Kate is 8

I can't believe my little girl is 8 years old. In our religious community, turning 8 is a big deal because children can choose to be baptized once they have turned 8. Kate has been counting down the years, seriously! When she was 5, she started to ask how many years it would be before she could be baptized. 

Kate has proven that she is made of pretty tough stuff over the course of her young life. She has been through a lot, but has learned at a young age how to cope and deal with a lot of deep emotions. We moved a year ago, and she has had to switch schools 3 times since the end of 1st grade. She has quickly made friends and made herself comfortable in her new surroundings. She is definitely a social butterfly, and wants play dates every single day! 

She has been awarded a few times this year for her character and her awesome job in school. She has increased her reading level by a grade and half this year and worked so hard for that! She does awesome in spelling and math, and loves to write in her journal. 

Kate usually plays "Family" at recess with a big group of kids in her class. If they are not playing "Family", then they running from the boys! According to her, she is the only child in her class that hasn't "clipped down" on the behavior chart and she is very proud of that! 

She is quiet and meekly mannered at school, but at home is most often a different story! She runs in the house after school and goes straight to the swing in the backyard or the bars and spends the next hour or so "unwinding". She and her sister are either best friends or worst enemies! I can hear them playing/fighting from any room in the house. There are lots of giggling and screaming in the Taylor Household! 

Kate has been practicing Taekwondo for the last year and has some serious skills. She is currently a purple belt. She hopes to earn her Black Belt in the next 2 years. She evens out the weapons at TKW, with makeup! She loves to wear mascara, glittery eye shadow and lipstick when I am not looking!

We are so thankful to have Kate in our family. She has been our constant for the last 8 years, when everything else has changed. She loves and lives fiercely. I am so excited for her to be baptized. She has a really big heart, and is going to do amazing things in her life. I am grateful I get to teach her and lead her along while she is still my little girl. 

Swinging in a hammock with Lola

I have these moments with my kids that feel so perfect and full of love that I tell myself there is no way I could ever forget it. But I have learned that my mind does not store these perfect moments as crystal clear as I would hope. 

This afternoon Lola found me, grabbed my hand, and lead me to the kitchen and asked for a snack. Realizing it was lunchtime,  I told her we would have a picnic in the backyard. As I made our lunch, she looked around for "banket." I sat down on the blanket outside and she said, "Jus a minute Mama. I need ta geta water frum the wittle fwige." I heard the little outdoor fridge open, and she rounded the corner with a huge smile, water in one hand and Diet Coke in the other. Surprisingly she handed ME the Diet Coke and said, "For you Mama!" She was excited to see our lunch was a hot dog, chips, and blueberries. She said, "Mmmmm, soo soo bery good!" 

After our lunch she wanted to play Hide and Seek. She always says, "I count to 4 and you hide, ok Mama?" We ended up in the hammock together for the next hour. We went from hiding from each other, to hiding from the dog, to rowing our boat, and watching the bird and bees fly overhead. She kept laying on me with her chubby little arms around my neck. 

Both the girls love when I make up stories about them wearing fancy clothes and high heels and usually having some super powers and glittering wings.  She asked for a story and when I told her what she was wearing in the story her eyes lit up and she did a quick audible inhale and long exhale and then kissed me! After my story she made up a story about her friend named "Mama friend" who could fly and got all the purple ice cream from the ice cream man and shared it with everyone. Then Mama was eating cotton candy and Lola started to act like I was the cotton candy and tried to "eat me all up!" I didn't mind that at all!

These little people are exhausting, they really are. This morning when I felt the tap, tap, tap on my shoulder, I wanted to turn over and keep sleeping. Moments like today with Lola make the endless diapers, dishes, chores, and carpooling fade to the distance. I want a thousand more of these moments and will trudge through the exhaustion and dishes to get them when they come!