birthday girl

Someone had a birthday.

And man alive, was she ever excited about it.

Except for the moments when she wasn’t:
This girl is going to think that her birthday stretches out forever after this year, starting in Bethesda and on to D.C. and then to the airport with siblings and then home to celebrate even more.

Her favorite things from the “at home” portions of her birthday?

Well, she pretty much hasn’t put these guys down:
She was pretty darn excited to get a visit from her Nana and Papa who live in Idaho:
She thoroughly enjoys her new Dora tent:
And we’re extra glad she has it since with all that hoopla with the NIH and Fall Break it’s the closest thing we’ve had to our traditional “sleep out in the back yard in a tent” birthday tradition.
She loved (and I loved it too) when I got to come visit her preschool class and celebrate her birthday there with her too:
And well, I must say that probably the highlight of Lucy’s strung together days of birthday celebrating was her cake. Small and un-fancy as it was, it was a pretty big deal for her. She’s been envisioning that thing for a LONG time.I hope all her wishes come true.

Four reasons I adore this girl:

1) Her smile that brightens up an entire room when she decides to show it.

2) The way she makes her brother and sisters smile.

3) Her imagination that runs rampant right now…I love it.

4) Oh, how can I fit it all in four??? What about the inflections she makes in her voice as she explains things and tilts her head back and forth. And how she counts on her fingers with such concentration. And how stomping her foot is part of how she blows her nose. And her feistiness, although so tough to deal with sometimes, makes me thankful, because it’s going to get her somewhere some day. I love how her siblings get this faraway smile on their face when they think of her when we’re not together…and how they love her so dearly.

But my favorite thing about Lucy is this: She makes our family whole.

I love Lucy.