Six!

My sweet baby girl turned 6 last month, and the world is absolutely a better place because she’s in it.

Lana started full-day kindergarten this year, and even her teacher has said a number of times how ready she was for it. She loves school as much as Della always has, is thriving in her class, is a good friend to all her classmates, and has the most amazing teacher ever. Lana’s teacher is also the middle of 5 children, loves all things tiny, and just “gets” Lana better than I could have ever hoped a teacher could. I told her this is definitely a student-teacher match made in cosmic heaven.

Tinies still reign, Nigh-Night is a forever friend, and unicorns are the newest favorite. She loves playing by herself, yet adores her sister and brothers and would follow Della to the ends of the earth.

She is the perfect embodiment of the word “kid.” Her imagination is beyond any I have ever known. Her creativity overflows every second of the day. And her artistic ability amazes everyone.

I really can’t put into words how much I love this girl. I hope and pray that I never know life without her, because she makes every day so much better. Happy 6th birthday, sweet Lana Marie, and many, many, many more! We love you to the stars and back!!

 

Five!

Lana turned 5 last month, and 5 just sounds so much older than 4 to me! Even so, her antics sometimes could still pass for those of a 2 year old. 😉

She had a really fun birthday this year. It was her first ballet lesson of this session, which she loves; her birthday party fell on the same day as her actual birthday; almost all of her grandparents were at the party, another thing she loves; and our family from Colorado came in town for the weekend to surprise us. Plus the weather was amazingly warm, so all the kids ran and played themselves silly outside all day. It was quite the fete!

Grandpa Frank brought a special treat for the birthday girl this year – I ordered a huge, beautiful cake that she picked out herself from my absolute favorite bakery from my hometown. I have always loved their cake, and nowhere I’ve ever found has come anywhere close to matching their deliciousness. I think I was as happy about it as she was! Plus it saved me from having to make a character cake for the second time this year. Win win! We did make tiny cupcakes with Ls on them again, though, per her request.

This little girl surprises and amazes me daily with her insane creativity and wicked smarts. She still loves all things tiny, Hello Kitty, fairies, and of course Nigh-Night, her ever-constant companion. I hope she keeps him forever. She absolutely loves school, which makes me ridiculously happy. Every day I ask her what her favorite part was, and she says, “Everything!” She also loves to ask if it’s tomorrow yet, just so she can get back to school.

This little sparkler honestly makes every day brighter. Even the ones where I swear I shout at her half the day to either listen, pick up her crap, or both. But I can’t imagine life without her. It would definitely be a much duller place. We love you so very, very much, Lana Marie! Happy 5th birthday, and many, many, MANY more!!

 

 

 

Buddies

This was my view on the walk to school this morning, and it made me so very, very happy.

All day yesterday, Morrison insisted on loading up his little dinosaur backpack and toting it around the house like he was going to school like his big sisters. Then this morning, when the girls got their backpacks ready for school, his was right there in the mix. So Della hung it on the stroller hook with theirs, and off we went.

He had a couple dinosaurs and books in there, so I stuck it in his lap because it was too heavy to carry on the backpack hook. He held tight to it the whole way, and it was the cutest thing. After a little while, Lana started helping him take books out and “read” them. First she helped him spell his name out loud, and then she’d say, “Now you try.” I about melted! Then they went through the little collection of books, and Morrison was in 7th heaven.

I absolutely love watching the bonds between these kids grow stronger every day. They love playing with, teaching, and learning from each other. Prime example, when we got home from dropping the girls off, Morrison set this up on the arm of the couch, exactly like Lana has. They amaze me constantly and make every day that much better.

 

Summertime, and the livin’ is easy

Unfortunately, those days are over for us this year, as school started for both Della and Lana yesterday. Waaahhhhh!!!!

I really hate seeing summer go, but I’m actually looking forward to this school year. Both girls are so excited – Della has been ready to get back for a while now to start 2nd grade, and Lana is happy to be going with her big sister this year for her turn in K4. Lana got the same K4 teacher Della had, who we loved, so we’re all really happy about that. And we’ve heard some great things about Della’s teacher, so she should have a great time, too.

Della’s so happy to be back seeing her friends every day, and it fills my heart to exploding to see her thrive at school. Lana is just such a goofball, I am beyond curious to see what her experience is. I’m just so grateful that we already know her teacher, so I am perfectly comfortable telling her anything and everything and making sure I’m giving and getting enough feedback for how Lana is doing. This is pretty surprising to me, because I honestly thought I was going to be a mess sending little Lana, my fairy girl, off on her own. But thinking back, I was much calmer than I thought I’d be when Della started K4, too. So who knows why my mind thinks the way it does.

But please stay tuned. I have a whole post planned about our summer, including plenty of pictures; I just haven’t had a chance to get it written yet for the world to see. Life has been busy around here lately, but it’s coming, I promise. In the meantime, I’m hoping we get a little taste of summer warmth to enjoy again before it’s gone for the year!

 

Four!

Lana turned 4 on October 21, and she simply gets more twinkly and beautiful by the day. And since I’m almost a month late with this post (shocking, I know!), I’ll fill it with lots of pictures of our incredible middle born.

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I just reread her 3-year-old post from last year, and it’s clear that her amazing aura hasn’t changed. But seriously, these kids need to stop growing so fast! I swear the height of things she can reach gets taller daily. Within just the past couple weeks she has become able to ring the back doorbell without me having to lift her up. Thankfully her answer to my question of “Where is my baby girl going?” is still the same as it was last year. “I’m right here!”

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It’s funny, because lately she’s been saying, “I feel like I’m 3 today.” She just tickles me to death. Her creativity has only increased exponentially with age, with tinies still being her M.O. She is also drawn to all things Hello Kitty, My Little Pony, Frozen, and princesses and fairies. At any given moment her favorite color is pink, indigo (yes, indigo, not just purple), or turquoise.

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She’s become extremely helpful with Morrison, as those two are my little pals all day while Della is at school. I’m honestly going to cry when Lana has to start school next year because I’m going to miss her so much! I’m trying to treasure these days with her home all the time and cherish every last second.

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She skips through life with her top piggie and curls bouncing, and I could not love her more for it. She makes up and sings little songs; loves to say, “Mama, guess what?”; adores making collections of things in nature; takes cultivating her fairy garden very seriously; will choose playing just a little longer over doing whatever it is that I’ve asked every time; always needs more hugs and kisses good-bye from Della in the morning school line; is my willing partner whether we go for a run or do what she calls my “inside exercises;” comes out and snuggles up at my side after every nap; is up before Della to come join me in the kitchen almost every morning; has taken to writing me letters and drawing me pictures for our bedroom gallery just like Della; and still never lets Nigh-Night get too far from her side and her sucking thumb.

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The overwhelming feeling of joy and love I feel when I simply think of this girl is indescribable. There is something about her that is tied so fiercely and permanently to my heart and soul that I can’t even explain it. The sparkle she brings to this world is heavenly, and I hope it shines as brightly as it possibly can forever.

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Happy birthday, Lana Marie! We love you beyond words and to the moon, stars, and tip of my heart and back!

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And just for grins, here’s Della’s 4-year-old post to see how these two spectacular little ladies compare and contrast.

 

Three!

Lana Marie just turned 3!

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Our beautiful second born turned 3 years old on Wednesday, and I can’t believe how much it seems like she’s grown up in just these past couple weeks. Her sentences are clearer, she pronounces sounds so much better (especially “L”), and she’s getting so tall! I’ll catch myself looking at her and thinking, “Where in the world has my baby girl gone??” Fortunately, her answer to that question is always, “I’m right here! I’ll always be your big baby girl.”

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She’s smart, she’s sassy, she’s pretty independent, and she’s wickedly creative. For as often as she makes me yell, I can’t even begin to put into words how much I love this girl and how full my heart and soul are because of her.

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I’m secretly thrilled that I get to have her at home with me for another whole year after this one before she has to head off to K4. Spending my days with her and now Morrison, too, makes me so happy.

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We love you so much, Lana Marie! Thank you for being the sprite-liest part of our family!!

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This is pretty incredible – check out this shot of Della at her 3rd birthday party compared to the one of Lana from her party last weekend. Ryan actually did a double-take, thinking the one of Della was Lana! I’m apparently very creative with their hairstyles at this age. And if you’re interested, here is Della’s 3 year old post. I’m sure it’s chock-full of stats and how her development was at that point, whereas Lana can’t be described by numbers and measurements. This one is off with the fairies!

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And a bonus comparison today! Lana loves her birthday parties, as evidenced by the same pose at her 1 year party.

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The middle

Little sister

Big sister

#2

Giant blue eyes

Mile-long lashes

Gorgeous

Independent

Loud

Incredible

Playful

Creative

Infuriating

Aggravating

Lovable beyond belief

Squeezable

Kissable

Cheeks

Little snaggle teeth

Adorable lisp

Nigh-Night the Monkey

Princesses

Tinies

Running

Jumping

Marching

Twirling

“I love you, Mama.” (showing me “I love you” in sign language)

“Pinky promise I’ll love you forever.”

Almost 3 (!?!)

 

Lana Marie

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