Fall has come and with it comes our littlest’s birthday. This year marks the sixth celebration. Wow! Every year there is such a change, but this year has some of the biggest we have seen. First and foremost is that Julia is a school-girl. Kindergarten has been a joy for her. The second and just as huge is the explosion in communication we hear from her. She asserts herself into any conversation she can, she learned the art of interrupting Emily’s stream of words, she is learning the first sight words, and big words are no longer intimidating. Just yesterday she informed her mama, "you misunderstood what I said". For our late verbal bloomer this is such a big deal!

She loves picking out her own clothes and has learned the love of all things shoes. Her play involves a lot of imaginary play and involves small figures. Her collection of homes, schools, playgrounds, and clinics for the figures continues to grow and brings her delight. School has been incorporated into this play and there is a lot of learning, rules, and lines.

Facial expressions are also a difference between the girls. Emily seems to have her normal mood faces, but Julia has those and more. Taking photos of her is a challenge when she is wanting to pull from the less standard smile face. But on the other hand having a collection of different smiles, pouts, grins, and pure silliness is fun too.

We love our girl for all of her new skills and years we have been blessed to have her with us! Happy Birthday, Julia!