Happy 5th Birthday Elliana!

This pretty little girl is all grown up!


The day before her birthday she discovered two loose teeth, and I'm not sure if she was more excited about the teeth or turning 5!


We had five friends over for her Princess Belle party. The tutu skirts were a hit.


She also got to spend some time riding the rides at Mall of America with just her Daddy. This was pretty special. Although we also had free tickets that had to be used the week before, so mom and the three girls also got to spend some time on the rides! I love this picture because it is so candid.


I look at these pictures and can't believe how grown up she is! And just a couple weeks before her birthday, she finally figured out how to say her "R" sounds. So, she now talks all grown up too. This is one of my favorite ages/stages so far. She is so obedient, sweet, and loving. I feel like she can understand so much more, so she asks more thought-provoking questions, and we have deeper conversations. Do I really have to send her to Kindergarten in a few months? I want her sweet innocence to stay forever.





Ellie is so sensitive and smart and spunky! She is such an old soul -- so responsible and articulate. She is an awesome cleaner and organizer and thinks organizing is fun! This is definitely a talent of hers. She doesn't like clutter and easily trashes what is not used. She is great at remembering things. She is also opinionated and will defend herself if needed. How can someone be sweet and sensitive and strong-willed at the same time? I am not sure, but Ellie definitely is both. I love that little girl!

Living on Love

While waiting for Kyler to get his blood drawn today at Children's Hospital. I stood up to rock him because he got a little fussy. He cuddled up and dozed off. A lady in the waiting room starting to "ohhh" and "ahh" over how sweet it is to cuddle up to a small baby as they drift to sleep. She told me she misses that and can't wait to be a grandma. We began chatting, and I found out that she has seven children and wished she could have had more but couldn't. She had an ectopic pregnancy and lost a fallopian tube and then also lost twins when she had cervical cancer which also caused her to have her other fallopian tube removed. Too much information? That was my first thought, but this lady was awesome. These experiences obviously showed her how these babies are a total miracle and blessing.

She was so unapologetic for having seven kids (why do we always feel like we have to explain when we have big families?), just simply said that she loves kids. Then, I mentioned how impressive I thought it was that she made it that far because with four I feel like I am spread pretty thin. I said, "Well, he's had a lot of health issues though, so maybe that's a good part of it." She then told me that her 13-year-old-son who was sitting with her had 23 doctors! Wow!

She said, "You can do it! It's amazing what you can do when you are driven by love."

This totally brought tears to my eyes and was such a boost to me. It is amazing how much energy you have when love is the driving force. I am so sleep deprived, but I love this baby more than anything. And maybe what I'm dealing with isn't that bad. This is temporary, and I may not have sleep fueling me, but I sure have a lot of love!