Five Glorious, Wonderful Years!

Here I sit, at the lake in Terre Haute, listening to the last of the fireworks from the 4th of July celebrations in 2013.  It has been a relatively quiet evening. We had some fireworks earlier in the evening for us - Steve shot the rockets off the end of the deck. These last ones aren't even from a show, I'm guessing, because they are random and not synchronized to anything. Still, they are fireworks all the same!
Five years ago I was in a hospital with my new baby girl. "Isn't she beautiful?" I said to my mom when she walked in. I just looked through my blog and found the pix from when she was born and yes, she was so beautiful!  She continues to get more and more beautiful every day! Today she has curly, unruly hair that we brush twice a day and it never looks brushed. (Pix will be posted in the next blog, I promise!) She is in gymnastics and loves it! She had the best year ever in preschool and is just so excited for kindergarten!
I cannot believe she is starting kindergarten. My beautiful, tiny baby girl is old enough for full-day school, away from me, learning new and better things.  She'll be making new friends, riding a bus home, and hopefully learning to be more confident.  She is super excited; I am super sad.
While I have not been a traditional SAHM, I have been fortunate enough to spend lots of time with Emer over the years.  And I wouldn't trade those times for the world.  Sometimes we practice school stuff such as writing, cutting & gluing, and reading.  She doesn't particularly like to read, but definitely enjoys when I read to her.  Other times we just play or she helps me clean the house (do you know another kid who will scrub the toilet but not clean the the sinks?). We go on adventures all over the city and the country! She is a delightful, fun, caring, and wonderful little girl.

*** Speaking of adventures, Emer will be in year-round school giving her nearly the entire month of November off! We are already planning what to do - NYC again? New Orleans to visit Uncle Kurt? California again? So many choices and she is just as excited as me to go "fly somewhere" again soon.
But for now, we spend the summer together, here in Indiana, swimming at the Y or our pool, fishing in our pond, traveling around the city, and partying in Terrre Haute for her birthday.
Yes, I love my Tiny, tons, & Tons, & TOns, & TONS!!!! Happy birthday, Emer!