Time marches on. And now she's 5. *sigh*

I have been avoiding this post.

Why?

Because my sixth child, my sweet little bookend, my blond haired beauty with a sweet temperment and a little lisp is 5 years old.

Oh the humanity!!! (People still say that, right?)




How will I face what this brings? How will I face kindergarten, being alone during the day. Ok, not all days since Jeff works from home 3 days a week. But it's my dramatic moment, so I'm going to forget about that for a second and just say, "Waaaaaa. I'm alone!!!"

Ahem.

Nora turned 5 last week. Surrounded by friends and family. It was really sweet to see her so happy.



She gets genuinely overjoyed at gifts. She's just a tiny bit enthusiastic.



She wanted a Hello Kitty party. I did a kind of tye dyed cake. Not totally on purpose. But she liked it, so that means success!



She blew out all of her candles. She didn't need Julia's help and Julia in fact was not trying to help. She just has a mimicking tick it seems.




What we love about Nora as a 5 year old:

~She will still hug and kiss us almost every time we ask. I say almost cuz she will for me, but not always siblings.
~She adores her brothers and sisters. And they adore her. She is spoiled in a good way, meaning she has so much love and kindness poured on her on a regular basis.
~She skips everywhere she goes. To the bathroom, up to her room, across the lawn. That or running. I love that she hasn't slowed down yet, that there is an adventure around every turn for her still.
~She has a blankie and sucks her fingers still. Yes, I know she is five. But it's still adorable.
~She is gluten intolerant. Something about my pregnancy with her brought this about for both of us. It's a bond we share.
~She has a lisp. It's barely perceptible. But it's so adorable and I really think always will be. Even as an adult if it's still there. It just gives a little lilt to what she says and makes me want to kiss her even more.
~She still loves to help me. She will weed, clean, sweep, whatever I ask. I know I only have another year before that ends, but a mother can hope can't she?
~She was the missing piece to our family. Every person plays a vital, irreplaceable role. Our family would not function right without every one here. And so having her join us completed the whole picture for us.
~She is excited for school and loves her friends. This is good for her so I'm glad. But it is melancholy for this mom who sees that her baby is branching out and doesn't need me exclusively anymore.

All in all, Nora is a gift. As are all my children. Something about my oldest almost 16 and my youngest starting kindergarten has made me really see how little time we have with our kids. 18 years seems like a lot, until you turn around and it's all behind you.

And then it's not enough time.

Nora was just a tiny, pink baby yesterday.



Ahhh, how I miss those days. Even the sleepness night. I'd relive it over in a heartbeat.

But I love the days I have now too. The ones where I hear her thoughts and listen to her singing silly songs and playing with her siblings.

Yes life is good. Even if it has moved way to fast.

But she will always be my baby. They all will be. Forever.