The beach! Finally!

Everyone on the beach looked busy, so
we took this picture using a self-timer.

Most mornings, especially in the dark months, begin with Matt or I waking the girls sometime in the first half of the 7:00s. They burrow under their covers and try to ignore us the best they can. Except for Naomi, sometimes, who will wander in to our room to play puppies. Eventually, I drag the older girls out, prod them through their morning routines, and count it good if we're at the breakfast table by 8:00. Not my ideal morning, but there it is.

Clearly, however, the problem is one of motivation. Because on Day 1 of our much-anticipated Florida vacation, the girls jetted out of bed at 6:20, instantly dressed themselves and made their beds without a fuss. Several of them had their hair brushed by 6:45. How do I know this? That's the time Kalina peeked into our room and, upon hearing her daddy snore, seized her sisters and brought them to his bedside so that they could all listen in. Fortunately for his respectability, he had stopped by then.

Of course, then I was up and we all had begun breakfast by 7:00. The morning motivation problem is not me, it's them.

At any rate, we were off to a brilliant start for what we hoped was going to be the family vacation that made up for all the craziness of the previous 10 1/2 months.

We finished some last-minute packing, made lunch, and headed for the airport, warning the kids that the only guarantee was that we were going to have an adventure. Maybe a hurricane could even still spring up (we didn't say that, but thought it, if only in the metaphorical sense).

And in fact, we nearly faced a small storm: a couple stops away from our car on the shuttle bus, we realized we'd forgotten the carseats. Yikes! Back Matt went--and yet he still managed to beat the rest of us to the terminal by quickly trekking ahead to a further bus stop. I'll make no comments here about traveling with small children.

Elise was nervous about flying. We know--she told us. Often. Kalina, also nervous, took the strong, silent route and Naomi, only nervous because her big sister was, fed off of whatever the current mood was. Which is why I found myself sandwiched between my younger kiddos, according to Elise's plan, managing emotions just as though I wasn't on vacation, while Matt and Kalina both dove into chapter books for most of the flight on the other side of the plane:
Matt: Wow, Kalina, take a look out your window at the ______!
Kalina: Can I just read?

We had more fun on our side of the plane. Elise narrated virtually every minute, while Naomi soaked it all in. Elise got particularly nervous about takeoff:
"I'm scared, I'm scared!" "Wow, this is like the most exciting roller coaster ever!" This garnered, as near as I could tell, a guffaw from the guy in front of her, who no doubt had been listening in, even if involuntarily.

Elise and her mermaid tale!

Occasionally Elise would get really excited: "It's Mount Cloud!" or "The OCEAN!" she would shriek over the roar of the plane. We enjoyed inventing new lands in the clouds (including imaginary creatures called Bumpies) and actually flying over the spot we would be staying (but we didn't know it then!).

During the 15 minutes that Elise read, Naomi and I indulged in a sticker book, decorating cupcakes with more treats. The rest of the flight, she tucked Biscuit into her seatbelt with her, munched snacks, chatted a little, and worried a little along with Elise. Of course, there were m&ms for takeoff.

And we arrived! Racing through the hurdles of using a public toilet (ahem...Naomi...), acquiring our bags, renting a car, driving to our hotel (aaargh, the stoplights!), checking in and gleefully exchanging our pants for shorts we managed to make it to the beach with a good 30 minutes left of daylight. Oh, the joy! The girls each dug in in their own ways. And then, being Gulfside, we were treated to sunset over the ocean. We ordered a pizza for dinner and settled into our lovely 2-bedroom, 2-bathroom, fully equipped suite, because Mommy and Daddy need a vacation, too. The girls settled down to sleep, side by side, on the king-sized bed.

Kalina spent her first two
beach days doing this.

The next morning, the girls were up bright and early and ready for the beach at a somewhat chilly 8:15. The temperatures didn't phase the girls and, either way, warmed up quickly. We soon had found two Florida fighting conchs, a fish, plenty of mole crabs, digging crabs and other beachy things. Kalina kept her eyes on the sand, claiming every shell that grabbed her interest and keeping a close eye out for shark teeth; Elise also searched for shells, jumped waves, performed handstands and cartwheels and played in the water; and Naomi maintained her current domestic and artistic interests by forming sand pillows (and trying them out), drawing in the sand with a feather, making sand castles and decorating them and creating Sand Biscuit. They ate more pasta than ever before for dinner, and then everyone went to Wal-Mart for food and beach supplies. The girls were all happily asleep before 9:00, which virtually never happens now that Kalina has a book light.

Clearwater Marine Hospital!

Whenever we told people we were planning a trip to Florida, they inevitably asked if we going to Disney. Of course, that would've had its appeal to Princess Naomi in particular, but since we're not really the lines-crowds-rides-paying a fortune types, we skipped it in favor of upholding Matt's personal sanity. Maybe another time. But there was another attraction that would hold all of our interest. So on Day 3, we slept in, took our time getting ready, and then headed out to Clearwater Marine Hospital, where we hoped to see a couple of famous dolphins we'd read books about, seen movies about, thoroughly discussed and admired and generally fallen in love with. Our own quirky version of Disney, and even Naomi was totally on board.

We arrived right on time, and were astounded to see, on a random Tuesday in November...a long line! We gave thanks we weren't, actually, at Disney, and settled in to wait the 40 minutes it took to buy our tickets, with me holding Naomi for much of it (ear infection? sinus infection? what???) and Matt convincing the kids to count 5-minute blocks for the simple reward of a sliver of dried mango. Sometimes he amazes me.

Naturally, they funneled us through the gift shop, but as we had souvenir plans, we didn't fret. Plus, someone informed us an otter was getting a checkup just off the hallway to our right, so we dashed in for a look...at the otter in the carrier. Later, however, we glimpsed a sick, droopy turtle with a gash from a boat--so cool! I mean, tragic.

Hope comes to say hi!

We wandered through the rest of the hospital area, and then quickly made our way to the Winter and Hope (famous dolphins) viewing area. As it turned out, Hope, the dolphin with a tail, was as excited to see us as we were to see her! She came right up to the glass to get a good, long look, smiling that sweet dolphin smile of hers. Any of us who weren't enchanted prior to that experience now were.

As an actual animal hospital/rehabilitation place this was no simple aquarium. We got to view both permanent and temporary residents, but also learn a lot about how the facility is run, how animals are trained and much more.

Plus, we got to go on a boat ride! Along the way to a small island, the guides let down a cast net for three minutes to see what they could drag up--making no guarantees of course. Later, they passed around the catch, which included a small puffer fish, and several other interesting species of fish, whose names I have now completely forgotten. We also got a sea squirt which does--they proved it--squirt.

Naomi has the best seat on
the boat!

We'd been hoping to see dolphins on this trip (After all, this trip was more economical and would take less precious beach time than the actual dolphin cruises...), and therefore could have hugged the guy behind us who shouted, "Dolphin!" partway through the trip. Sure enough, the girls got to see plenty of dolphins surfacing, and a couple even showing off by jumping--which was apparently new to at least one tour guide. Throughout the rest of the cruise, Elise was enthralled by staring down into the water, Kalina became excited about every fish they passed around, and Naomi, who didn't seem to be herself that day, didn't freak out about anything and cuddled into Matt's lap. Perfect.

Back inside, Elise informed us that the rest of her experience would be much more enjoyable with a souvenir in-hand, and Naomi quickly latched onto that idea, too. So we found the only stuffies in the shop that were reasonably priced, and the girls shopped. Elise bonded with a pink dolphin, Kalina with an otter and Naomi with a purple sea turtle. Each had a giant lollipop attached. And sure enough, Elise perked up even more, if that's possible, as she carefully directed her dolphin through the aquarium, so I suppose she was right.

We watched nurse sharks and a sea otter be fed and trained, saw Winter's prosthetic tale, watched Hope show off a few tricks, petted very active stingrays (it was feeding time) and watched puffer fish eat. When we were thoroughly worn out, we hit the beach back at the hotel for a sunset walk, and ate a huge dinner, as we'd barely found time to eat all day. 

Day 4 of our vacation was spent mainly at the beach again--because why wouldn't you? Matt started the day with shore fishing. If I initially may have sounded just the teeniest bit grumpy about his waking up super early to fish, it's only because I seriously doubted he'd catch anything. Fortunately, he completely proved me wrong, and had caught several species by the time I'd accepted the fact that I wasn't going to be getting back to sleep. Neither were the girls, however, so I rushed them out the door to see the catch of the day, which included lizardfish and a Spanish mackerel. Cool!

We made many structures like
this throughout the trip!

After breakfast, the day became an education about just a couple of beach hazards: sharks, stingrays, jellyfish, seagulls and sandcastle-wrecking boys. It began with Elise bouncing around in the (small, gulf) waves with a floatie. She and Matt both tried a little snorkeling, but didn't see much. The girls built a giant sandcastle and hole that they were hoping would first fill with water, and then be a gift for the mermaids as the tide took it out to sea. Before the mermaids could move in, however, a small boy, impressed by the size of the mound and hole, stopped by to check it out. I watched as Elise welcomed him, and they dug together for a little while. Then the boy's older brother came along, initially interested, but soon intent only on causing minor, but still aggravating, damage. Elise and the younger boy were left to ineffectively shout "no!" and "don't!" Not wanting to be "that parent," I nudged Kalina: "I think Elise could use some help." She sprang up and backed up her sister. The boy, who really was probably just an ordinary boy and not really a monster, eventually checked his behavior and then wandered away. Elise never quite forgave him, but fortunately there were more holes and more castles for other days during the trip.

I brought our lunch out to the beach to save the trek back and forth to the hotel room. A crow took note (seriously? Crows at the beach?) and perched on top of my bag. We should have seen this as a warning, but instead simply chased is away. Naomi and I ate our lunch while the older girls played, and we noticed we were being watched--by seagulls. Naomi and I kept our meal to ourselves--but Elise, in her friendly way, dashed up for a bite, grabbed a cracker and tossed it to a gull. Immediate pandemonium ensued, as half the other gull in a 200-foot radius attempted to snatch that cracker away from the first gull. Any gulls not caught up in the chase hovered above our picnic looking for additional crackers. Now I know firsthand what's so scary about the movie, "The Birds," as for a few minutes we were surrounded by eager, diving, larger-than-you'd like birds with pointy bills who wanted our stuff. No one was injured, but we were all a little freaked out. We shrieked, we waved our arms, we ran at the gulls, and Kalina even chased them with pool noodles. And we learned our lesson: whatever you do, don't feed the gulls!!! They, however, learned theirs too: don't steal stuff from a girl with a pool-noodle!!! The gulls behaved better the rest of the trip, and we never, ever fed them again.

Meanwhile, the fishermen next to us were having a little luck. First, they pulled in a stingray, stepping on its stinger to safely unhook it. Next, their catch was a small black-tipped reef shark. We barely got a picture before it flipped its way back into the water, surprising everyone with its strength. Despite the fact that Kalina was in heaven, having seen a shark, these catches sealed the deal on whether or not she would venture past her ankles into the water.

Elise was a bit braver--even when we spotted a jellyfish on the beach, and another in the water. And it was only later that she told Matt, somewhat embarrassed, that a spot on her wrist had begun hurting. Sure enough, she'd been stung by a sea nettle jellyfish. Fortunately, the pain wasn't too bad, and it stopped hurting within an hour.

Naomi, for her part, was braver than I expected, wading into water nearly to her knees. Her favorite part of the beach, however, was the "white sand," the only slightly damp sand that was the perfect combination of soft and moldable. This is where we always put the chair and umbrella, so that while Matt was capturing critters with Kalina and Elise, Naomi and I could play "lost puppy" and other games in the perfect sand. "Mommy, let's go to the white sand," she'd say if we distracted ourselves away for too long.

And then, the trip got really exciting--for me, anyway. Not far from a buoy marking the copious swimming area, I spotted a dark shape in the water, with a dark, triangular dorsal fin and tale fin just breaking the surface. It seemed to be cruising through somewhat slowly, but quickly sank beneath the water. It just had to be a shark. "Shark!" I couldn't help but yell, running toward the beach where my children were playing in inches of water. "Shark!"I pointed again. Matt came running, and I had all the attention of everyone around us on the beach, and a few in the water. Then, the dolphin surfaced again. Redder than a sunburn, I couldn't help but smile as I walked back to my chair. Later, I would again cause a scene, chasing our umbrella as it cartwheeled like a 7-year-old down the beach, yelling for dozing sunbathers to wake up so that it didn't gash anyone. As most people probably stay for a week, I now solidly had a reputation as "that crazy lady."

We welcomed family pictures
wherever we could get them--at
Sculley's Seafood, for instance.

That afternoon, we walked (and cartwheeled) along a boardwalk in John's Pass, a tourist village that probably used to be an actual fishing village. Naomi was tired (Daddy: "Do you like being carried?" Naomi: "It's like walking in mid-air!"), but we all enjoyed a meal out. The girls all tried seafood--even Naomi!--and somehow we were convinced to buy saltwater taffy and ice cream. Kalina took pictures of as many birds as she could, and the kids bought souvenir shells and shark teeth. Elise was glad to secure an unoccupied conch, as we hadn't found any without owners yet.

One of Kalina's many, many sea
bird pictures.

The next day we ventured to a state park that promised some of the best beaches in the nation, a pier and tidal pools. The girls couldn't quite see the point of leaving one beach to go to another, but we hoped we'd be able to convince them.

The tide pool--or at least, we think it's the tide pool--was actually a huge basin-like area that was separate at low tide, but joined with the rest of the ocean at high tide. Being some of the first people there, we had our pick of shells, which included some empty conchs, olivettes and other beauties. We also found plenty of filled shells, and enjoyed collecting various species and watching them scoot around in a bucket or on the ocean floor.

Naomi made a sand castle!

We spotted some mysterious shapes far out in a shallow sandbar area, and Matt waded/swam out toward them to check them out while the girls and I watched hopefully. We believed they might possibly be some sort of basking shark, and we were pretty sure they wouldn't harm Daddy, and that even if they did, he would be tough enough about them that the experience would still be pretty cool/worth it. I think we all shared this belief, as Matt didn't really seem offended at being sent on such a dangerous mission, although he was markedly more creeped out than usual.

But he never made it. As he was approaching the shadowy underwater figures, other people began to arrived and plow through the water much more unreservedly than Matt. "Stingrays!" they shouted. We don't know if the dark forms were, in fact, stingrays or if the stingrays were in other areas but Matt poked around just long enough to find a living sand dollar, which he duly transported back to us. He'd seem someone nicked by a stingray the day before on our hotel beach, on the phone with the ER, and preferred not to meet the same fate. The sand dollar was pretty cool, though!

Finally, Elise could do
handstands without being
warned incessantly not to
run into anything!

The shore was peppered with jellyfish--stinging nettles again--and we spotted some in the water as well. It only took one more sting to keep Elise out of the water for good (mostly). But her playful spirit won out, and soon she and Naomi were "farming" jellyfish--scooping them up with a net and cramming them into our little catch-and-release aquarium. They were interrupted only by Kalina and Matt's discovery of millions of spider-like crabs living just on the other side of our beach, and soon went off to gather these instead of jellyfish.

Upon returning, Elise sustained yet another sting when trying to untangle some seaweed from the jellyfish-filled net. She just laughed this one off--but still mostly avoided the water for much of the rest of the trip. As would pretty much anyone. She's proud of her stings, however, and of the fact she was the only one stung. "I'm just glad Naomi didn't get stung," she commented.

Next, we packed up and toured the rest of the state park, including a non-beach shoreline with a bank dropping a foot or two down to a foot or two of crystal clear water. Enchanted as she is by the sea, and not seeing any jellyfish, Elise wanted to be lowered into this water, just for a minute or two. Honestly, we couldn't see any reason why not, she has a good head on her shoulders and can be well trusted, and we could tell it was shallow for quite a distance--plus, we knew she wouldn't wander at all. But just as Elise's foot began to touch the water, a giant crab chose that moment to occupy the same space Elise was planning to! Matt quickly landed Elise back on the bank, and traded her for a net. Soon, the crab was clinging to the net while Matt hoisted it out of the ocean for us all to see. With spots of brilliant blue, it was a handsome creature, but we counted our blessings that we hadn't set Elise right on top of it. Now we had reason number 4 not to swim in the ocean.

And then we checked out the fishing pier, where Matt eagerly made a few casts. It only took a few, if that, before he was reeling in mackerel after mackerel while Naomi and I gingerly tried to avoid stepping on fish guts, Kalina monitored the line with Matt and photographed birds, and Elise bounced back and forth between the two groups. And we were also graced with a few more dolphin visitors along the pier!

Matt caught a fish!

Matt could've stayed all day, and possibly Kalina, but the rest of us were ready to get back to our own beach, which had far fewer jellyfish than this one, and the benefit of a hotel room closeby to grab whatever snacks and such we needed. Back we went--clearly, our hotel room was feeling like home.

On Day 6, Elsie decided she wanted to make her own tide pools, or at least collect fish that Daddy caught in large holes. We worked at this for a bit, and generally played until mid-afternoon. Despite the fact that we could all stay on the beach pretty much forever, we wanted to explore another side of Florida: the swampy, jungle-like, tropical, teeming-with-alligators side.

Having copiously researched such places, I steered us toward a county park where it seemed we were nearly guaranteed to see alligators--more so than anywhere else. As poor Naomi had been scared of alligators in the recent past, we knew we needed to refer to them in one of two ways: green squirrels, or baby alligators (the second way also worked when Daddy took a much younger Kalina and Elise to the zoo and scared them half to death with unnecessary warnings--from then on, all scary animals were "baby" animals.).

Alligator territory!

We tromped and cartwheeled along the boardwalk, probably scaring away anything cool, but enjoying Spanish moss and murky, vegetation-filled swampland. At a viewing point, we looked over the edge and sure enough--a baby alligator! (No really, it was pretty little). Eating bread. Next to several signs that harshly warned visitors about the perils of feeding alligators: major fines or a missing hand. Despite the confusing emotion of too-bad-someone-fed-the-alligators, but-we're-sure-glad-to-see-one, just-glad-it-wasn't-us we greatly enjoyed watching the small predator. We saw two more even smaller ones the rest of the walk, none of them so fortunate as to be eating soggy bread.

The next day, Friday, dawned chilly and grey--a stark shift from the sunny, mostly warm and sometime hot weather we'd been enjoying all week. As our last real beach day, we wanted to enjoy it as much as possible, but knew we could have some disappointed girls.

Kalina caught a ladyfish
(I think!) on our last day!

So we weren't prepared for Elise dancing out into the somewhat larger waves that had blown in with the colder weather. She managed to forget to be chilly in her swimsuit and sweatshirt combo as she rushed into the water, playing and jumping over waves. But she had her limits, and eventually came shivering back to shore. Fortunately, it warmed up enough for beach play, and the girls hardly noticed the cloud cover, except for the fact that we didn't have to worry about the every-two-hour ritual of covering every exposed inch with sandy sunscreen. Kalina and Elise each caught several fish, too!

Nothing's more fun than a
pool full of hungry alligators,
and a hot dog on a stick.

In the afternoon, we ventured back to John's Pass to see more alligators at the touristy Alligator Attraction. Much less stinky and more humane than I thought it'd be, the attraction turned out to be another highlight of the trip. For a fee, you could dangle a small piece of hot dog from a fishing pole and train/feed the alligators. We were instructed to tease them so they didn't get lazy--after all, they're not used to getting easy food in the wild.  Kalina and Elise both wanted to feed the gators, but soon handed their poles off to Matt once they discovered how much fun he was able to make the show. They're still quoting him, in fact: "Here's one on your noggin', oops, it's on your tail!"

Elise and her pinfish!

We met one of my relatives for lunch/dinner, and then headed back to the beach and pool to soak up as much water time as possible.

As the next day was our last, we hurried out the door first thing for a couple of hours of beach play before checkout. Daddy managed to keep almost all of the several pounds of shells we'd collected, and we managed to leave almost all of the sand at the beach--or at least the hotel room.

Matt and I had both expected tears on the way home, but although we all agreed we needed to get back sometime, the mood was strangely cheerful. This was a day of airport time--we arrived at the airport plenty early, plus we had a several-hour layover in New Orleans. We used the time to teach the children:
1) Everything is more expensive in an airport (we followed this up with a hands-on lesson at home about how grocery-store cinnamon rolls are much cheaper, plus the quality is often better)
2) Airports are set up so that even children can find their way around. Kalina and Elise managed to successfully locate the gate for a flight to Baltimore that would leave at 5:00.

Naomi and I made Sand
Biscuit!

The girls were pros at flying now, and much less nervous in general. Plus, they were tired, which equated to a quiet happiness rather than a meltdown frenzy--the difference between traveling with this age of children rather than certain other ages. Naomi would've fallen asleep during the final flight with her head on my lap if it had lasted 10 minutes longer.

As soon as we arrived back in Kansas City at bedtime (or an hour past bedtime since we'd been on Florida time with the Daylight Savings transition), Matt dashed off toward the shuttle buses to get the van, and I ushered the children into the bathroom--after all they may be half-asleep by the time we got home.

We began our slow walk to baggage claim, with me carrying Naomi and a shoulder bag and wearing a backpack. I thought nothing of it--Matt had taken my rollerbag so I was traveling light--but apparently we all looked pretty bedraggled, because at least one kindhearted gentleman let me know that "It get's easier!" Seriously, it gets way harder, too--any day we're stopping at the library after co-op I have way more luggage.

We received more sympathetic looks and a few offers of help as I dragged our shell-laden suitcases off the belt and we headed out to wait for Matt. It's nice to know there are so many kind souls in the world in case I ever do this alone. But the grocery store is actually harder.

The scene I envisioned at our
beach (actually, this is at the
Marine Aquarium)

Two out of three kiddos fell asleep on the way home, and slept in their clothes without brushing their teeth. Kalina opted for pajamas instead of teeth-brushing, and Matt and I settled in to enjoy a nice evening recapping the trip over cereal--after all, it was only 9:00 p.m. and everyone was settled. I changed the clocks to reflect Daylight Savings Time, which had happened over the course of our vacation, as I headed to bed.

The next morning, all was silent until 8:00. Wow, the kids must have been exhausted, I reasoned over a delightfully peaceful breakfast. Even better: they were good. And smart. Remembering it had been Daylight Savings, but not knowing I'd changed their clocks while they slept, they stayed quietly in bed until an hour past when they were allowed to get up. Which amounted to a long time, as they all woke up earlier than usual. For this amazing act of self-control and because Mommy was in a really good mood after waking late and eating breakfast all by herself, they received hot chocolate with extra marshmallows.

A birthday under the sea--or not. Happy 7th Elise!

Is it a bird? Is it a squirrel? No, it's a
birthday girl!

Elise had a birthday! And the whole household breathed a sigh of relief because we finally, finally, got to celebrate our sweet Elise! We'd all been waiting to do so since June-ish, and most of all Elise.

Elise has long wanted nothing more than to go to the beach. And while the moving trucks were packing up one house to haul to the other after a somewhat tumultuous winter and spring, Matt and I decided a beach trip would be just what our family needed after this whole move was over. And why not plan it right around Elise's birthday? So we did! And then hurricane Irma happened...but, in November, when do probably actually make it to the beach, it still counts for Elise's birthday. Right?

Under the sea party!

Fortunately, as it turned out, Elise had a wonderful time celebrating her birthday even without the beach. A simple, kind-hearted girl, Elise wanted nothing more than to enjoy family and maybe open a few presents. Not a lot. Just a few. Otherwise, she informed me, it's too much to clean up.

Of course, there would also be cake. Nothing too fancy, just an ocean-themed cake with pearls and seaweed, and blue frosting and yellow, and graham cracker crumbs for sand, that she would crush beneath her feet in a Ziploc baggie. And a couple of Ariel figures on top, and the cake would be chocolate.

Elise adores her sisters, but when I mentioned we could invite an aunt, uncle and cousin (great aunt, great uncle and 1st cousin once removed) to celebrate with her, her smile lit up the room. A few texts later, and they were looking forward to attending. As it turns out, Elise and I were on slightly different pages as far as how long the festivities would last ("They should arrive right around the time Grandpa always came to babysit Naomi last year while we went to CC" so, 8:45 a.m.). But we worked through it and at the very last minute shifted them to Sunday afternoon rather than Monday evening so we could manage to squeeze in all the activities Elise was looking forward to, without anyone using vacation time from work.

Kalina bravely lights the candles while
sisters and cousin look on.

For instance, a pinata, a mermaid necklace craft, hot dogs, cake and a few mermaid-themed party games. Elise and I made a couple trips to the store to make sure we had everything we could possibly need, and those trips were almost as fun as the party itself. It's impossible not to smile when Elise is choosing sprinkles for her cake or favors to stuff into a pinata.

Soon, we were tossing up decorations right before her guests arrived, and Elise joyfully welcomed them to her under-the-sea party. We got started right away with the couple of gifts they'd brought, and then several of Elise's games before dinner, including a mermaid vs. shark board game she'd created, and "Find the Hidden Treasure," in which we took turns hiding and finding a bracelet that later Elise (or Naomi, which Elise would have been totally fine with) would get to keep. Aunt Jill had brought a spare cake and a bin of sprinkles with which to decorate it. Elise used all of her favorites (and there were a lot of favorites!). The cake turned out sparkly and beautiful.

This pinata doesn't stand a chance.

Elise chose hot dogs for dinner, and helped me pick out chips and pink lemonade, too. And then, as it was growing dark, we jetted outside to whack a lovely cupcake pinata that Elise had helped me fill a couple days before. As they make pinatas quite tough nowadays (in Wal-Mart, in America, anyway), we opted out of a blindfold and let the kids take turns whacking for a while. Because I'd prepped Kalina and Naomi just isn't that strong yet, Elise was the only one making much progress. Eventually, the poor cupcake fell to the ground, and was whacked over and over in earnest by an enthusiastic Elise holding a plastic golf club. Still, the cupcake held firm until Matt got down to business with an actual golf club. Candy and trinkets eventually sprayed over the lawn, and the girls then gathered it all carefully back up in a pile to divide precisely among themselves at a later time, totally negating the purpose of a pinata, but no complaints here. (Actually, Naomi horded a stash for herself until Elise convinced her that yes, she had planned for Naomi to get the purple mini-slinkies.)

Under the sea party!

After cake, we made mermaid necklaces and then called it a night--and a quite late one at that since we ended nearly an hour past bedtime. But the party wasn't truly over, since this was only birthday eve!

The party may actually have lasted all night, because somehow there was a light on in the girls' room well before their normal wakeup time. As it was a birthday, I didn't ask for the full story--I probably didn't want to know, anyway. The morning was rainy, but the weather dampened nobody's spirits.We enjoyed traditional birthday cereal, opened a few gifts and basked in the final family birthday of the year. Much of our time was spent in the kitchen, as there was an "official" cake to make (and decorate!), pumpkin pancakes requested for lunch and a new frosting gun from Aunt Nancy to try out. Elise easily convinced me to turn some of the cake batter into cupcakes so she could fill them with her frosting gun--which she did the very second they were cool enough.

These beads are all the rage in our
house (thanks, Kalina!). Also, the
dolphin Naomi picked out for Elise!

After lunch and a little rest for Naomi, we decided to go to the candy store. Elise would've preferred a chocolate factory tour (we've been--they hand out all kinds of samples all tour long, which naturally made quite an impression), but picking out a bag of candy was fun, too. Back at home, then, we decorated Elise's cake to look like an ocean and a beach, with fruit-roll-ups and fondant for seaweed and coral creations, candy pearls for pearls, a couple Ariels to make it look mermaid-y, and the frosting gun to make it fancy. Kalina and Elise both helped a ton, and it turned out fantastic.

Elise chose frozen pizza for supper. She was offered plenty of other options, but always enjoys a good frozen pizza. And it was delicious. We took a walk later (at her request) and tried out her new slackline (which she loved). The cake was delicious and the remaining presents were exciting--a happy birthday all around.

Thank you, Aunt Nancy, for
the gift of filled cupcakes.

Elise, we would celebrate you all year this way if we could, but we're grateful we get to enjoy an Elise day every September! And there's still Florida....

Year 6 for Elise was filled with lots of happy moments, but also some challenges. Sweet Elise continues to delight us with her thoughtful (and sometimes hilarious) words, her generous spirit and her enthusiasm for life. We also enjoy her stories and comments on life from waaayyyy back in her memory ("One time, when I was too little to go to preschool, and we were picking Kalina up, there was this book..."). She loves to laugh at "little Elise," who wanted to be purple and who apparently used to think all kinds of cute things.

Currently on Elise's radar are making it to Fairyland someday, still trying to find a way to fly, wanting her hair to be purple (and pink), if not still her skin, and wishing to have candy with every meal. She would like to have her ears pierced, enjoys plenty of jewelry (but not stickers), thinks she's too old for a lot of things she's not too old for and knows she can't be a mermaid, but is trying to design a swimming outfit that would let her come close. (Unfortunately, it's not very safe...)

Our cake masterpiece!

We've also seen some slightly less cheerful sides of our sunny Elise--her anxiety about the move, which led to lots of mixed feelings (some decidedly less mixed than others) and her shyness. "Mommy, I'm actually pretty shy," she let me know one day. I chuckled at first, but now I see it's true--the world's friendliest little girl is hesitant around kids her own age. And even though the move is over, we still see thunderclouds occasionally when things aren't going as she planned.

She's still super-generous, and often wants to buy Naomi treats and toys when we're out and about. And she's extremely thoughtful of others, not wanting to tell even the free sample lady in the grocery store that she wasn't a big fan of the cottage cheese she tried, fooling even me (I bought some). In restaurants, or on the way home from them, she often whispers: "Mommy, I don't want to say this out loud, but I actually like your macaroni and cheese better than the restaurant's. But I don't want them to know so they don't feel bad. So if I say their macaroni and cheese is good, just know that I think yours is better."

We made mermaid slime!

Elise learned to ride a bike fairly comfortably without training wheels this year, and how to swim and snorkel fairly comfortably without floaties. She can climb higher in trees than most people are comfortable with, do several hairstyles (sometimes her own designs!) all by herself, and do double-digit subtraction with borrowing in her head (but she'll let you know she's super-annoyed with you if you ask her to). Elise is a pro with crafts that involve her fingers and can create truly amazing finger-knitting and rainbow loop creations without any help or patterns. She likes to help in the kitchen--although the recipe will usually come out short a few tastes. And she comes up with pages and pages and pages of detailed stories that take half an hour or more to tell, and much longer for me to actually write down (which unfortunately doesn't happen as much as it should). They're about fairies, mermaids and forest animals, and about a little girl named Mary with three kittens. She continues to love science and nature, and has started seeking her climbing tree as a place of refuge when someone or something indoors has frustrated her. When she grows up, she wants to be a dolphin trainer. Slime is totally her thing.

Elise's new slackline!

So fun to be around that people assume she's mischievous, Elise actually gets really uncomfortable when people break rules--even in books. She covers her ears when she listens to any book with much suspense, or in which people make poor decisions (so it's a little bit hard to find books to read right now!). Ambiguity makes her uncomfortable, and she demonstrates a strong sense of fairness when it comes to proper behavior (as long as she's not the one behaving improperly). In fact, sometimes she makes a good sounding board not only for "does this shirt match these pants?" but also for the extremely rare, "Am I crazy to think your sister was overreacting, and did I do the right thing?"

Me and my birthday girl and
her new nightgown.

There's nothing Elise likes more than to distribute treats, and if you ask her to gather things for ice-cream sundaes, for instance, she's so on it. And unselfishly so: "There are only two popsicles left, so I'll have to have an m&m cookie instead!" Kalina: "Oh, thank you, Elise!" (Really meaning it.) Elise, taking one for the team: "That's okay." Personally, I think Elise got the better end of that deal, but no one else did; it's the thought that counts.

Elise continues to be super engaged with everything around her (I have to be really sneaky about chocolate these days), and about two years older than herself. And of course, she's certainly an extrovert, so the rest of us need her as much as she needs us.

We've enjoyed every minute of discovering the deep side of Elise, and can't wait to see what 7 brings!

On the other side of the cake,
it says Elise in green fondant.

Naomi's a star!

Happy birthday, princess Naomi!

A week ago:
Me: "Naomi, how old are you?"
Naomi holds up four fingers and grins.
Me: You're not four yet!
Naomi: "Let me count. One, two, three..." (and now she touches her pinky finger) "and a half!"

Now, Naomi is officially four fingers old. As she's quite the enthusiastic little puppy princess, Naomi's birthday would have been memorable whether or not there was a total solar eclipse happening at the same time. As it was, she had a pretty spectacular day.

Years ago, when Grandpa Tom discovered that a total solar eclipse would be visible from his yard on Naomi's birthday, we naturally planned to be there. Of course, we hadn't counted on a big move! Still, seeing as the total eclipse wouldn't be visible from our new house, it made sense to travel, and we turned the opportunity into quite a weekend.

We began with a visit to the Missouri State Fair, located roughly on the way to Grandpa's house. We enthusiastically doused ourselves in sunscreen and made for the animal barns. Several nice people let us pet various calves, and the girls bonded with each one. But at this rate, we'd never make it through the fair. We moved on to the petting zoo, where we were able to feed yaks and zebras and the like. We enjoyed some ice cream, then moved along to the midway where Elise very quickly found a game she wanted to try--one from which you could win a stuffed clownfish. Not that she expected to, as she assured us afterward.


Fifteen ping-pong balls later, Elise did in fact secure herself a prize! The game operator laughingly handed us a well-worn card that could be returned for a live goldfish when we were ready to leave the fair. Fortunately, before we squirmed too much, he gave us the out of trading it for a stuffed clownfish instead. Soon, Elise was gushing about her win, stuffed clownfish tucked securely in her arms.

Kalina and Elise tried a very small roller coaster, terrified for all but the first 30 seconds ("I wish it hadn't gone around THREE times! I thought TWO was enough!" "I'll never go on a roller coaster again!") Later in the day, both agreed they could picture trying it again, possibly even that afternoon. Naomi also mentioned she wanted to go on a roller coaster, but I don't think anyone believed her.

Princess Naomi with
Grandpa! Kalina made
crowns out of tissue paper.

We enjoyed fair food, tried samples, admired cakes, petted bunnies, watched goat judging and all the rest. Thoroughly and completely baked and exhausted, we stumbled to the car for the three-hour drive to St. Louis.

Everyone was grateful for air conditioning and dinner, and no one put up much of a fuss about bedtime. The next day, after church, we visited the girls' beloved piano teacher and her beloved dog. Kalina learned a bit about guitar and the ukulele (she's a huge fan of the ukulele!).

The Magic House
fairy tale party!

Next, we went to the local children's museum for a princess party for Naomi with most of her friends! The kids decorated crowns and made "magic" wands before decorating cupcakes and playing in the museum. Naomi couldn't have been happier surrounded by several of her besties and her sisters, playing princess and a lot of other things.

She's not really tired, just goofy.

And finally, the next day dawned on Naomi's birthday--also the day of the total solar eclipse. Half of us anxiously checked cloud cover while the other half bounced around and celebrated Naomi. When it comes to birthdays, there's nothing more fun than a sister! Kalina and Elise made sure Naomi felt special in every way, getting excited about gifts alongside her, reading her birthday stories and titling her Princess Naomi. What a great day! Fortunately, her ego has since recovered.

We made a princess cake!

The girls had long helped me plan Naomi's princess cake. Especially the sprinkles. Needless to say, the cake was covered. Elise, absent-mindedly sneaking the occasional nibble, helped me put each purple pearl in place, and find spots for gardens of flower sprinkles and sugar hearts.

Our friends arrived just as the eclipse was starting, and Naomi and her 3-year-old friend jumped up and down a lot at the sight of each other. We all tested our eclipse glasses, and everyone go the hang of it after only a few "where? where's?"

Kalina captivates an audience
with a reading of the story
she wrote and published
for Naomi.

We've been learning a lot about eclipses the past few weeks, and it's true you never know how much kids can pick up. At one point two weeks ago, Naomi sat down at the craft table in the other room with a black piece of paper and drew her impression of the eclipse. The rest of us didn't know about her efforts until she appeared, beaming, and told us that "Amber isn't wearing her eclipse glasses!" And sure enough, on Naomi's black paper, drawn in pencil, we could see the outline of an open-mouthed, amorphous princess (the slightly mean, but usually pretty nice older sister of Naomi's favorite princess, Sofia), a nicely drawn and decorated smiling princess (that Elise quickly recognized  as Sofia and drew eclipse glasses on for Naomi) and the moon covering the sun. So it's clear she learned something....  She then asked me how to spell burp so she could write it above Amber. [There's a lot of history here: Naomi traditionally hasn't liked Amber because she was mean to Sofia in the first episode of the TV show. Since that time, Naomi and her sisters have gleefully created disturbing situations for Amber. Nothing will change their mind, I've tried. Really, the only thing to do is laugh. Because surely they won't always be sadistic, right? Right?!?]

The light is dimming!

Despite all of Naomi's knowledge about eclipses, on eclipse day she had a new idea. "Mommy, is the sun going to explode?" she queried, not quite sure if she wanted to go outside with everyone else. I assured her it wasn't. So she made up a little chant about the sun exploding, Naomi-style.

Then, we all attempted to eat lunch while ducking out to see the action every 5 minutes (we set a timer), as the day was so brutally hot--at least until the sun was mostly blocked--that we really couldn't plan to be out in it very long.

We had just enough time to enjoy Naomi's cake before we needed to plant ourselves outside for good. Yum!

Nearing totality!

Naomi actually turned four within minutes of totality! But in the course of this cosmic event, most of us could really only think of the cooler temperatures, premature sunset, crescent shadows and the incredible sight of the corona around the sun. For two minutes, anyway. And then we were back to running around the house celebrating the birthday.

Fortunately, we had a nice enough time that no one complained too much about the long drive ahead of us on our way back to Kansas. The snacks helped, too.

Princess Naomi had a wonderful birthday weekend--and it's one that none of us is likely to forget!

So, what's our little princess up to these days?

Naomi spends most of her waking time doing these activities:
Pretending to be a princess
Pretending to be a ballerina
Pretending to be a baby
Pretending to be a baby animal
Taking care of stuffies and dolls
"Reading" picture books, like her big sisters
Drawing
Cutting paper into tiny pieces and then leaving the room, while insisting they're not trash

And this includes eating. Although she's been known to get cranky when she's hungry, she can also survive overnight on not much more than about three grapes and a drink of water. And yet, she grows, and is actually taller than some other 4-year-olds.

Princess Naomi, the main
character in the story Kalina
wrote for her. She guided
Naomi through a princess
adventure without telling
Naomi she was going to put it
into a book. Magical!

Naomi is truly a princess in every sense of the word. Her favorite colors are purple, pink and sparkle.  She loves having her hair done every day, picking out a pretty dress to wear, singing and tending to her animals and dolls. Having not quite gripped the concept of logic completely yet, she also insists on having her way all the time. We're working on it, and she's learning that the queen of the house also likes to have her own way when it comes to who's going to pick up the crayons all over the table or not pinch her sisters.

Naomi: Mommy, I'm a princess and princesses don't pick up. Servants clean up.
Me: But the princess in your princess book breaks a vase and she helps clean up.
Naomi: Then why do they have servants?
Me: Servants do a lot of work, but princesses have to be able to take care of things, too.
Naomi: Oh.

If you ask Naomi what she wants to be when she grows up, she'll unswervingly state that she wants to be a mommy. She intends to have three girls (boys, in her opinion, are clearly second-rate). She'll name them Kalina, Elise and Naomi. She's okay with the fact that she needs to get married first, and will literally accept the first boy who comes along. Kalina and Elise know. They talked her into it.

Naomi still loves puppies more than any other animal, but has a soft spot for fawns, kittens, bunnies, penguins and dolphins. She can write all her uppercase letters, with only a few reminders ("Down, up, down, up," "Line down, line down, line across the middle."). Not that I've taken any initiative to  teach her--the girls wants to write, and has the patience and pencil grip for writing, and so she writes. Occasionally when I'm cooking dinner I'll need to spell long phrases for her, a letter at a time: "Biscuit is sitting on my lap," and the like. We're working on lowercase letters ("baby letters!") and letter sounds, and she doesn't show any signs of slowing down. She can also count well, skip, dress herself completely on a very good day, clean a shower (or at least one square foot of it really, really well) and take care of her sisters when they get hurt.

Naomi is generally sweet and sensitive--that is, until she turns absolutely goofy. She enjoys getting a laugh, and so often succeeds, even if it's at Mommy's expense. She likes nonsense words and silly stunts that are so cute they make me almost glad she's not brushing her teeth like I told her to (okay, maybe not). Although she can be a fastidious little princess, she also has such a sunny, cheerful, quirky side that quickly endears her to all of us and wipes away most hard feelings.

Naomi picks flowers wherever she goes, regardless of weather or how late we're running. She gathers them into a bouquet, brings them inside, fills a cup of water and displays them proudly on the counter or table. When she's outside she also likes to swing and collect crinoids (a common fossil here) and calls herself an adventurer (she is not).

She's terrified of bugs, still adverse to most new tastes, doing much better at riding in the car for long distances, working on not hitting/pinching/scratching (still!), able to use Grandpa's phone (not Mommy's--mine is no fun), tall enough to wash her hands at most faucets with a stool, confused about how to say "with each other" (she mixes it up with the word "together," and it comes out jumbled and cute), able to repeat back facts she's heard (some of them are even true!), fantastic with scissors, friendly to almost everyone (not really to boys) and able to pedal a trike (just not always point it in the right direction--although I think that has to do with motivation and silliness).

Naomi joyfully trots in to any group preschool/camp/Sunday school situation with no hesitation. Anytime we're at a park or other public place, she seeks out other similarly-sized girls, squeals with glee if she finds one, and makes a beeline towards them, whether or not the other little girls are interested or not. Or even speak English--she's totally undeterred. In fact, of all of us (except possibly Matt), she was the first to make a friend here, as well as the first to be invited to a birthday party.

Naomi truly brings out a smile in all of us and we're so blessed that she's part of our family! Happy birthday, four-year-old!!!

Happy Nine Years, Kalina!

Kalina's two-story box house,
complete with library!

Kalina is 9! She has settled so adeptly and confidently into 9 that it's hard to remember that she hasn't always been this age.

In keeping with tradition, we started the day with birthday cereal (Lucky Charms) and a host of goodwill. As Kalina walked down the stairs she gasped in delight, Kalina-style, at the beautiful decorations greeting her. But those decorations didn't happen all on their own--Kalina's own biggest fan put them into motion.

On birthday eve, Elise and I went out shopping as we'd recently discovered the thoughtful gift Elise had ordered wasn't going to arrive on time (if at all). Her mortified tears turned into constant cheerful chattering as we headed to Petland (a fact Elise shouted to the world as soon as we closed the door behind us) to find some mouse gear. We also found puppies, a bunny, birds and other cute animals it was very hard to leave behind. Probably harder for some of us than for others...

Celebrating a couple days early with
Grandpa Les and Grandma

After making our purchases there, we headed across the parking lot to Target, since all of our birthday decorations are buried somewhere in the mass of boxes at our house. Elise obligingly helped me make good decisions on various celebratory goods, made an attempt at snagging some extra treats, and blew up balloons on the way home. Thank goodness she did--my braces and Matt's surgery made the task difficult enough later that we almost got Elise out of bed to come help some more. She assured me the next day that that would've been totally fine.

Virtually as soon as Kalina walked down the stairs in the morning, Naomi shoved her present into Big Sister's arms and Kalina good-naturedly opened it right away. A stuffed baby goat greeted her. Naomi truly gives from the heart, remembering how much Kalina had loved feeding the baby goats at Grant's Farm. And of course, it's not a birthday unless there's a stuffy. New this year: she kept it a secret the entire time!

Then she opened Elise's present. (Elise: "We almost got you a puppy! But we decided on these instead.") She had found some things for the mice, and also a couple of Kalina's favorite books.

The morning was filled with the "it's my birthday!" glow, which makes everyone generally get along and play happily together. We visited the stream in the backyard, checked the mail, opened a few presents and fixed one of Kalina's favorites for lunch: bagels and cream cheese.

Kalina's early birthday at an
amazing stream. The sun
stayed long enough to make
it pleasant!

About a month ago, before we moved, we'd held a pre-birthday party for Kalina with all her friends. She decided to have it at a beautiful stream that's perfect for wading and catching critters--Kalina's very favorite activity. We had a great turnout, and the rain held off exactly as long as it needed to--which was until we were all in the picnic shelter drying off and having lunch.

So today, fortunately, Kalina was feeling fine about not having a bit celebration, but we did want to do something special and so headed to the local pottery painting place. The girls each chose an animal to paint, and Elise convinced me to get a plate big enough to eat lunch off of. My worries that it would be impossible to do any painting were totally unfounded. Actually, the girls helped, as I stamped their hands (three coats each) as my design--since I'm really not that great at painting flowers or anything anyway.

Painting pottery

Kalina's red squirrel was adorable and she cherished every minute of painting and looking at cute pottery animals, and Naomi's puppy bank will be pretty in purple and pink. Elise's turtle is very sweet, with polka dots on its shell. Her empathy for the woman cleaning brushes exceeded her artistry, however, and she opted to forgo additional coats of paint on the polka dots since she'd already put her brush in the sink and didn't want to dirty another. And Naomi, who was short on sleep and really did have the option of bouncing from wall to wall of breakable objects, chose instead to sit or stand patiently even though she was finished before everyone else. Everyone seemed a year older today!

Back at home, Kalina opened a complicated K'Nex set and dug right in while we waited for Daddy to come home so we could go out to supper. He walked in the door with a beautiful bakery cake and flowers for the birthday girl, and we rushed him out to Jason's Deli--Kalina's favorite.

The meal was great, and we enjoyed our first round of ice cream for the day. Back at home, Kalina was awed at the beauty of her cake. She helped light the candles and grinned as we sang and took pictures. Possibly because of the big meal and ice cream (we were on round two, along with the cake), she only took about two bites of the cake. And possibly it was because the frosting wasn't her favorite.... But what a beautiful cake!

Then we carefully opened cards, and slowly opened presents, until Naomi wasn't going to last much longer (but of course couldn't miss anything) and we needed to rush to bed. Kalina's birthday was lovely, as always. But I get the impression that with Kalina, it's not the special activities and treats that make it lovely--it would be a wonderful day just by virtue of the fact that it's hers. "It's my birthday!"

Oil change and tire rotation
in Grandpa's workshop!

So, what's Kalina up to these days? She's interested in all things STEM, possibly excluding the math part. She's been known to offer keen insights (for an 8-year-old) helping Grandpa Tom  with vehicle maintenance, come up with Rube Goldberg-esque inventions, avidly study water flow and filtration (plus catch lots of critters) and build all kind of structures, both real and imaginary.

Contrasting with her enjoyment of machines and inner workings, Kalina continues to flourish as a ballerina. She and her class startled us with their graceful, complex movements in their ballet performance, and Kalina is known at home for turning routine activities and events into lovely dances. What a joy to be around!

Kalina truly lives in the moment, with intricate ideas and funny little jokes. Far from running from other kids nowadays, as she was known for in the first third of her life, Kalina now easily makes friendships, and often leads her group of friends. True to her introverted self, however, she's also just fine being alone--especially when there are books, projects and nature to entertain her.

Speaking of books, Kalina discovered Narnia this year and has not put it down for long. It's her go-to, and she reads and re-reads her favorite chapters (yes, by the chapter--a practice that would drive the rest of us crazy). She finds the humor in these books, and also the wonder. For her, they're the epitome of a good story. But Roald Dahl also suffices, except for the "scary" books.

"Blanket Time" preschool!

And Kalina has taken great strides in her big sister role. She's proven herself capable of getting her littlest sister "ready for the day," a feat that involves imagination, negotiation, convincing and lots of patience--all of which she wields in exactly the right proportions, and especially on the days when I fail miserably. She invents games and activities they can all enjoy together, and is her sisters' biggest fans, enchanted by both of them. As long as they don't interrupt her in the middle of a good book, of course....

Of course, I'm writing this in the summer, when we've been done with school for a month. It's possible that not all of this would be true if I were asking Kalina to finish up her math problems, or get her spelling done. Just possible.... Although to be fair, Kalina's fortitude was much improved this year. She didn't always greet tricky spelling sentences or comparing non-equivalent fractions with open arms, but they weren't quite the end of the world that they used to be.

Kalina as a Canadian
snowflake in her ballet recital!

Kalina performed beautifully in her piano recital, and memorized lots of pieces this year. She earned Memory Master in her co-op. She caught countless critters, including bumble bees ("They won't sting me because if they sting someone, they die." This theory proved to be true most of the time--and like many good biologists, she learned the truth the hard way.). She can kind of swim and can tread water for more than 2 minutes. She made meringues mostly on her own and other recipes as well. She can draw well, and she wrote her first chapter book this year. Kalina is more capable of cursive than she gives herself credit for (it's not, after all, quite perfect) but doesn't enjoy it (it's not, after all, quite perfect).

She can climb trees, ask questions I really have to dig to find answers to, clean a mouse cage (except the heavy part), empty the dishwasher without complaining (on a good day) and take pictures and videos on a phone. Kalina's lost eight teeth so far. She still calls me mommy, and she sleeps with Lisa every night. She can finish a mid-sized chapter book in one sitting and is very patriotic. She has saved up for the past couple years, hardly spending a dime (except once on charity, and another time to buy a piece of amber with a bug in it) and has more than $130. On the road, she studies license plates and remembers the plate numbers of several of our friends' vehicles. She has a large fossil collection, most found in nature.

Kalina bonding with a bird
she's feeding.

Kalina is grounded in reality but still loves to play, and will happily put on shows with her sisters, or make up preschool activities with Naomi. Her creativity knows no bounds--sometimes to the detriment of the house I just cleaned. She has a good sense of humor, and makes up silly songs and phrases for the amusement of her sisters ("A bottle of antelope and a bottle of cantaloupe are entirely different things."). She also has a good sense of mischief, however, that can occasionally get her into trouble.

She still daydreams often. "Can I please just think?" She asked recently. Kalina is still enchanted by baby animals and her little sisters. Her favorite treat is ice cream and her favorite food is probably bacon. She can also do a number on a can of black olives, and enjoys the Russian food called pelmini, which she makes with me every year (for two years in a row, anyway!).

Happy nine years, sweet girl!! You are such a blessing to our family!

At Ikea. So patient--yet not so
subtle! 

Kalina has inherited her
dad's knack for finding
four-leaf clovers!