Miss Eden

Eden is so fun and definitely my favorite little buddy.  I'm so grateful she isn't in kindergarten yet because I'm just not ready to lose her all day everyday!  We have a lot of fun together. This age is so fun and cute.  

Eden would probably say though that grandma is her favorite buddy. :)  She loves being with grandma and will quite often climb into her lap or hold her hand any chance she gets.  

She is loving her new water freedom since getting her Trach out.  We are looking forward to some real swimming when the time comes.  She is doing lots of practice in the tub so she is ready for the pool too.

Eden is incredibly creative.  I love to find her projects and creations in her craft room and scattered throughout the house.  Brad helped Eden make this cardboard playhouse by helping her cut out the windows and door.  She then took the house away and brought it back with curtains made of pipe cleaners.  So cute and creative.

It's been over a month now since Eden got her Trach out.  It's so crazy that we waited five long years for it to go, but we so quickly got used to life without it.  It's a good life though and one we are very grateful for. She looks more grown up without it - it's kind of weird.  She is doing really well overall and sometimes I still just catch myself staring at her and marveling over how far she has come. She truly is a miracle and has overcome so much.

Maybe it's just her spirit, maybe it's because of what she has been through, it's actually probably a mixture of both, but she is very patient, mature and obedient for her age. She is very logical and likes to follow rules and expectations, and she likes to make sure others do too.  As our oldest child, I think she will be such a great example to her younger siblings.

She is enjoying school and sometimes she comes home very excited because she wants to tell me all about a new friend she made that day.  She is blossoming so much, and I'm so grateful that she has learned to overcome some major anxieties she used to deal with regularly.

She is very affectionate, and is already very boy crazy, or prince crazy I should say.  She talks regularly about finding her prince and getting married soon.  She also likes to talk about her aunt Erin and how she moved to Utah to find her prince.  ha ha  At church we sit next to a family with 5 sons.  One is around 9 years old I think and she tells me often that she thinks he is handsome and she wants to sit by him.  I see her sometimes very slowly scooting down the bench so she is a little closer.  It's very cute.

She loves to go on special dates with her dad.  She looks forward to them and is great competition for me for Brad's time.  :)  They have a very sweet bond and I know she feels cherished by him which is exactly the way a daughter should feel.  I'm so grateful to Brad for that.

She has learned to read some sight words and gets excited about finding words she knows when we read books.  She enjoys doing "homework" from a workbook, but does get discouraged pretty easily if something gets a little hard.  She just says, "Nah, it's ok" and tries to move on, but with a little push from me she will work through it and is very excited when she accomplishes it.

This girl is a tremendous blessing in my life.  Because of her, I have changed in so many ways for the better.  Life is good and having her helped us realize the depth and meaning of everything so much more than I would have had everything gone according to plan.  I'm so grateful for her strong, brave, fun and courageous spirit.  She is amazing and I'm so glad she is mine.