Lovely Lara

Lara, Lara, Lara,  how can I sum up Lara. :)  I had her do two months of a "Princess Ballet" class with Claire at a community center, and it was so fun to watch. The class grew to 20, 3-5 year olds, and it got a  little chaotic, but it was fun.

Grandma Solano had her strike a pose and this was the result.  Ballet really paid off.

She has a soft spot for animals and can't wait until we move into a place that allows pets.  Here she is feeding ducks, and a little Lorakeet at the Wild Animal Park.  She spotted the sickly little bald bird that couldn't fly and crouched down and let it eat all the nectar she had.  She is very thoughtful.  Her new favorite PJs have a cute puppy on them.  She is wearing them as we speak and it is past lunch-time. 

 Here is her other pair of puppy pjs. As soon as she sees it getting dusky outside she will run and put her pjs on. This one evening right after dinner she laid down to read a book and fell dead asleep. Her siblings were playing past her and she did not stir. It was a nice change considering that every other night she informs me several times throughout the evening that she does not want to sleep in her bed. She would like to sleep in my bed, or the floor in her room or somewhere else. As soon as I get her to lay still she is usually asleep withing 5-10 minutes, but she is a mover and a shaker and it is hard to lay still and quiet. 

 I loved these profile shots taken at her cousin Joshua's second bday party.  Too cute. She is calmly surveying the scene with her unicorn horn and lemonade.

Here is Lara with her cousin Melanie/Melsie.  When these two get together they have so much fun.  They look similar and we have some funny pictures of the two of them together.  We are so glad to live close by. Lara is really social and always makes friends with random kids on the playground.  I was amazed one time when we attended a  primary in another church while we were on vacation and she was so at ease and made sure to offer a seat to other kids coming into the class.  She definitely isn't shy, but she has fears.  Like she will not walk on this dock at this park.  It juts out onto the water and has slats and is very stable, but she will collapse on it and act like she is about to die.  Silly String is another thing she will not go near.  There are just certain things that come up and she will say, "Nope, I am not doing that."

 Here is Lara on her Skut.  She goes really fast on it and is learning to balance really well, so I think the transition to a bike will go well. We have a slight incline on the sidewalk behind us, and it is perfect for riding up and down on.

 Grandma Solano gave us a kit for turning your Easter egg into a bug and Lara really got into it.  She spent a lot of time on her "butterfly".  Glue+Glitter+wings+stickers.  It was a shame to eat it later. When Lara makes up her mind that something needs to be a certain way she is a determined little one. 

Lara is serious about candy .  Easter was soooo exciting with all the candy filled eggs.  Gum is

also requested on a regular basis.

We love our loud, lovely, Lara.