Fletcher is 4

Fletcher, you are now 4 years old. In many ways though, you seem much older. I am pretty sure that I baby you way more than I did your siblings. After all, you are and will always be the baby of the family. You are the most precocious child I have ever met. You talk incessantly, but you do it with such confidence. You rarely stumble over your words or struggle to find something to say. And, you always know what you want and make sure everyone else does too. For your birthday, you wanted a Lego rocket ship. You told that to everyone you talked to for the past few weeks. The morning of your birthday, the first thing you asked was when you could put together your Lego rocket.  Mind you, there were not presents in sight, much less one that you had opened.  But, by the end of the day, you had the rocket in hand and couldn't wait to assemble it.

When you aren't playing with Lego rockets, you are turning everything else into rockets. Duplo Legos, magnet tiles, block, tools, markers...you name it, and my Fletcher will find a way to turn it into a rocket. The most impressive part is that you always make sure you are able to drop the fuel and rocket boosters in stages, just like you've seen in so many shuttle launch videos your dad shows you. And, your love of rockets extends to movies and shows, which is probably why you love Star Wars so much. Your favorite characters are the Storm Troopers, and you insisted on having a Storm Trooper cake. Given the current pandemic, I managed to make one for you and the simple Storm Trooper cutout taped to toothpicks did the trick.

You also love the Storm Trooper stuffy you got for your birthday. He went on a car ride with us today and is sleeping in your bed. I have a feeling he's going to make some trips to the lake this summer too.

You still love hockey. And, you want to play it all of the time. You know how to put on your knee/shin pads, your helmet, and your gloves. You are allowed to play in the basement and garage (when the cars are out of it), but multiple times per week, I catch you gearing up and trying to play in the living room. When we're at your brother's hockey games, you get so mad you can't play. We have started taking your gear with us so you can pretend to play behind the bleachers during Barrett's games so that you won't drive the rest of us crazy. You also skated on your own without help a few weeks back. As soon as the ice rinks open up again, I am sure you'll be in skating lessons, and the rest of us will be in trouble.

Your physical energy doesn't stop with hockey though. you are always running, climbing, and now riding your bike. It's a balance bike, but you love it because it makes you feel like you are riding with your siblings. I usually walk with the wagon though so we can tow the bike when you get tired of riding.

Because you are so self assured in the way and amount of talking you do, it is a little surprising that one of your favorite pastimes is reading books. You LOVE reading. You will read just about any book, but your favorite ones involve spaceships, astronauts, trains, boats, and big trucks. It's really awesome when one of your siblings reads to you before bed. Sweet moments like that warm my heart and make me so happy that the 3 of you have each other.

Another favorite pastime of yours is stealing my phone to take random pictures. I never know what snapshots I will find on my phone. You used to only get photos of your hand and forehead, but you are getting better. You usually get most of your face now, and you have learned to switch the camera so you are photographing things in front of you instead of taking selfies. It will be interesting to see how long it is until those things are actually centered and in focus. Here is some of your recent photography in action.

You are definitely a third child. You love and adore your siblings, but are constantly teetering back and forth between playing like best friends and fighting like the worst of enemies. You do still enjoy playing by yourself with no one to boss you around, but you love it when they wait on you and help you get what you want. And, you always want to do whatever your siblings are doing. I do love watching the 3 of you play thought. It is so amazing to see the bond you have. I hope it continues to grow as you grow.

You are so loved. I guess that's your blessing, my youngest child. You have never known a day without the love of both your parents and all of your siblings. I pray that you will share that love with those around you. I pray that you'll always keep your confidence while learing to listen with a kind and humble heart. You have so much life in you and so much life to live. I love who you are today and who you are becoming. I can't wait to see what God has in store for you. May he bless all of your days with his love and peace.

Audrey is 11

It's hard to believe that the baby girl I welcomed into my arms just over 11 years ago is now a talented and beautiful young woman. I haven't blogged much lately, and this one is even a few days late, but I couldn't let a milestone like this go by without saying something in this blog that I started because of this tiny human growing inside of me just over 11 years ago. I have a tradition of writing these posts to my children instead of just being about them. So, here goes.

Audrey, I am can't believe how tall you're getting. Well, I guess I can, but still, it won't take long before you're taller than me. Your feet are also getting huge. You're already handing down shoes to your Aunt Laurenn, and pretty soon, you'll be giving them to Grandma Rosie. I guess I shouldn't be surprised though; your dad's feet are huge! And, I remember when you were born, we said you had monkey feet because they were so long and skinny. You're getting so tall, in fact, that you got a women's sized bike for your birthday. I couldn't believe it when they told me what size you needed, but it definitely seems like a perfect fit.

You still love art and crafts. You are always drawing, cutting, taping, and now hot gluing your creations together. I am pretty sure that glue gun has been used more in the past 6 months than it has the entire rest of it's existence in our home (which is several years). You are also teaching your brothers some of your crafty tricks, which is fun to watch. But, you still have an artistic eye that I don't think either of them will ever be able to match. Your watercolors are my favorite. I hope you never stop creating those watercolors for me.

You are still loving music. You are leading the 2nd violin section at school and getting good marks from your teachers. You are still playing piano too, which is a lot of fun to hear. This whole staying at home due to the COVID-19 pandemic has allowed me to hear more of your practicing, which is truly a joy to hear. I love hearing you progress and grow as you learn more and more about music and how to play it expressively.

You are coming into your pre-teen years in 2020, which means taking selfies is almost an expected hobby.  Every time you get a hold of my phone without me knowing, I always find amusing selfies. You are a goofball, and it makes my heart smile to see that side of you come out. There are so many times when I worry you are growing up too fast, so seeing you be just plain silly reassures me that you are still a just a kid. Someday, I'll have these selfies as photographic evidence of your goofiness, and you'll hate me for it. So, I don't complain about it and just let you keep taking selfies.

You are still dancing and it seems as though you have a bit of a dramatic flair, and I have no idea where you got that from ;). You still really seem to be enjoying dance, and it seems like you are really starting to understand the emotive elements of it. You're really learning to tell the story with your movement instead of just doing the movement your teacher's are telling you to do.

You are still a great big sister to your brothers, even though I know you won't admit that you love them. I mean, you pick on them,  you love to sneak around corners and scare them, and you never miss a chance to tease them. But, you are also very kind and generous with them in unexpected ways. Just a couple of weeks ago, you made them an entire Coronavirus scavenger hunt and hid random items throughout the house that they would "need" to stay safe. Today, you helped Fletcher put together a Lego set, and this past week, you and Barrett created an entire "tent city" in our dining room together. That's how I know you love them, even though you don't like to admit it.

You also love your cousins. Macie absolutely adores you and will do anything you ask her to. It is so beautiful to see the way she looks up to you, and the way you step up to the challenge. You are such a wonderful example for her and take such good are of her when you're together. I can't wait to see how Jackson looks up to you as he gets older too. You really are a pretty awesome oldest cousin. I am pretty sure you'll be watching all of your cousins while the parents go to dinner or a movie in just a couple of years.

Another milestone you recently achieved was moving up to a queen sized bed. Mom and dad got a king, so you got our hand me down mattress. Even though it's a hand me down, it looks pretty good in your room. The crazy thing is how much your room now looks like it belongs to a teenager, not my little girl. Heck, I'd love to have a room like this to myself, even now. I was worried that you'd never leave your room now that you have the nice big bed and a cozy reading chair, but I've been pleasantly surprised by how much you still like to be around the rest of us.  And, how you let me hang out in your room and talk with you a couple times a week.

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that you have picked up on many of your mom and dad's favorite pastimes...Reading, space stuff, board games, Star Wars, Avengers, The Blues, Legos, and your most recent favorite, watching HGTV.  I've also gotten you to watch a couple of movies based on Jane Austen novels with me. I can't wait until you read her books. I hope that is something else we will share together. Oh, and I can't forget to mention how much you love your dogs, especially Tripper. You do a great job of helping take care of them.  You give Stella her medicine every day, take Tripper on walks, and give them lots of snuggles.

I am so proud of the young woman you are becoming, but I love the child that you are. And, I hope you continue to be my little girl forever. You'll always be my baby girl, even when you outgrow me and even when you think I am the dorkiest, most embarrassing mom that ever lived. I hope I never stop embarrassing you with how much I love and adore you. I hope that God blesses every day of your life and that there is never a day where you don't know his love, grace, and peace.