Payton has a Birthday!

Our sweet first baby is growing up fast. The days fly by and suddenly, we have a 6 year old. As sad as we want to be, we are also so very excited to see what this next year will bring with our sweet baby girl.

We took pictures to celebrate in the last week with a few different dresses. I let her pick the pose and where she wanted to go this year and it's just so fun to see her personality wrapped up in a picture. She will always be our baby but she is definitely finding her voice, sense of style, and how she wants to approach the world.

Payton basically got a week to celebrate. We were supposed to have her party with family over Easter but since that didn't work out, we had a party of our own with just our party of 5. Then, we had a friend over for a special cupcake decorating play date.

She shares a birthday with one of our other little friends and the family made sure to extra include her and recognize her on his day.

For her birthday day, we started the morning off with a big breakfast complete with coffee cake (and a candle), yogurt, and a spread of fruit. This is exactly how Payton wanted her day. She got a new bike from us and even the cold didn't stop her from riding it a good chunk of the day.

May we always live vicariously through her.

We also had soccer and Payton was so excited to bring extra treats to her team as they ended the season.

And, because it was just a measly 6 years ago that we had a gutted kitchen and brought a baby home, we decided to do a repeat. We are renovating our kitchen at the same time of year we did 6 years ago, only this time in our current house (I do still miss our last home at times).

And Payton takes it all in stride. And sweeps. And cleans. And helps with the baby.

Payton,

You are so important to our family. Your heart is the sweetest and your kindness shows through. Please don't ever lose your sparkle. There isn't a beat you can't dance to. May you always find your own rhythm. You are our mother hen, the "shy" child (you aren't but you have convinced yourself you are), and our natural little helper. We pray you never lose sight of God and the big things he has planned for you.

This year will bring so much change for our family. This brings so much emotion for our family but we are absolutely certain you will flourish in school. We'll be home waiting for you.

Happy Birthday sweet, sweet child.

Love,

Mom