Playin' Hooky
On Audrey's birthday, Billy and I had planned to take off at noon and make an afternoon of Audrey centric activities for her birthday. Unfortunately, we were dealing with tornado sirens and downpours all day, so that didn't happen. That is why today, we both took the morning off to take her to the zoo. The hilarious thing is her predictability. I made one of her favorite breakfasts...homemade banana nut muffins. Then, we went to the zoo. The first thing she asked to do was get her face painted, so we indulged her. After the zoo, we gave Audrey a choice of lunch, and she chose Bread Co. Then we came home, planted flowers, did some puzzles, and played Scrabble. Is she her mother's daughter or what?
Dancing Queen
Audrey still loves her dance class. She plans to be a ballerina when she grows up, and she knows she has to practice a lot to make that happen. Billy and I, of course, will support her in whatever she wants to do. But, let's face it...she is 5! So, for now, she goes to her one class a week for tap and ballet. This past weekend, she had her first dance performance on a stage. The small children have choreography they do, but it is very much what you would expect from a preschool class. It was fun to watch Audrey perform, and believe me, she loved being on stage. More than that, however, she loved watching the older girls dance. She really truly loves watching the artistry and strength of the "big girls." So, even if she doesn't become a professional dancer, I have no doubt in my mind Audrey will always appreciate and enjoy quality dance performances.
Ice Queen
Does anyone want to venture a guess as to what Audrey's favorite movie, song, and Disney princess are currently? If you guessed Frozen, Let it Go, and Queen Elsa, you are correct! Audrey sings the songs from Frozen constantly. Barrett is even starting to learn the words because she sings it so much. In addition, she likes to fashion a purple superhero cape into the train of her princess gown so she can look like Queen Elsa. Did I mention the tiara shaped headband? If you've ever seen Frozen, you are aware that the hit song Let It Go is sung by Queen Elsa whilst she walks up a snow covered mountain. While we don't have any mountains here in St. Louis, we do have a park across the street with a climbing wall formed from plastic that leads to the top of the jungle gym. To Audrey, that is a snow covered mountain. So, when we go to the park, she takes her train and tiara, stands at the top of the "mountain" and belts out songs from Frozen at the top of her lungs. Fortunately, every other girl under the age of 10 is also obsessed with the movie and its songs, so no one finds this behavior the least bit unusual.
Monkey Girl
I don't want to mislead people into thinking that Audrey pretends to be in Frozen 100% of the time. There are times, about 50% of the time to be exact, that she partakes in other activities. One of them is climbing like a monkey at the park. She also likes doing flips on the rings. It amazes me how strong she is getting!
Creepy Crawlies
Audrey has always been one to want to care for animals, not harm them. Even some bugs catch her interest. She will pick them up and call them her pets. Please note that she still will not touch a worm. Her favorite bugs are rollie pollie bugs and caterpillars. Last weekend, she found a dead rollie pollie bug, and when she showed it to me, I saw it was clearly dead. So, she asked if we could give it a funeral. In proper fashion, we took it outside, and put it to rest under a landscaping rock. Audrey also said a prayer for it.
Baby Girl
Audrey's favorite toy, despite the Frozen obsession, is still her Bitty Baby. Bitty Baby goes many places with us. She went to Bloomington to Laurenn's graduation; she went to the zoo today. She also goes to the lake, sometimes to the store, and to Sunday school. Audrey loves taking care of Bitty Baby, but she also loves taking care of her brother. I frequently find myself telling her, "Barrett is his own person, just like you. You need to let him make his own choices." He is at an age where he doesn't let her push him around and becomes very vocal when he wants to be left alone. She has the best intentions (most of the time), but she is a big sis. And telling little brothers what to do is what big sisters do.
In closing, I must say that Audrey is becoming such a young lady. She is sensitive and caring, while strong-willed and determined at the same time. She wants to do what is right and becomes extremely upset when she realizes her poor choice caused harm to someone else. For instance, when she got impatient last weekend and smashed my finger in the drawer, she started bawling and apologizing profusely as soon as she saw I was bleeding, and it took her longer to calm herself down than it did for me to get a band aid on my wound!
This Thursday, she has her preschool graduation at Downtown Children's Center (DCC). While she'll finish out the summer there, it will be a big milestone for our little girl. Next step, kindergarten. I have no doubt she's going to do great. DCC has done a great job of preparing her. Still, it is hard to believe my little girl is so grown up.
While I was writing this post, Audrey was napping. When I went to get her, this is what she looked like. I had to add it to the post. Even though she is getting older, she still looks absolutely precious when she's sleeping.
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