Home for Thanksgiving

I was feeling under the weather on Thanksgiving so unfortunately, I do not have a lot of photos. Regardless of my less-than-stellar health, it was really good to be back in my hometown.

Medical student Mr. Tim gave Ireland an informal physical.

Brigitta was Dakota's shadow the whole time. There's a treat canister in the kitchen and boy was she spoiled by the girls! Mom and Dad had purchased thick-cut bacon so Brent could make his favorite farm-style breakfast and I caught each of the girls slipping Dakota some under the table. When Dakota came upstairs in the morning she would search all the rooms to find where each of the girls were and then she'd settle into her routine. It was adorable.

Brigitta is so often caught in a world where she's either being the pesky little sister or the terretorial older sister and her relationship with Dakota is just so easy and uncomplicated. It's just a girl and her dog. They both know their roles and they both enjoy them. Plain and simple.

We brought a couple of pies from The Machine Shed and Mom did the bulk of the cooking. I was free to stuff envelopes with our Christmas card and newsletter, and enjoy the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. It was so stress-free!

On Black Friday we took the girls to see Coco which brought up sooo many mission memories for Brent and I! If it's possible, we enjoyed the movie more than the girls did and will definitely be looking for that when it's released. We all shared a meal from Zombie Burger which is becoming a must every time we are in town. Courtesy of Hills Bank where there girls deposited money from saving cans, we had free tickets to the Children's Museum. Sydney grew tired of it so I hung out with her by the skating rink and at the carousel.

This picture of her on a reindeer was so perfect to kick of the Christmas season!

 We got to catch up with our old ward and give hugs to people we don't get to see often. Sunday dinner was spent with friends of Reagan's from Maryland who were in town. It was so fun getting to know them and it was yet another fabulous meal by Mom. We had to hit the road before it got too late.

It was such a lovely Thanksgiving!

Sydney is FOUR!

Recently it occurred to me that Sydney is like Puck from Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. She a naturally happy little girl, a bit mischievous, but ultimately a lot of fun to watch. She's been insisting for a while now that she's a BIG girl (heaven forbid you call her a "little girl"), and she eschews any attempts by her sisters to baby her. In the weeks leading up to her birthday, she insisted she was no longer three, she was almost four. 

I'm crazy about how her four-year photos turned out!

For me, this is the money shot. I love how she is looking just off camera. I love how the wind is blowing her hair and her ribbons. I love that she's holding a fallen leaf as she is our only girl with a fall birthday. I love that she is not smiling about anything in particular, but her default setting of sweet and cheerful comes through in that little grin.

Sydney picked out the yellow dress herself.

She's such an imp!

 Again, I love the flowing ribbons.

We have a tradition (passed down from my family) to go around the table and say one thing we love about the birthday girl, and one fond memory. These have been dubbed I Like Sydney Because... and I Remember When... It occurred to me that this might be a good thing to record and include in these birthday posts.

I Like Sydney Because...
... she makes me happy especially when I'm sad. (Liesel)
... she's silly. (Ireland)
... she's really nice. (Brigitta)
... she has an energy for life which I see in her love of preschool, church and dance. (Mom)
... she's a positive person and my favorite to take to the store. (Dad)

Sydney received a birthday crown at preschool and they had Neapolitan ice cream sandwiches as a treat.

Traditional breakfast in bed!

Primary kids get to pick out a treat from Bishop's office the week of their birthday. Sounds like a little thing, but it's a big deal to the kids.

 I Remember When...
... I held her for the first time when she came home from the hospital. (Liesel)
... Sydney didn't want to give the blessing when we had the missionaries over for dinner. (see here) (Ireland)
... she was happy when she turned 3. (Brigitta)
... she was born and we had the first snow of the season while I labored (Mom).
... we went back and forth over whether she could have ice cream before she finished her dinner. (Dad)

Let's recap that one:

Because when these two go head to head, it's pretty intense:

Sydney generously picked a non-chocolate cake so her two oldest sisters could celebrate along with the rest of the family. 

Sydney has a way of making the feeling in the room brighter and happier. When I'm having a dark day as a mom, she manages to say something funny or snuggle with me or do something so absolutely charming I can't help but smile. Although I never knew Brent as a child, I imagine Sydney is very similar to him in the way she's just a happy little soul. However, when things come to a head, she has no problem sticking up for herself... just like Brent. Sydney just kills me with the way she talks like a grown up. Here are couple of examples:

Me to Sydney who is harassing me while I'm using the toilet: Go use your own bathroom!
Sydney: *pauses a moment to think* That's just not going to be possible.

Me: What would you like for lunch? Pizza or chicken nuggets?
Sydney: Hmmmmm, I'm thinking an uncrustable!

What four-year-old talks like that? Well, my four-year-old does.

Thou speak'st aright
I am that merry wanderer of the night