Happy Birthday Big Girl!

Five years ago today this precious little girl entered our lives. It had been a long, rough road to get her here and I'd do it all over again to have her. We brought her home wearing preemie clothes that were way too big and wondering what in the world we were supposed to do with her.

We mostly just held her and loved her and couldn't believe she was here.
Then she started growing. I probably won't win mother of the year for giving my 8 month old an Oreo but she sure loved it!

She's always been kind of weird about her sleeping habits. She still prefers to sleep on the floor. Most nights she sleeps under her bed instead of on top of it.

The first year went by quickly and our baby turned 1! I'm still not sure how that first year went by so fast. It seemed like one day she was in the NICU and the next she turned a year old.

She played in the snow...

...but like her parents she prefers the warm weather and water.

The next few years just flew by.
When she turned 3 we went out and bought this gorgeous dress and she insisted on having a cake that matched her dress. Luckily, a friend of mine worked really hard and made her a cake that matched perfectly. Such a diva.
We spent a few months in Seattle during her third year of life. I'm still not sure what we were thinking but it gave the kids some great experiences. It also taught mommy that traveling alone with a 3 year old and almost 2 year old is insane.
Then she turned 4. All of a sudden she had a bigger social circle than I did. We had a big birthday party with 25 of only her closest friends.
And now she's 5. I can't hardly believe that the tiny baby who was hooked up to all those tubes in the NICU is now a happy, healthy five year old. Happy birthday to my favorite little girl!