The Last Day Of Kindergarten

The last day of kindergarten was bittersweet, for Petunia and for me.  It's always wonderful to reach milestones, but it's definitely a little sad to realize that kindergarten is already a memory.  Petunia has grown so much this year that it's just crazy to me.  The Divine Ms. M was the most wonderful kindergarten teacher my sweet and sassy girl could have possibly had, and we owe so much of Petunia's personal growth to her.  We plan on seeing Ms. M over the summer break, so that made leaving today a little more acceptable to Petunia.

Ms. M put together a slideshow from this school year and gave each child/parent a DVD of them.  How incredibly thoughtful is she?!  There are some super cute photos of Petunia, so I'll have to capture those as stills and share them. 

This is a photo of Petunia and her beloved Ms. M that was taken today.  Can't you just see the bond between those two?  Yeah, they adore each other!

Mother's Day Number Six

Time keeps marching on, regardless of how often we wish we could slow or stop it.  Six years ago, the day before Mother's Day, Petunia and I came home from Vietnam as a family.  At that time I had been a mom for only three short weeks.  I couldn't imagine a more perfect way to celebrate my own motherhood for the first time than by coming home with my tiny girl. 

Petunia teaches me something every day.  Something about being a mom.  Sometimes it's a humbling lesson and I have to apologize for messing up.  Sometimes it's the knowledge that I have to do things and make difficult decisions because it's the right thing to do for her and her growth as a person.  Sometimes it's a reminder of how much a hug, a giggle, a look, or a simple signed "I love you" (in American Sign Language) can mean.  I love this child so much it takes my breath away.

I am thankful for my own mother, who taught me so much about being a good mom.  She taught me by example, and she's still always there with unconditional love, advice, and comforting support.  I don't know how I would have been able to handle motherhood at all if it weren't for her.  Thank you, Mom.  I love you!

I am also thankful for Petunia's Vietnam mother.  Unfortunately we don't know the circumstances that caused Petunia to be brought to the orphanage, but I am so hopeful that her Vietnam mother made that decision out of love.  I'm hopeful it was out of the desire for her daughter to live a happy life and to have the opportunity to be whatever she wants to be.  Whatever the situation was, I am eternally grateful to her for giving birth to our sweet and spicy girl.  Petunia will always be her daughter, as well as mine, and I pray that her other mother feels that same way.  I hope that she somehow knows how much Petunia is wanted and loved and cared for by me, our family, and our friends.

In a life of ups and downs, Petunia remains my greatest blessing.  And, yes, my cup still runneth over.

I just wanted to remember this image of her tiny hand on mine forever.  (One of us received a professional manicure.  It wasn't me.)

I was just holding my finger down on the shutter to see if we could get one decent image of the two of us.  Surprisingly, the "bad" shots turned out to be the ones I like the most.  They're out of focus, we weren't looking at the camera, etc., but I still love them.  Color me crazy.

Being silly... being blurry.... being us.  I guess that's why I like this one.

Finally... The Tooth Fairy Is Coming!

After a LOT of anticipation, Petunia finally lost her first tooth.  And when I say she lost it, that's exactly what I mean.  I knew it was loose, but this morning I saw that it was missing and squealed.  Petunia hadn't even realized it was gone until that moment.  I guess she either lost it while eating or maybe while she was brushing her teeth.  Regardless, I assured her the Tooth Fairy would completely understand why she didn't have a tooth under her pillow and she would accept a little note of explanation instead.  Let the era of being a snaggletooth begin!

What's Going On?

When we got home tonight, there were a couple of highschool girls coming out of the house across the street. Lily Ana shouted at them, "What's going on, girlfriends?"

I probably stood there for a full 5 seconds with my mouth open before I started laughing. The teenagers cracked up and said hi to us. 

My crazy, crazy girl! Life is never dull with her.

Dyeing Easter Eggs

Petunia said she just wanted "regular" Easter eggs this year, so that's exactly what we did.  No muss... no fuss.  Greta was super interested in what was going on, so she had to inspect our handiwork when we were finished.  Total cuteness!

Petunia's Imaginary Friend

Petuna has an imaginary friend, but refuses to admit it to me. She giggles, laughs, whispers, and talks with this friend regularly, but always looks at me like I have two heads when I ask who she's talking to. I absolutely love when I hear her say something like, "I don't know. Let me ask her." Then she'll ask me a question, and immediately turn around to pass along my response to her friend. Cracks me up. Not only is she an only child, but she's got an incredible imagination, so I think it's only natural that she's invented a friend or two along the way. 

Today I tried again to ask about Petunia's imaginary friend without seeming too nosy. Apparently my skills are lacking, because she was immediately suspicious. She said that she was the only one who could see her. I said, "Oh, your friend's a girl. That's nice." She just grinned and told me then that she wasn't going to say anything else. As she walked out of the kitchen, she was grinning at her "friend" and I heard her say, "Don't worry... my mom is really nice. She doesn't know your name, but that's okay. My mom knows that some things just aren't any of her business. I think she's okay with you being my friend."

And I am.

Petunia's Own Terminology

Any idea what Petunia calls condensation? Slobber! 

My funny girl.

To Catch A Leprechaun

Petunia admiring the Leprechaun Trap we made for school.  My sweet and spicy girl LOVES to create!