saying goodnight to heidi

I look at Heidi sometimes and wonder what the heck has happened to my little baby.  How on earth is she growing and changing this fast??  She is getting taller and older looking every single day.  She is losing all of her baby teeth, she likes to be with her friends, and has no problem leaving her mom...which I never thought would happen when she was younger!  She still lets me give her a bath and she still wants me to put her to bed, but I am not sure how long she will let me hang onto these moments with her each night.  I am so glad that she still sleeps with Giraffy.  She got Giraffy when she was 2 from my best friend and has slept with him every night since she got him.  She also has her Build-a-Bear from grandma H and a unicorn on her bed, but all of the other stuffed animals she used to sleep with she leaves in her closet.  She used to play doctor with them non stop.  Now they don't get played with much.  

 After bath, we read whatever the latest chapter book is that we are reading.  Lately we have been reading Litttle House on the Prairie.  All three girls are really into them, although the younger two tend to get distracted with coloring or other things while they listen.  Not Heidi.  She has always been my little reader and could listen to stories for hours without hardly moving a muscle.  She has been that way since she was tiny!  I remember getting a huge stack of library books and she would want to read every single book at one time and never lose interest.  I love that she has such a voracious appetite for books.  I know that is why she does so well in school and is the reason her memory and vocabulary are so good.

After we read, we say family prayers and Heidi hops into bed.  She doesn't complain about being the first to bed...she has always been an early to bed/early to rise kind of gal.  She is also the one without a nap and up early for school.  She makes sure her alarm clock is set in the morning and likes

Jeff to give her eskimo and butterfly kisses.  She likes when he calls her his little princess.  She has me sing her two songs and the littles often climb on her bed for one last snuggle.  They absolutely adore their big sister.  Sometimes they annoy her by messing up her blankets and she gets mad.  Sometimes Savanna tries to close her blinds and digs in her nightstand.  It's hard to have little siblings, but she handles it well most of the time and she can't help but smile and laugh when the are smothering her with kisses at the end of the day.

I love my Heidi Bug so much and I am so, so glad she still wants me to sing her to sleep at the end of the day.