a day in our life...: 5!

You got it. She is five and fabulous at it! This little lady of ours blows our minds every day. She is inquisitive--always wondering the why, how, when, where, and what...she loves to learn...she loves to take charge (especially when it comes to imaginative play--I can't ever seem to say the "right" lines for what she has envisioned for our storyline)...she is reading! (makes this mother of hers beam!)...drawing and coloring pictures for the people she loves the most is one of her very favorite things...she is thoughtful and considerate...gentle and maternal--the perfect little mother hen...she is ambitious--already planning her life when she grows up (she assures me that she'll visit us as much as she can, but she will have a house of her own! A pink and purple one, of course.) She is such a clever girl...responsible and an amazing helper! She will soon become the best big sisterx2 a person has ever seen and she could not be more ready for her newest role in our family. Also, in just a few short months, this little lady will be heading off to Kindergarten. An adventure that she is completely excited to begin. She's ready right? We've prepared her right? I'm not so sure I am ready for it....however, we are doing our best to raise her to be the best little person she can be so she can go out into a not so great world and be the light that others may need. I can see her now, taking quieter friends under her wing...trying new things and "never giving up"...taking charge and hopefully, hopefully standing up for herself. Although my heart constricts and my stomach tightens when I think of her being thrown in to a completely different setting, with brand new people from all walks of life, facing new challenges every single day...I am still excited for her. I need to be. She needs to face this knowing that we believe in her and that we know she'll be awesome at it. Enough about that...more to come on this topic as August approaches...I am sure of it!

Just as three sounds big for Gavin, five sounds just as big for our sweet Sydney. How is it possible that our lives can fly by so quickly? How is it fair that this time flies by so quickly? I've been trying really hard to take more TIME and make more memories with our kids. It's hard and I know I fail sometimes because dishes need put away or dinner needs to be fixed or we have dance class or somewhere else we need to be...but it is definitely a standing goal of mine, every single day. So when we were invited to go see a production of The Nutcracker with friends of ours, I jumped at the chance! How much more magical could this be?! How often do I get time with JUST Sydney? We were so excited. The little girls got all dolled up in their Christmas dresses, we had lunch, and an absolutely magical afternoon at the performance! Sydney still talks about it and we are looking forward to going back next year!

As for her celebration, she wanted a rainbow birthday party in the middle of December. :) Perfect and so fitting for our sweet and cheerful girl! Here are a few pictures of her special day!