Oh my word. Five just seems like such a big number. My baby is growing up!
Abby is such an amazing kid. She is decisive, has an unquenchable thirst for knowledge, and a vivid imagination. She's got a memory like her daddy (that is to say, very good.) She is always asking how to spell things, or math questions. She started preschool at Indian Pines Country Day School in January, and her social skills have blossomed. She's got friends coming out her ears and has picked a couple boys she is going to marry (currently she's set on Asher, the new kid.) She doesn't tell me a lot about what she does at school, but she does tell me things like who used the bathroom that day, and who was missing from class. She really wants to be an astronaut when she grows up and knows all the planets and several dwarf planets., and she loves going to the Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, even though it's like 4 hours away from Auburn.
She is starting to read! She can read several words, and loves to be read to as well. She loves cutting with scissors, but isn't a huge fan of coloring. Sometimes she likes to help me cook supper. She lives for show time. She likes wearing long sleeves and pants (no matter the weather), cuddling, soft blankets, and movie night. She is obsessed with cheetahs, and loves cats, but is not crazy about dogs. She requested a braid in her hair every day for like 8 months in a row this past year. She loves music and is very good at identifying which movie soundtrack we are listening to. I don't even know half the time! The girl has got a great ear.
She sleeps like a rock pretty much every night, which is astounding when you consider how she used to sleep 4 1/2 years ago. She falls asleep so quickly and wakes up a little before 7am usually, but she stays in her bed until her light turns on at 7. She likes sharing a room with Calliope. Their beds are pushed together right next to each other. Over this last year those two have come a long way and now they play together frequently. I love to see their love and connection grow.
She really enjoyed her tumbling class she just finished, and is already asking to be signed up for soccer again. She likes playing with Calliope and coming up with games that have lots of complicated rules that are hard for her mom to understand. She likes enforcing house rules and helping Calliope to understand them. She is curious about her family tree, and frequently refers to Mason as "your son" when she talks to Mimi. She loves her family with a devotion that I hope she keeps her whole life.
I could go on and on. I think she's so interesting and creative and ambitious. I love being her mother. But we must get to the point of this post: her birthday!
Abby was really looking forward to her birthday for the 364 days preceding it. She talked about it all the time and asked over and over again how long it would be until she turned five. She got a crazy viral rash called erythema multiform about two days before her big day, and it was painful and itchy and made her feet and hands painfully swollen. But she didn't let that dull her party spirit!
She woke up at 7 on the dot and decided she wanted to start the day by opening all of her presents! It was very fun to see her so excited.
Probably her favorite part of the day was that Mimi came! It was a treat to have her here celebrating with us.
