfy sweater/overalls while sitting back and letting the sun wash over you.

Precious and full of inadvertent life lessons? Baby Nina, you're the BEST.