Nicole // 10 YEARS!!!

One whole decade.

She's been alive for one whole decade.

I've been a mom for one whole decade.

Nicole had some strong feelings about having to go to 2 hours of dance on her birthday (she's missed a handful of classes from a recent vacation and never made them up, so I told her she couldn't miss class on her birthday), and she was convinced it wouldn't be a great birthday because of that. Plot twist: she told me this evening that it was actually a great birthday. She had a good day at school, got to play a bit of Animal Crossing, was able to eat her favorite pizza before dance (Papa Murphy's) and got to go to a holiday party with her grandpa and siblings before coming home and opening her presents. I hit a bullseye with her presents, apparently.

A small note: I think that the age of 10 is where I might stop doing the blog birthday posts for each kid. As life gets busier and crazier, making blog posts just feels like another thing to do. We'll see if I even make it to the 10-year mark with the other 3 kids.

As always, pictures are... coming eventually. (Maybe pictures are the problem! Maybe I should just stop worrying about attaching pictures to my posts!)

Okay, let's talk about the birthday girl.

Nicole at 10 years old:

- Book worm, always. A new favorite series this year: Star Friends

- Constantly tumbling around the house. It seems like she can't go more than a few minutes without doing some kind of walkover or kickover or roundoff.

- Joined choir and orchestra at school this year and is proud of her natural musical ability. The teacher has had Nicole help lead her section in choir on more than one occasion when they were working on split-part songs.

- Has progressed to the Regionals round of the annual Reflections contest in the "Dance Choreography" category. We'll know by January 2nd if she gets to go on to the state level.

- Finally consented to *officially* learn how to ride a bike... and then promptly outgrew the bike we had on hand for her.

- Got her ears pierced a couple months ago! After claiming that she would never ever EVER get pierced, she noticed that most girls her age had pierced ears and decided that she wanted to after all. She was so nervous. We switched her earrings out for the first time this evening! I got her a variety of earrings for her birthday.

- Picky eater

- A true Hermione at heart. She loves to show off her knowledge, loves to answer questions correctly, loves books, loves to follow rules and let other people know when they're not following the rules or doing things correctly... to a fault, perhaps. She even has the social awkwardness of Hermione.

- Her laugh reminds me of a chipmunk or squirrel. Sorry if this embarrasses future-Nicole. I'm recording this here as a reminder for myself, just in case her laugh changes when she hits puberty.

- STILL insists on wearing jeans with dresses. Someday she's going to ask me "Mom, WHY didn't you stop me from doing that!" and I'm just going to laugh.

- Is finally showing interest in some self-care items (beyond bathing) such as brushing her own hair and learning how to put her hair in a ponytail. I never thought the day would come! She's getting better and better at it.

- Runs cold and has many blankets piled on her bed

- Has the BEST reactions when she comes through the door after school to see that I have put up new holiday decor for whatever holiday is coming up

- Watched all 9 films in the Skywalker Saga and has a mild obsession with Kylo Ren. Shortly after we finished those, we had her watch the first 3 Pirates of the Carribean movies. It's so fun to introduce these films to her, and she's been handling the content really well.

- My constant shadow in the evening when the rest of her siblings have gone to bed.

- Went to a birthday at a reptile house a few months ago. She entered the party with a healthy fear of snakes, and left the party obsessed with them and wanting a pet snake of her own. I told her she'd have to feed it live mice. That deterred her a bit.

- Her 4th grade teacher has two pet bearded dragons, and Nicole has earned a few different opportunities to hold one. This has only increased her newfound affinity towards reptiles.

- Has a tendency to prefer the morally grey, troubled, villain-leaning male characters in a book or movie. Draco Malfoy, Kylo Ren, Anakin Skywalker, Jareth the Goblin King... well, she IS my daughter.

- Such a night owl. It's ridiculous.

- We need to get this singer/dancer into a musical, stat! But WHEN?!

- Loading the dishwasher is her favorite kitchen job.

- Religiously feeds Ava dinner at 5:00 every day (unless she's gone, or Austin manages to beat her to it)

- Sure, she's 10, but she's still just a kid. She loves kid things. She loves to play with Barbies. She even spends plenty of time playing with her sister's Little People sets.

- She IS showing some interest in pre-teen stuff, though. Nail polish. Makeup. Hair. I'm just waiting for the fashion awareness to kick in (hopefully sooner than it did for me... so unfortunate haha)

- Yes, she likes Taylor Swift, but she loves movie and video game soundtracks more.

We love you, Nicole! I'm glad your birthday ended up being great.

Nicole // 9 Years

As of about a week ago, Nicole is halfway to adulthood. IS THAT NOT INSANE?!?! Okay, I'm done yelling. But honestly, it's a bit crazy to think that her childhood (if you include the teen years) is halfway done. Nicole had a bit of a busy birthday because of school, ballet, and acrobatics, but we still managed her birthday dinner request of grilled cheese with tomato soup, as well as a rousing chorus of "Happy Birthday" while she blew out candles that were wedged into no-bake cookies and ice cream. Most of the true festivities happened over the weekend with a birthday party with friends from school at Hang Time (a trampoline park) and a pizza dinner and cake with my in-laws.

Nicole at 9 years old:

- Still a huge bookworm. I put a small bookcase in her room about 2 months ago and she has already run out of space on it because she keeps bringing all types of books home as prizes from her teacher at school.

- Stays up too late reading with a nightlight. I let her get away with it because #childhood

- Even though I already read the entire Harry Potter series to her (twice, technically) she is now reading it herself. Currently on book 6. She has her own copies of all 7 books.

- Participating in Battle of the Books for the first time at school this year and is quite confident her team will win

- Has a full dance schedule this year with ballet, jazz, and acrobatics every week

- Entered the PTA-run "Reflections" program for the first time this year and came in first place for Original Dance Choreography at the intermediate level (grades 3-5) at her school.

- Sang a solo in church for the first time back on Easter. She was so nervous but did SO well.

- Has vivid dreams pretty regularly

- Still loves Polly Pockets and has enough sets to create an entire community out of them

- Wears jeans under dresses

- Puts her shirts/dresses on backwards half the time

- Would wear dresses every single day if she could

- Would also wear flip flops literally everywhere if she could

- While she's still obsessed with KitKats, there's a new candy battling for her number one spot: Airheads Xtremes

- Straight-up asked about Santa earlier this year, so... she knows

- Doesn't talk to me about boys all the time anymore, so I guess we're getting to that phase where mom isn't her go-to gossip buddy anymore. Waaaah.

- Became obsessed with the TV show "Miraculous: The Adventures of Ladybug and Cat Noir" this year (and got the rest of us hooked on it as well, honestly)

- We discovered this year that she's missing two of her adult teeth. They're just... not there. Her front two bottom molars. Hopefully the baby ones last for many years to come!

- Would rather handle the dirty dishes than sweep the kitchen floor

- Refuses to ride a bike, even though she can technically do it (Doug has witnessed)

- Very efficient on a razor scooter

- Runs on the cold side, so she's developed the habit of huddling over the heating vents whenever the furnace is running and complains that the 3 blankets on her bed (plus her fleece pajamas) are not warm enough at night

- Collects ChapSticks

- Very eclectic taste in music, but primarily prefers movie and videogame soundtracks

The happiest of birthdays to you, Nikki B. Enjoy your final year in the single digits!

Dance Concert 2022

I figured that since the 2023 concert is happening in just over ONE MONTH, it was high time to finally get some pictures from the 2022 concert posted. Ooops. Pictures and blog posts have obviously been very low on my priorities list. But I've added pictures to the past few posts, so be sure to look back at those if you've been waiting to see them!

The 2022 concert was exciting because we had TWO little girlies involved with it! They both had fun, and the week leading up to the concert was crazy between the pictures and dress rehearsals (and Austin's t-ball games and other events/errands we had).

Nicole had three routines for the 2022 concert: one for her acrobatics class ("business people" costume), and then one ballet number and one tap number ("mazurka doll" costume). This was her last year doing tap, actually, which she is a little sad about, but our studio doesn't teach tap past this level. She turned up the sass to a full level 10 for her acro and jazz numbers. Quite the performer, ya know.

Meanwhile, Autumn and her two classmates were the envy of all the little girls because they had unicorn costumes. Autumn did so well on her dances and didn't have any stage fright! However, she was not expecting the traditional, loud "cast scream" that all the dancers do after the bows when the curtains close, and she was NOT a fan of that group scream. She refused to go out for the bows for her second performance because she didn't want to hear everyone scream again! Poor Tum Tum.

Our little dancers. Austin will join them this year because he's taking an acrobatics class at the studio, and Lydia will probably join them in the 2024 concert! THAT will be crazy. It already took me well over an hour to do hair and makeup for both of these girlies, and I had to do their hair 4 different times (5 for Nicole)! At least Austin won't need hair or makeup. Praise be to short-haired boys.

Nicole // 8 Years

I'm finding it a little hard to swallow that this girl is 8 now. HOW CRAZY?! I remember being 8! She's going to enter the preteen phase before I know it. She's still deep in the magic of childhood right now, though. Unicorns are still cute, Santa is still magical, and climbing on the furniture is still something that happens too frequently for mom's liking. Haha!

Her birthday was on Sunday, and we dragged the celebrations out over 3 days with a party at Hang Time with some of her friends, dinner at my mother-in-law's, and another dinner and dessert of her choosing (taquitos...chocolate peanut butter cheesecake and ice cream). 

Nicole at age 8:

- Sings daily and has a strong voice with a fantastic sense of pitch.

- I finally picked back up on teaching her piano this year (after an almost-1-year hiatus because #babysister) and she's making very quick progress. Music makes sense to her.

- LOVES to read and will easily spend hours a day with books. She stole a nightlight from the hallway a couple nights ago so that she could use it to finish one of the chapter books we gave her for her birthday that she had spent all evening reading. She was so grouchy the next day...

- Loves playing Mario Kart

- Night owl

- A liiiiitle boy-crazy. Her list of "boyfriends" (AKA boys she has a crush on) currently amounts to 7.

- Has an impressive Polly Pocket collection

- Favorite book series include (but are not limited to): Owl Diaries, Unicorn Diaries, The Magic Treehouse, The Princess in Black, and Diary of a Wimpy Kid. I also finished reading the 7th Harry Potter book to her earlier this year.

- Thanks to her acrobatics class, she is very close to perfecting a backbend kickover. She worked VERY hard on her handstands and backbends all summer. It's so cool to see her get stronger and more flexible, especially because acrobatics was very hard for her when she first started.

- In addition to acrobatics and jazz/ballet she has started taking contemporary dance, which she LOVES.

- Obsessed with KitKat bars

- Spends any money she gets on.......books and KitKats. :D

- Does not like soda/lemonade, so water is her drink of choice...unless there's chocolate milk!

- Enjoys swimming at local recreation centers, or her grandpa's pool during the summer

- Regularly lets us know that she wants to go back to Disneyland (Incredicoaster is her favorite ride)

- Had two more teeth pulled this year, bringing the total # of teeth pulled up to 4 (and 2 lost naturally)

- Loves a good card or board game

- Such a goof. For every nice picture I got of her for her birthday shoot, I got two that were of her being goofy. The ones I've shared are just a tiny taste!

We're so lucky to have this crazy chicka in our family! Happy birthday, Nicole!

Nicole // 7 Years

If these pictures don't perfectly capture Nicole's personality and essence, then I don't know what does. What a goofy, bright, energetic little cheeseball. Our home is twice as vibrant and noisy with her in it, and it's really neat to watch her becoming more and more of her own person.

She requested a unicorn cake, had fun playing at Coconut Cove with her brother and a friend, and insisted on chicken taquitos for dinner. Lots of video games played, and even attended a different child's birthday party. Very happy to be the birthday girl today. Very happy indeed.

Some tidbits about Nicole at this age:

- We moved her into her own room earlier this year, and she loves having her own space.

- Has a deep love for reading. She spends at least half an hour every night reading in bed... longer, if she can get away with it.

- Hoards mountains of books in her room, and I periodically retrieve the ones that don't specifically belong to her so that I can put them back up in the playroom where her siblings can use them too.

- Enjoys singing and dancing to music played from her karaoke machine.

- Loves school.

- Even with her love of school, she comes home drained and likes to unwind with a quick snack and an episode of a tv show like My Little Pony, Pokemon, or Jake and the Neverland Pirates.

- In the past year she has added soccer, karate, and acrobatics to her repertoire of extracurriculars. She will also be trying out for the school musical (Seussical Jr.) this coming week and is quite looking forward to it. Still going strong with her dance class.

- She's a fan of David Archuleta now, after having gone to his very first concert since the pandemic started earlier this year.

- "Raya and the Last Dragon" gave her nightmares. But Voldemort's resurrection in the 4th Harry Potter book/movie did not. She cried with Cedric died, though.

- Yes, Draco Malfoy is still pretty much her favorite fictional character ever.

- I started teaching her piano more intentionally in the past year, and she picks it up quickly. I haven't been able to teach her much since Lydia was born, so she took initiative and figured some things out herself. She can now play all of the songs in her primer. Music is something she understands.

- Had her two bottom front teeth pulled at the beginning of this year because her adult teeth were growing in behind them. No other signs of loose teeth so far.

- Was getting really good at the monkey bars over the summer, but then she fell from them on her first day of school (of all days!) and got a nasty bump on the back of her head. No concussion, fortunately, but she won't go on the bars anymore.

- Frequently asks to go swimming at the Provo Recreation Center.

- Loves eating out a Wendy's because of Frosties and kid's meal toys.

- Tends to play with boys more often than she plays with girls.

- Her memory skills are still rather impressive. Nothing gets by her.

She's still so young, but at the same time... I remember being 7! She's over 1/3 of the way done with her non-adult years! Dang. Stop it, Father Time. You thief.

Nicole // Dance Year 4

Belatedly popping in to share some photos I snapped of Nicole in her costume for this year's dance concert! She and her classmates were "Rubies" (yes, like the gemstone) and the concert storyline was loosely based on the movie "The Labyrinth" (yes, the cult classic featuring David Bowie and his tight pants). We've missed the craziness and fun that comes with concert time. Last year, thanks to the pandemic, the concert was cancelled. The girls filmed their dance numbers instead so they could be compiled into a movie. A unique experience, but not quite the same thrill as being on a stage, of course.

Nicole thrives onstage. At the beginning of this year, she was talking about not wanting to do dance anymore... and then she started learning her routines for concert, and all thoughts of quitting disappeared. I even asked her a day or two before her first performance if she still wanted to discontinue dance next year, and she looked at me like I was crazy. She had the largest smile through each of her numbers. She got to do a jazz routine and a tap routine. The tap number was by far her favorite, as she got to be very sassy in it (the song was R.E.S.P.E.C.T. and we all get a little sassy with some good Aretha Franklin, right?) The jazz number (done to the jazz music classic "Sing, Sing, Sing") was fun to watch too.

I'm excited for next year's concert because Autumn is starting dance this week, and the youngest group is always a hoot to watch. That'll give us 4 routines to cheer on during the concert! Er, 5 actually, because Nicole is taking an acrobatics class at the studio this year, and the acrobatics classes get a number in the concert as well. Should be a fun year!

Nicole // 6 Years

Nicole has been counting down to her birthday for literal WEEKS and proclaimed this morning, "I can do whatever I want today because IT'S MY BIRTHDAY!" sooooo I think it's safe to say that she was excited. She has basked all day in the glory of being The Birthday Girl.

Nicole at 6 years:

- At times, you can be on the opposite end of the house from her and still hear her talking. Homegirl can project that voice for what seems like miles!

- She enjoys composing her own little songs on the piano. Doug even created a bass line to play with one of her compositions, so they play it as a duet together and it's adorable.

- She takes pride in her memory abilities. She proclaims, "I can put things in my mind, and they stay there for a long time! And then I can remember them all the time!" Her memory really is quite good. She surprises me with what she remembers at times.

- She LOVES Kindergarten and comes home with stories every day of things her friends did/said, or tales of the accolades she received from her teacher for listening and staying on-task.

- Her reading skills are coming along nicely, and she wistfully stated several times in recent weeks: "I hope I get lots of books for my birthday!" Well, she got multiple books!

- Speaking of books, I'm nearly done reading the first Harry Potter book to her. As of writing this, we have only 2 chapters left. She is LOVING it. She wishes she could have a broom and do magic, she does NOT like Snape, and she claims Gryffindor as her house (I'd say she's more of a Ravenclaw, but what kid DOESN'T want to be in Gryffindor when they first start the books?) It's so fun seeing your kid loving something that you've loved since your own childhood!

- There's a kid at her school - we'll call him J - whom she says is "the cutest guy in the whole class". Ooookay, you are in Kindergarten, you're not allowed to say that yet! Haha!

- Her dearest wish is that her favorite toys could come to life and play with her.

- She is a popcorn fiend.

- She has a fondness for Cafe Rio pork quesadillas, as well as taquitos, frozen fruit, and all bread products.

- She would prefer to wear short sleeved dresses year-round. She claims that her long sleeves get wet when she washes her hands, and that dresses are better than pants. I make her wear tumbling shorts under her dresses anyways, but she still prefers dresses/skirts.

- We have a daily "quiet time" in the afternoon where the kids all have solo time in separate rooms (Autumn takes her nap during this time) and there are some days where Nicole is practically BEGGING for quiet time to start because she wants to have "me time" away from her siblings.

- Top movie she added to her favorites this year: "Wreck-It Ralph" with the new "Aladdin" coming in as a close second.

- Top TV shows: Pokemon (the original Indigo League), and she recently got back into "Jake and the Neverland Pirates" because I was explaining to her how she used to watch it all the time when she was around Autumn's age, and she could barely remember the show and wanted to see what the big deal was. She told me, "This show is kinda boring..." but then proceeded to use all of her screen time for the next week watching it. Homegirl is a sucker for anything Peter Pan-related.

- She enjoys taking brisk scooter rides around the block.

- She entered a sudden "coloring book phase" in recent weeks, and has been methodically working her way page-by-page through a few different coloring books she owns.

- She loves playing "the floor is lava" and will consent to playing a card game in a heartbeat if either Doug or I indicate we are willing. She loves Skip-Bo and Uno.

- - - - - - - - - -

She has never-ending energy, a big imagination, and sings her heart out. She loves to play with her siblings and enjoys being a leader. We love her! Happy birthday to our dear, crazy, goofy first-born!

Nicole // 5 Years

Half a decade with this goofy girl and her larger-than-life personality! We love her a lot, and our home is much livelier with her in it. Here are some fun facts about our favorite 5-year-old:

- I don't think she can make it a full hour without singing, unless she's watching a movie or sleeping. Like mother, like daughter? She even hums while she's eating! (It's a habit that Austin has picked up on too. Basically, our dinners are like mini concerts.)

- She can put a 100 piece puzzle together all by herself.

- It's so fun to watch her slowly learn how to read! Such a game changer for this bookworm. But meanwhile, she still loves to "read" books in her own words.

- I read "Little House in the Big Woods" to her and she loved it! "Little House on the Prairie" wasn't as interesting to her, though, so we'll have to try reading it again a bit down the road.

- We've been introducing some older movies to her, and she really likes "The Wizard of Oz" and "Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory".

- She loooves her baby sister!

- All I have to do is look at her and say, "Don't smile..." and she immediately covers her mouth so that I won't see her mouth twitching as she tries to keep a straight face.

- She's a scab-picker. Thus, she has some scars on her nose and cheek from where she kept picking scabs off and it took forever for the cut to heal.

- We've played countless games of Uno with her this year. She learned how to play back in January, and she's pretty good at it.

- She's definitely a night owl. All she's ever wanted to do in the mornings was sleep in as late as she could, no matter how early we put her to bed. Unless it's the weekend and she knows that Doug is home. Then she's up and out of bed very willingly. #DaddysGirl (But also because she knows it means she might get pancakes or waffles for breakfast...)

- She tells me she wants to learn how to play the piano and the flute.

- She's very good at riding her 3-wheel scooter, which she mastered back in late spring.

- She saw Frozen II last week, and claims it's her new favorite movie. I'll admit, there was a scene in the movie that had her laughing very loudly.

- Heaven help anyone who touches the toys she was playing with and messes them up. You're about to get an ear-full.

- She is often a willing helper, especially when I ask her to do something to help her little siblings.

- One year later, and she is STILL heavily obsessed with Breath of the Wild (a video game from the Legend of Zelda franchise). Since Nintendo doesn't really make kids toys for their games (and Amiibo are expensive) Nicole has taken her LOL dolls and renamed them to be characters from this video game. She turns pillows and tables into various locations from the game (Hyrule Castle, various Divine Beasts, etc) and has spent many an afternoon playing contentedly that way.

- I find it amusing that she insisted on cake for her birthday because she's actually not a huge cake person. But brownies, ice cream, and cookies? Yes, please!

- In the imagination category, she loves: solo-play where she can act out stories with her toys, making up new words to songs, and playing make-believe with her brother (usually consisting of running away from monsters, hunting down "bad guys" or playing house).

- She's been very interested in "art" this year, from watercolors, to pages and pages of crayon/marker/colored pencil drawings, to sticker art and painting.

- Her favorite workshop at preschool is cooking. She enjoys making food, and insists on making her own sandwiches and helping to make things she finds particularly appetizing (like cookies, or pancakes).

- She likes going to Target almost as much as I do! ;)



She's our energetic, sassy, fun-loving Nikki B! Oh, and she doesn't really like being called Nikki, but family members can get away with it, hehe. Love ya, Nicole.

Nicole // Dance Year 2

We had another successful concert last weekend, and Nicole had a blast! That wraps it up for her second year of dance. She once again had three exhausting days filled with a dress rehearsal, followed by two evening performances that were so long that she didn't get home, cleaned up, and in bed until around 11. So tired, but so excited to be onstage.

This year's concert had a "Wild West" themed story, and ventured through New York, the western American wilderness, and down into Mexico. Nicole got to be a Chaparrita (which is a Spanish pet name for a "short girl") and did a fun tap routine with maracas to the Gloria Estefan song "Conga" as well as a pre-ballet routine to "La Llorona" from the movie Coco. We knew a good handful of girls in the concert who are/were in our ward (church congregation) which made the concert all the more enjoyable to watch.

I feel like I've learned more about "dance hair" from this concert, and figured out some tricks that I wish I'd known during my ballroom days. I still have a LOT to learn about getting that perfectly slicked hair (especially when it's short, fine, wispy little girl hair) but I'm getting better!

I heard a few different reports of various attendees (who we've never met) who found Nicole to be entertaining. Last year she was an absolute hoot to watch because of her enthusiasm, and this year she was apparently a hoot because of how focused she was. Love that girl. May she always keep 'em entertained!

Also, it's fun to see how she's grown since her first dance concert.

Nicole // 4 Years

Happy 4th birthday to the girl who made me a mama! Nicole is 1/3rd sassy, 2/3rds sweet, and 100% a blessing and joy to us. I've learned many valuable lessons (and grown in many ways) from being her mom. But this post isn't about my mama journey, so let's talk all about the birthday girl!

Nicole at 4 years old:

- Let's get the obvious out of the way first: homegirl loves to sing. Not only does she love to sing, but she also has a looooud singing voice and she has quite the memory for lyrics. Favorite styles include anything Disney (including live action films such as Newsies), anything Christmas-related, and anything dramatic/boisterous/catchy.

- She loves wearing necklaces.

- She is SO pumped to get the mail every day.

- She enjoys hot showers. The warmer the water, the better. The longer the shower, the better. I guess she's preparing me for the teenage years already.

- Her sass level is also very "teenager-esque" sometimes. She talks back to me a bit more often now, and I'm torn between annoyance at her attitude and pride at her learning to stand up for herself and speak her mind. Other times, the sass is just straight up funny. A recent example (I might be remembering the details incorrectly though) occurred when my brothers were staying with us for Thanksgiving. Nicole was eating something and I think she asked someone to fill up her water cup. One of my brothers told her she could go fill it herself, and she responded with, "Well, I don't see YOU eating anything..." because he was just sitting at the table on his computer (therefore he was available to go fill her cup). Oh man, we were dying.

- She does NOT put up with (for lack of a better word) crap from me or Doug. She does not hesitate to let me know if she finds my emotions or actions unappealing. "Mommy, do NOT hurt my arm! I DON'T like that!" if I snatch her by the arm too tightly when I'm exasperated, for example. Once again, I'm proud of her for taking charge of her own feelings, body, and personal space. It's important for a girl to learn the power of a strongly-worded "No!" in this day and age.

- Currently, we can hardly get through a day without her requesting to watch one of us play a game from the "The Legend of Zelda" franchise. Breath of the Wild is her favorite, but I've heard her request Ocarina of Time before (I played through it earlier this year) and she seems to really be enjoying Twilight Princess, which both Doug and I are playing through right now. We almost did Zelda-themed family costumes for Halloween instead of Peter Pan... but I decided it would be too much work, especially without a sewing machine.

- She will pick dresses over shirts/pants ANY day. Even now when it's snowy outside, she prefers to go around the house in short-sleeved, knee-length dresses.

- Just like Austin, Nicole will gladly eat a whole avocado by herself in one sitting. She also enjoys snacking on frozen fruits and veggies (particularly pineapple, mango, berries, peas, and green beans) and has an ever-enduring love for German Pancakes (aka Dutch babies).

- I usually put a hairbow in her hair when we leave the house, and she gets very annoyed if anything bumps her bow. She will claim that her bow "got messed up" even if it looks like it hasn't budged.

- She enjoys putting stickers all over herself and Austin. She's currently in the habit of taking any stickers she gets (from grocery stores, doctor offices, etc) and putting them on her back. Yes, on her back.

- Books are still one of her main obsessions. I'm excited for her to start learning to read. Meanwhile, she takes any opportunity she can to have Doug or me read to her.

- Coloring is another obsession. She prefers blank paper over coloring books.

- She has grown very proficient at writing her name. She enjoys practicing her letters on our magnetic drawing board. She is obsessed with writing the letter "H" for some reason.

- When she wakes up in the morning, she always gets out of bed and peeks her head in my room to see if I'm up yet (and to see if Doug is there). If it's a weekday and Doug isn't there, then she returns to her room, turns the light on, and "reads" books for a while until she hears me get up or hears Austin start chatting to himself. If Doug is there, then she comes on in and wakes him up because... Daddy.

-  She's a huge Daddy's girl, in case you didn't get that impression from the previous point. She'll pick Doug over me any day, honestly.

- She has high levels of empathy when it comes to people being in pain. If one of us gets an "owie" and needs a bandage, she's right there fussing over us and telling us it will be okay, saying, "Ooooh, I'm SO sorry that happened!" She actually held my hand when I had to get a shot a few weeks back.

- She went through a phase for a few months where she asked almost daily if we could go through the car wash. She still loves the car wash (but asks about it less often now) and so we went through one today for her birthday. She was pumped!

- She's been obsessed with The Greatest Showman for most of the year (it was the 2nd movie she ever saw in theaters). She has all the songs memorized, and often sings them to herself when she's trying to fall asleep at night.

- This has been a big year for Nicole to get over some of her fears! At the beginning of the summer she freaked out over being in water any deeper than her belly button; now she'll go vaulting over the side of the pool into the lazy river without even informing me first (while wearing floatie wings). She also finally got over her fear of the foam pits at gymnastics places. Her increased bravery lets her climb to new heights (literally) and try things she wouldn't have even half a year ago.

- If you ask her who her best friends are, she'll respond with her cousins Eric and Claire.

- She likes playing "house", which mostly consists of eating pretend meals at the little play table and going to bed while she turns the playroom light off and closes the door.

- She's very "schedule minded" -- in other words, she appreciates knowing what's on the agenda for the day/week/month. She'll recite what events are happening during the week, along with which days they're happening on. She loves to anticipate big holidays or events.

- She also appreciates procedures. Bedtime routines. Keeping track of whose turn it is to hand the receipt to the lady at the exit of Costco. Making sure we all take our multivitamins every morning. Stuff like that.



I could go on and on, I'm sure, but we'll stop there. We love our little preschooler! And, just out of tradition, here are pictures of her from each of her birthdays. So big, so fast!

 ^^^3 weeks old

 ^^^1 year old

 ^^^2 years old

 ^^^3 years old

And our current happy 4-year-old! Happy birthday, Nikki B!