Super Six!

Happy Birthday Lauryn!

Here she is this morning getting her gifts from us. She asked for a telescope and a butterfly treehouse (you send in for caterpillars and they mail them to you...then you watch them turn into butterflies!)

Going to school!

We had a donut party in her classroom this morning!

I can't believe we're here again. Another birthday post...when I could swear it was just yesterday that she turned five. My girl is six years old today!!

This past year has seen us through some pretty interesting events. Starting kindergarten has to be at the top of the list. When I look back at those first weeks and how tough it was on all of us, I realize how much she really has grown. She confidently walks into her classroom now, casually waving to me over her shoulder and saying, "Bye, Mom!" as she joins her friends at the table. She has grown in so many ways in the last 12 months.

I sometimes think about all the things I will forget. It can't be helped. Little, everyday moments that I realize ten years from now I won't even remember. I want to write down every single thing about Lauryn at six years old so I won't forget! Unfortunately there isn't enough time in the world or space on the internet to write every single thing we like and love about her. So here are a few highlights about our six year old girl!

*Lauryn loves singing. She looks forward to going to church choir every Wednesday. I love listening to her as she attempts vibrato!

*She's definitely musical. She loves to poke around on the piano and can pick out the notes to a song if she works at it long enough. We'll probably be starting lessons within the next year.

*I would say that she sings about 50% of the time. Just walking around the house singing real songs or invented songs. She breaks into song during normal conversations. For example, yesterday she came into the kitchen and asked, "Mom, do you have any scissors I can use?" and I answered, "Yes, you can get the purple ones out of the drawer". She started skipping across the kitchen to the drawer and loudly sang, "P-U-R-P-L-E…Purple! Purple! P-U-R-P-L-E…purple is what that spells".

*Lauryn has the most compassionate heart…she cried over a movie a few weeks ago when she watched "Homeward Bound". She just felt so sad for the old dog and couldn't let it go! We had to talk about how he wasn't really hurt and it was just "acting".

*She is very in tune with others’ feelings. If I suggest an outfit in the morning and she doesn’t want to wear it, she will break it to me gently, saying she would "actually rather wear this, but I really don’t want to hurt your feelings."

*Lauryn is trustworthy. I was visiting with the teaching assistant in her classroom the other day while I was volunteering. She told me that Lauryn is her "reliable source". She's very observant and in tune with everything going on in the room. She said she can ask her anything and she knows she will get the answer she's looking for! (That day she was trying to figure out which kid had been chewing on the pencils in the community pencil box...Lauryn let her know exactly who it was!) And I know she's right. I’ve never once questioned if she is telling me the truth about anything.

* She is the most loving big sister. She comforts Allie when she’s sad. She includes her in games and calls her her "best friend". They love to play Barbies, princesses, pet shop, and Polly Pockets.

*She is very artistic and loves to draw. We are often amazed at some of the things she comes up with. I often find myself asking if she traced something in her drawings, and the answer is almost always no!

*Her memory is unlike anything I've ever seen. She can accurately remember things from when she was barely three...things that haven’t been mentioned since they happened. She can recite movie lines for minutes on end, word for word.

*Lauryn's personality makes me smile. She can act goofy one minute (stinger bottoms) and act like an adult the next (she wants a telescope for her birthday and asks detailed questions about computers, countries, planets, etc.) She asks me things like, "Why does everything seem to be made in China?" and "If you added them up, how many minutes are in our whole life?"

*Lauryn has always been smart, but it is really shining through this first year in school. Her teacher gives her spelling words like "Wednesday", "grasshopper", and "cricket". She is reading well above grade level, being pulled out of class a couple of times a week with a small group focusing on higher level reading skills.

*A few weeks ago, Lauryn officially became a bike rider when we took her training wheels off! She picked it up immediately and is doing great, riding up and down the street as often as possible.

*She officially has a loose tooth (confirmed by the dentist) but it will probably be summer before it actually falls out. It doesn't stop her from checking it multiple times a day to see if it's still loose.

*Lauryn is extremely analytical. She is definitely more cautious than free-spirited, and has been that way since she was an infant (it was like pulling teeth to get her to smile for a stranger). She thinks and re-thinks and analyzes and contemplates. I believe those traits could be an asset to her later in life. She isn't passive about anything.

*She will try any food once, and her current favorite is Chinese food (beef and broccoli). She would rather eat hard candy (smarties, skittles, suckers) than chocolate and she prefers vanilla ice cream or cake over chocolate. She chose Luby's for her birthday dinner for the second year in a row. It's their jello that keeps her coming back for more. :)

*I can not say enough wonderful things about our beautiful girl. She fills our hearts with joy and love every day. I am amazed that God trusted US to love and care for such a precious child. We thank Him every day!

Happy 6th Birthday, Lauryn! We love you!