And the 2013-2014 School Year Begins!

Told you she was excited about her birthday...

Happy Birthday to Leah!

We began our day today with the traditional birthday donuts, although Leah broke slightly with tradition and went for Dunkin Donuts instead of the usual Carlson's.  The girl knows what she wants!
She opened presents from our family~ Calico Critters camping set and wristwatch from Mom and Dad, nail stickers from Jane, Stickers from Avery, and pink nail polish from Grace.

Leah was effusively thankful for each gift she opened and has great surprised facial expressions.  Poor Grace suffered greatly watching Leah open each gift, so very sad that she doesn't have a watch or a Calico Critters camping set.  We're working on helping her work through these emotions...that girl just FEELS everything deeply and wears her feelings on her sleeve! She was happy to watch Leah open the nail polish, though!

Sunflower-themed birthday party (which Leah has been planning and list-making for since June) with family is on Saturday.  School begins on Tuesday.  Life is full!

Sweet, sweet Leah-loo.  She is so very excited to be five.  As she came to the top of the steps this morning, she announced "Here comes the five year old!"  She loves to mother Avery and Jane, always scrunching up her nose, stooping down to their level, and talking "oochie-goochie" baby talk.  She's eager to help Avery do everything, although she does NOT enjoy feeding Jane a bottle!

Leah definitely has a perfectionist streak/ slight OCD nature (thanks, Tim Wilson) that gets stronger as she ages!  Her dresser top is set up just so; I had to spend 30 minutes tucking her quilt into her top bunk so that it was perfectly smooth and she slips in the top at night so as not to disturb it too much; she dissolves into tears when her writing or drawing or coloring is not perfect.

This also translates into some amazing accomplishments:  she's well on her way to reading, her handwriting is excellent, she learned how to SEW ON A REAL SEWING MACHINE with her Grandma and has already made a pillow and a quilt for cryin' out loud, and her sock and underwear drawer is a sight to behold.

Leah loves party planning, jump roping, drawing, sewing, her sisters, playing board and card games, and pizza.  She does not like cheese (what?!)

We are looking forward to enjoying Leah's sixth year with us, seeing all she will learn, and pray that above all she will learn to follow Jesus with all her little heart!  Happy Birthday to Leah Anne xoxo