For Faith

Last Sunday, my kids were looking through the blog books I've published.  Faith said, "How come you don't have very many pictures of me in these?"  The guilt was physical.  (And overblown.  I realize that it's not life or death if I stop the blogging or neglect to get the ones I've written published.  I know that, okay, I just still felt really really guilty.)  My kids love to read those books, I LOVE that I have them, and I feel guilty all the time that I've stopped that record.  So here's another attempt to start it up.  Again.

Faith is 5.5.  And like all of my other pre-kindergartners, is the light of my life right now.  Easy, smart, communicative, interesting, still relatively un-smelly.  I could hang out with her all day.  After the 1-2 years of hideous toddler-hood (hello, crazy hair pulling, face scratching, self-gagging tantrums), I think I deserve this blissful child.

She could have gone to kindergarten last year.  I actually tried to test her in, but she was a teensy bit below the bar for writing/small motor skills (they had to be at mid-kindergarten level to get in early).  I thought about it all year.  Prayed and fasted about it.  And really felt like what should happen, would happen.  So when the test results were in, and I "had" to keep her another year, I was fine.  Especially with this new little brother...I valued her help, her oldness (thank you for not spitting up, crying for no reason, and getting yourself dressed), and will be happy for next year's half-days so that she can be a buddy to the caboose baby for a little longer.

She's adjusted to Levi like it's nothing.  She loves him, he super loves her.  She didn't need to be the baby of the family at all.  She fits right in with Seth and Jane (quite the darling threesome they are...foursome, if you count Katie, Seth's longtime best friend) and is happy to be a older sibling.

She sings constantly, mostly pop songs (thanks older siblings), cracks great jokes, and loves to go to preschool.  She hates going grocery shopping ("is this a long one where we get lots of things, mom?") but thinks a Target trip is a party.  She's super social and loves playdates, park outings, library storytime, and going to siblings multitudinous events. She still likes structure and always asks "What's the plan today, Mom?"  She and her dad are buddies... he's been known to pout if she's gone when he comes home for lunch.


I know she seems perfect, and I'm trying to come up with some faults to balance that perfection...  She has a little bit of that screamy, out of controlness leftover from the 1.5-3 years period.  If she gets mad, she's a little hard to get back under control.  And she's learned how to shut people (Seth mostly) up, by over-screaming the same phrase over and over.  We are working on that.  And she still sucks her thumb.  A lot.

So there you go, Faithy.  A post all about you.  With lots of pictures.  You are adored.