Seven

 Little girl!  Seven years old so soon!

My heart can't handle it.  Where did my tiny baby go?

Our itty bitty (2 pounds lighter than her brother had been, she seemed so tiny!) on day two of life...

And now we have this big girl, thrilled to pieces with the purse, jewelry and makeup she received at her birthday party, wearing her brother's old jacket, and pretty much readdy to take on the world....

I wouldn't trade these past 7 years with this wonderful creature, not for the word. I'm so grateful to have her in my life.  (Every single day!  But today seems like a good day to write about it...)

Ivy at seven is an adventure.  She knows what she wants (decisive as ever) and does not hesitate to let the world know.  She speaks her mind-- her questions, her opinions, her love, her complaints.  She is strong!

But still so little.  Ivy at seven still comes into our be a few times a week, and wants to share a room with her brother because she does not like to be alone.  Thanks to an allergy to mosquito bites, she's developed a fear of bugs.  She does not like to be told "no."  These are the moments when I know she's still my baby girl.  And I'm fine with that.

 Ivy at seven is as funny as ever.  She loves to make us laugh-- and often does without trying.  She is both extremely imaginative and extremely literal in her thinking and that's a fantastic combination, it turns out.  I just get a kick out of the things she says.  Lucky for us, she's quite a talker.  She is utterly secure in her ideas about the world, sure she's got it figured out.  Lucky for her, she's got her brother to set her straight on that -- all the time.  Also lucky for her, she is resilient, and quick to shift her worldview based on new evidence.

Ivy at seven is becoming a reader.  She's so very proud of herself.  She likes to take great big books to bed, like her brother-- but she's happy to read books at her level with us, too.  She loves her school, and her teacher and is doing second grade work at her centers.  She spends a great deal of time in the school office-- as a helper.  The office staff have convinced her that she is in charge.  Not sure this little lady needed anyone to tell her that! She is very aware of all of the social happenings at school and comes home with stories of who said what to who.  Recently we've had our first drama over friends, recess, group leaders, and bullying-- our precocious little girl, getting started early on all that... sigh.  Again, though-- she is resilient.  Hoping to capitalize on that as little Miss 7-going-on-15 moves on through her school years.  She's found herself some very nice little friends so we're hoping that will help, too.

Ivy at seven loves to play-- made up games with stuffies and birds and Littlest Pet Shop and Shopkins, tag and catch and swings, and everyone's favorite, "pretend I'm a cat and you're going to buy me and take me home."  She's a momma's girl for sure and loves to snuggle.  She prefers TV to video games and crafting, cooking, or playing with someone, to any sort of screen time.   She adores her brother, though the evidence of this lies more in the way she does everything he does (right down to coughing when he coughs or coming up with an injury similar to his) than in her behavior towards him (mainly whining or tattling, these days).  We still hold out hope that they'll get along, someday.  In the far off future.  Maybe.

Ivy at seven loves pizza and mac'n'cheese and ice cream.  She still likes to watch My Little Pony and Littlest Pet Shop but really loves movies;  Moana, the Lego Movie, and Secret Life of Pets are favorites.  She has enjoyed listening to the FairyRealm series of books.  Her best friend is Ophelia.  She still says "Thar" for "their" but most of her other little speech mannerisms have faded away. Her favorite thing in school is math.  She wants to be a ballerina, a teacher or a doctor when she grows up. Her favorite toys are her soft stuffies (generally whichever one she just got).  She loves flowers and helping with chores.

Ivy at seven is full of hugs and enthusiasm and joy.  She shares these things with everyone she meets.  She is a delight and we love her so much.

Happy Birthday, sweet girl.