Milayla's 4th Birthday Photoshoot

I cannot possibly narrow these down any further. I love the expressions of Milayla and I am eager to preserve her personality at this stage with pictures as best as I can. The whole body laugh. The sparkle in the eyes. The smile that she tries to make bigger by putting her teeth over her bottom lip. Those long eyelashes. The joy of twirling. Or the "frowny face" her and Atticus tried to give me that instead ended up in huge smiles. 

And then there is the headband that she loves so dearly - I think primarily because she can do it herself. There's also the CTR ring around her neck that her big brother insisted on giving to her even though it was too big for her fingers. And the sweet signs of toddlerhood that are becoming less and less evident with each growth spurt. While, yes, I am in love with this stage - curiosity, wonder, excitement - I have loved every stage so far and I think that is primarily because of the love that spills over for Milayla. She has such a kind heart and is always looking to help. She shines.  And she works so hard with some great determination. She is already figuring out fractions, practicing her counting (english, french, and german), and determined to write whenever and wherever she can (she is labelling our boxes for our upcoming move!). 

I could listen to her tell stories and ask questions all day. She has the sweetest voice and I love how undeterred children are about the challenge of learning new words. Kids are incredible. Milayla is incredible. One of my favorite moments with her is when I get to tuck her in each night and give her a back scratch song (she picks a song for me to sing to her while I scratch her back). Then she tells me her favorite parts of the day, and how she loves having her mommy as her best friend. Then it's on to something "funny" where she covers me up with the blanket and I pretend I am sleeping before she gets tickles. Such a simple routine yet such a treasure. 

So grateful to have her and her vibrant, smart, loving, happy personality in our family. She's awesome. And I am so glad to be her mom. Love you, Milayla.