This is 6

Happy sweet 6th birthday my little love - what a year it has been

I want to remember you being 5 as I can promise you this past year is a year neither of us will soon forget.

You started kindergarten this year - and we started a tradition on the night before school laying on the trampoline and waiting for the first star to make a wish - it was one of my favourite memories that summer and something I cherish to this day. The quiet cuddly moments are my fav and lucky for me you love to cuddle 🙂

You were so incredibly brave and beyond excited your first day of school and it warmed my heart how quickly you made friends and how caring you were for kiddos in your class.

Some of my favorite moments were watching you walk hand in hand to the classroom with your friends- or giving hugs in the hallway - it was also probably the hardest part of this year for me as those greetings that you grew accustomed to , that you looked forward to, were taken away so cruley by the word we all became quickly accustomed to, COVID-19 :(.

At the tender age of five you have experienced events that I had not experienced in nearly 40 years on earth. This year became a year that was so completely backwards to everything I and everyone close to you had taught you - 'sharing was not caring' in fact we had to teach that sharing toys, food and being too close to others wasn't able to happen anymore as we could pass germs and make others sick.

Watching you try to make sense of the crazy world that we were all of sudden thrown into broke my heart - not being allowed to cuddle your neighbours who are like family was just so hard but somehow, someway you adjusted and you became quickly accustomed to the 'new norm' - and we made the most of it. The day we were allowed to open up our bubble again was a day I don't think either of us will forget - you gave the longest, biggest hug to our neighbour, your bff which resulted in the 3 of us shedding alot of tears. You are all kinds of amazing and are so resilient.

As crazy as the second half of the year has been we definitely made the most of the first. We had a trip to Walt Disney World in October where you rode your first roller coaster - you definitely are a bit of a thrill seeker and had the time of your life.

We also had a trip to Australia - where I learnt quickly how much you make the most of any situation. You had an absolute ball catching up with all of your cousins. I also learnt just how caring of a child you are. We were in Australia during the devastating fires and I had a difficult time with the smoke which has resulted in possibly some long term eye damage but I remember during the drive from Sydney to Canberra how brave and caring you were as I was in considerable pain - you held my hand the entire trip, rubbed my back and kept saying 'its going to be ok mommy' - I think you are going to make an amazing ambulance driver one day :).

I asked you today what your favorite part of being 5 was and you said 'getting a puppy' 🙂 Sunny has been such a welcome addition to the family and really has been an incredible support to you during these difficult times.

I feel like I have gotten to know you in so many different ways this past year. As your teacher, I was able to understand how you learn which I don't think I ever would have gained that insight without this experience. I think we both have learnt so much about ourselves and each other this past year.

It has been a year of highs and lows, of firsts (did I mention you lost your first tooth) and lasts and one neither of us could have ever imagined but we got through it - maybe a bit more tired, maybe with a lot more emotions and perhaps even maybe with your mama having alot more grey hair 🙂

I am so proud of you baby girl - you are a strong, spirited girl that has a super sweet side. I can't wait to see what this year brings