My lady is 5!!

Last week... admist all the busyness and beauty

of Laura's wedding

my dear darling girl turned 5!!

 

After many talks about 'no, you will not be receiving a

REAL HORSE as a birthday gift...'

we celebrated on the Monday with a swim party with her friends

and then both my Opa and Oma's and my parents came in the evening.

The Korporaal's came this past Saturday for a big barbeque,

 including Ben's brother Will, his wife Trina

and their two youngest kids from Ontario.

 

A lot of fun for a special girl...

 

Ranen...

you are a precious girl,

how happy we were... a little girl to love and cherish...

you've grown so much and looking back at all these pictures

make me so thankful to have you in our lives...

you bring us so much joy and love!

  

you still love your trips with us to White Rock and your dolls!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

things you do and love in your fifth year...

sleeping in - you need and love your sleep and I appreciate

the fact you are able to sleep in...

although you often wake and say "I wanted to be the first one awake"
You say the quierkiest of things...
have excellent memory...
and notice everything!

 helping, helping, helping...

yes, you love it and you thrive on it...

 

you are an animal lover through and through...

all your years this shines through - and now you have your sights

set on getting a horse... maybe we will have to saddle up a cow for you!

 

 

 

 

 

 

and this is still one of my favourite animal pictures with you yet:

wow... how you have grown!!

 

You love your cuddles and your one on one time...

another way you take after your mommy!

singing, books, puzzles, learning... you love it all!

see... you've loved books for years... and still do!

pretty sure you have heard your '1000 books by kindergarten!'

  

I have so many pictures of you standing with your brother like this...

it warms my heart...

you love to protect and care!

 

 

 

 

 

and your little sister... you've doted on her from the start!

although you sometimes say to me "mom why doesn't she like this, I am just trying to love on her!" ... it is so hard to understand hey, why she enjoys mommy carrying her but doesn't like it when you do!

 

Preschool... you've completed it like a champ...

you are SO ready for Kindergarten to start! 

You love to learn and I love watching you grow!

first day and mothers day lunch!

 

for your lunch out... you wanted to get dressed up:

nightmares... we almost have them under control!

you hardly have them anymore...

 

 

Gardening... you LOVE it!! and you LOVE to share

your harvest with the neighbours!

I think you have helped mom develop a passion to grow and nuture plants...

 

 

Family time... you thrive with it and often ask to just stay home and be together...

lately we do that pretty much all the time and it makes you SO happy!

tractor time... permanent hugs for daddy!

 

 

We take trips into Vancouver every other month for your eyes...

you have a scar on your cornea from the herpes virus,

your one eye's scar is directly in front of your pupil so you need to

patch your good eye in order to make that one work... every day for two hours!

it is a difficult thing for you to do but you do, and I am proud of you!

waiting on the eye doc... love your love!!

 

Your favourite place to go after the eye doc appt is the caurosel... and the airport!

Planes ... a true Lindhout! you love them and look up

at the sound of them...  and if you see four smoke trails up in the sky

you declare the place an A380!

Love it chick!

(looking up for the plane)

you think of others too... you asked for my phone to take a picture of me on the plane after I had just taken a picture of daddy and you three kids!...

 



You are a determined little girl, not easy to give up...

one of your favourite sayings is

"lets go build some muscles mom"...

i love how improving my lifestyle has shown you

that health is important... you love biking and now we are starting with hiking...

you have always loved biking... and climbing the tower from the blue heron reserve at the end

of our biking adventure... you are a great motivator for mommy!

 

 

 

determined when it comes to blueberry picking too!!

this was your first basket which you followed with 7 more!!

and putting the numbers into order... 

 

 

you have two cousins your age on the Lindhout side

who you love and adore a lot...

first some oldie goldies...

little and big...

 

two years old and five years old...

Then on our most recent trip to Ontario,

you met your cousin, Laura, for the first time:

you two were instant friends!

 

 

 you and your mommy... most say you look like me! 

you usually love to make goofy faces for the camera...

 

 

 

Ranen, Mommy loves you so incredibly much!!

You are a sweetheart who grows in leaps and bounds...

you teach me to slow down and enjoy every moment...

relationships matter to you and that means SO much to me!

I truly treasure every day I spend with you.