My first-born is six years old and I can hardly believe it and it feels like she has been six forever at the same time. Over the past year, before our eyes, she has grown more and more tall and lanky and her face has continued to become more and more grown up. It breaks my heart to watch her get so big but the person she is becoming makes me so proud.
At six Ainsley is...
creative and loves art. Her favorite birthday gifts this year were art-related, she is constantly "borrowing" and using up all my tape, she begs for extra pieces of colorful wrapping paper and squeals when she gets it, she can spend hours in the art corner of her room creating, and she is very generous and thoughtful with all her creations. Ainsley takes her creations very seriously and gets upset when little people (ie. Caroline) come in and mess with the "organization" of her art corner, which looks like a bomb went off in a Hobby Lobby. She collects treasures from outside and at school - leaves, crystal rocks, berries, shiny things she finds on the ground - and attaches them to paper to create trees or add emphasis to rainbows. She loves to color and create and one of her favorite things to do is work together with me on coloring a big picture. And she is always very complimentary on my color choice and how well I can stay in the lines. One day when her and I were working on a sewing project together she said, "Mom, I am glad that you are creative just like me." It made my heart swell and I cherish getting to express my artsy/crafty side with her as well as watching her love to create like she does.
incredibly friendly and outgoing. The words friendly and outgoing have described Ainlsey since she was a toddler and able to scoot or wobble away from me in the direction of a new face. But it is still exactly who she is. She waves and shouts to teachers and kids in the carpool line like it is a parade, she makes new friends in an instant at the grocery store or park like it is a meet and greet, she has zero hesitation walking into a room full of complete strangers, and she is invited to an overwhelming number of playdates and birthday parties. And not only does she make new friends easily but once you are in her heart, you are there to stay! She has several friends (girls and boys) that she met once at camp that she still talks about and she is constantly making pictures for friends that she was in class or activities with in years prior. Ainsley has be blessed with so many wonderful qualities but her outgoing, friendly nature is one that George and I consider one of her greatest gifts. I'll admit that it pulls me out of my comfort zone at times when I'm not in the mood to chat with all the other moms at the park and we have had to do some serious reigning in to control Ainsley from taking it upon herself to ask the waiter at dinner about a comment George or I made about the service or food. It has been a challenge at times to establish appropriately boundaries with such a socially eager girl, so that everyone stays comfortable and safe but without stifling her obvious gift. My prayer for her is that as she grows up she continues to have a loving, inclusive heart and a socially fearless spirit. My prayer is also that we will be able to guide her in this area well so that she learns safe boundaries while she flourishes.
tall and a little lanky. Ainsley has always been tall and thin and is at times almost a head above some of her peers. At 6 years old she is 44 pounds and 48" tall. She has always been my great eater, often requesting salad for meals or veggies for snacks, and eager to try new foods. She also seems to be on a nonstop growth spurt! And it definitely feels like she eats nonstop to fuel it. Her long skinny legs still tend to turn inward, making her a bit bow-legged and uncoordinated at times, but I'm sure she will grow out of that. She loves to run, swim, and jump and we are thankful for her healthy and strong body.
emotional. While most of her emotions are still sweet, she does tend to have some larger emotional screaming outbursts when she is hungry or tired and feels especially wronged. She describes herself as 'sensitive' and says that she is the most 'sensitve' one in our family, which she doesn't particularly like. Still, I see myself in all these emotional bursts and pray for her future teenage self (as well as for George and my ability to help her give her perspective and recognize that her feels while valid and valued are usually just temporary).
thoughtful. Ainsley is one of the most thoughtful little people I know. She is constantly making us and her friend's creations of their favorite things. She will come down the stairs after quiet time with a bag or her arms full of things wrapped in paper scrapes. Bailey's creation usually has to do with superman but always has blue on it because she knows it's his favorite. Caroline's is usually an animal and is soft or large enough that she won't stick it in her mouth. Mine and George's usually has purple for "the Go Frogs." One of my favorite ones that she made for me is a picture of me with 3D arms coming off the page holding a 3D book. She said it was a picture of me reading my bible and I love it! She draws pictures for people coming over to help with the house, her teachers, her friends at school, or family/my friends that come visit and I always have an overwhelming pile of letters she has made that I need to stick in the mail.
people-pleaser/perfectionist. Ainsley has always been eager to follow the rules and gets a self-proclaimed "yucky feeling in my heart" when she does something wrong or gets in trouble. Her teachers describe her as a dream student because she is so well behaved and at play dates other parents gush about how easy-going and well-mannered she is. While she isn't always a gem in our company, I'm proud of how she is respectful of authority and how well behaved she is when she is out in the world. The unfortunate flip-side of this is that she hesitates to try new things if she thinks she will be wrong and she struggles to accept forgiveness after she has made a mistake. My pray for her is that she will grown to learn to give herself grace, not let others approval define who she is, and know that there is always abundant forgiveness available for her at the cross.
kind-hearted and loving. At dinner she prays for her siblings who are sad or have boo-boos, her teachers who are sick, and always remembers to thank God for her food or for her day. Every night she requests "snuggle talk time" where we lay with her in bed and talk. She often asks for a story about what we were like when we were little. Ainsley is such a kind and patient big sister to Bailey and Caroline even though they can be tough to love sometimes. She is also a huge lover of all kinds of animals - big or small. Her favorites are kittens but I'm pretty sure that she wouldn't turn away anything that was soft and fuzzy. She is empathetic and loving and has a big heart. It is obvious that she truly cares about those around her.
innocent. Since Ainsley is the oldest and so responsible and well-behaved most of the time, it is easy for me to expect too much out of her. I constantly try to remind myself to let her be little and that she is only 6. Even though 6 feels so big to me, I know that it isn't, and that one day it will feel so little. Ainsley is my big girl in so many ways but thankfully there are still many things about her that help remind me that she is still my little girl inside. For instance, Ainsley has 5 loveys - 3 that were from when she was a baby that she says are her favorite, 1 bear that she got that sort of matches Bailey's, and 1 fuzzy bunny that matches one of Caroline's. She adores her loveys (says they smell good, which they definitely do not) and rubs them on her face just like she used to do when she was little. And she still counts and makes sure that she has all 5 before she can go to bed. She also still fiercely believes in princesses, fairies, mermaids, and unicorns. She was confident that all the characters we saw at Disney were absolutely real, even though some of her friends have tried to dissuade her. She also adores her American Girl doll and the little dolls that live in her dollhouse. She spends so much time setting up her doll house and playing with her dolls. I love to overhear her pretend story-lines because it makes me remember myself playing similar games as a child. I cherish this confident innocence and land of pretend she has and I hope that she is able to maintain it for several more years.
joyful. Maybe most of all, Ainsley at 6 is so joyful and happy. Her laugh and her smile brighten up every room that she enters and we love her to pieces. We are so thankful for her in a countless number of ways and are so grateful that God chose us to be her parents.
At six Ainsley is...
creative and loves art. Her favorite birthday gifts this year were art-related, she is constantly "borrowing" and using up all my tape, she begs for extra pieces of colorful wrapping paper and squeals when she gets it, she can spend hours in the art corner of her room creating, and she is very generous and thoughtful with all her creations. Ainsley takes her creations very seriously and gets upset when little people (ie. Caroline) come in and mess with the "organization" of her art corner, which looks like a bomb went off in a Hobby Lobby. She collects treasures from outside and at school - leaves, crystal rocks, berries, shiny things she finds on the ground - and attaches them to paper to create trees or add emphasis to rainbows. She loves to color and create and one of her favorite things to do is work together with me on coloring a big picture. And she is always very complimentary on my color choice and how well I can stay in the lines. One day when her and I were working on a sewing project together she said, "Mom, I am glad that you are creative just like me." It made my heart swell and I cherish getting to express my artsy/crafty side with her as well as watching her love to create like she does.
incredibly friendly and outgoing. The words friendly and outgoing have described Ainlsey since she was a toddler and able to scoot or wobble away from me in the direction of a new face. But it is still exactly who she is. She waves and shouts to teachers and kids in the carpool line like it is a parade, she makes new friends in an instant at the grocery store or park like it is a meet and greet, she has zero hesitation walking into a room full of complete strangers, and she is invited to an overwhelming number of playdates and birthday parties. And not only does she make new friends easily but once you are in her heart, you are there to stay! She has several friends (girls and boys) that she met once at camp that she still talks about and she is constantly making pictures for friends that she was in class or activities with in years prior. Ainsley has be blessed with so many wonderful qualities but her outgoing, friendly nature is one that George and I consider one of her greatest gifts. I'll admit that it pulls me out of my comfort zone at times when I'm not in the mood to chat with all the other moms at the park and we have had to do some serious reigning in to control Ainsley from taking it upon herself to ask the waiter at dinner about a comment George or I made about the service or food. It has been a challenge at times to establish appropriately boundaries with such a socially eager girl, so that everyone stays comfortable and safe but without stifling her obvious gift. My prayer for her is that as she grows up she continues to have a loving, inclusive heart and a socially fearless spirit. My prayer is also that we will be able to guide her in this area well so that she learns safe boundaries while she flourishes.
tall and a little lanky. Ainsley has always been tall and thin and is at times almost a head above some of her peers. At 6 years old she is 44 pounds and 48" tall. She has always been my great eater, often requesting salad for meals or veggies for snacks, and eager to try new foods. She also seems to be on a nonstop growth spurt! And it definitely feels like she eats nonstop to fuel it. Her long skinny legs still tend to turn inward, making her a bit bow-legged and uncoordinated at times, but I'm sure she will grow out of that. She loves to run, swim, and jump and we are thankful for her healthy and strong body.
emotional. While most of her emotions are still sweet, she does tend to have some larger emotional screaming outbursts when she is hungry or tired and feels especially wronged. She describes herself as 'sensitive' and says that she is the most 'sensitve' one in our family, which she doesn't particularly like. Still, I see myself in all these emotional bursts and pray for her future teenage self (as well as for George and my ability to help her give her perspective and recognize that her feels while valid and valued are usually just temporary).
thoughtful. Ainsley is one of the most thoughtful little people I know. She is constantly making us and her friend's creations of their favorite things. She will come down the stairs after quiet time with a bag or her arms full of things wrapped in paper scrapes. Bailey's creation usually has to do with superman but always has blue on it because she knows it's his favorite. Caroline's is usually an animal and is soft or large enough that she won't stick it in her mouth. Mine and George's usually has purple for "the Go Frogs." One of my favorite ones that she made for me is a picture of me with 3D arms coming off the page holding a 3D book. She said it was a picture of me reading my bible and I love it! She draws pictures for people coming over to help with the house, her teachers, her friends at school, or family/my friends that come visit and I always have an overwhelming pile of letters she has made that I need to stick in the mail.
people-pleaser/perfectionist. Ainsley has always been eager to follow the rules and gets a self-proclaimed "yucky feeling in my heart" when she does something wrong or gets in trouble. Her teachers describe her as a dream student because she is so well behaved and at play dates other parents gush about how easy-going and well-mannered she is. While she isn't always a gem in our company, I'm proud of how she is respectful of authority and how well behaved she is when she is out in the world. The unfortunate flip-side of this is that she hesitates to try new things if she thinks she will be wrong and she struggles to accept forgiveness after she has made a mistake. My pray for her is that she will grown to learn to give herself grace, not let others approval define who she is, and know that there is always abundant forgiveness available for her at the cross.
kind-hearted and loving. At dinner she prays for her siblings who are sad or have boo-boos, her teachers who are sick, and always remembers to thank God for her food or for her day. Every night she requests "snuggle talk time" where we lay with her in bed and talk. She often asks for a story about what we were like when we were little. Ainsley is such a kind and patient big sister to Bailey and Caroline even though they can be tough to love sometimes. She is also a huge lover of all kinds of animals - big or small. Her favorites are kittens but I'm pretty sure that she wouldn't turn away anything that was soft and fuzzy. She is empathetic and loving and has a big heart. It is obvious that she truly cares about those around her.
innocent. Since Ainsley is the oldest and so responsible and well-behaved most of the time, it is easy for me to expect too much out of her. I constantly try to remind myself to let her be little and that she is only 6. Even though 6 feels so big to me, I know that it isn't, and that one day it will feel so little. Ainsley is my big girl in so many ways but thankfully there are still many things about her that help remind me that she is still my little girl inside. For instance, Ainsley has 5 loveys - 3 that were from when she was a baby that she says are her favorite, 1 bear that she got that sort of matches Bailey's, and 1 fuzzy bunny that matches one of Caroline's. She adores her loveys (says they smell good, which they definitely do not) and rubs them on her face just like she used to do when she was little. And she still counts and makes sure that she has all 5 before she can go to bed. She also still fiercely believes in princesses, fairies, mermaids, and unicorns. She was confident that all the characters we saw at Disney were absolutely real, even though some of her friends have tried to dissuade her. She also adores her American Girl doll and the little dolls that live in her dollhouse. She spends so much time setting up her doll house and playing with her dolls. I love to overhear her pretend story-lines because it makes me remember myself playing similar games as a child. I cherish this confident innocence and land of pretend she has and I hope that she is able to maintain it for several more years.
joyful. Maybe most of all, Ainsley at 6 is so joyful and happy. Her laugh and her smile brighten up every room that she enters and we love her to pieces. We are so thankful for her in a countless number of ways and are so grateful that God chose us to be her parents.
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