I am Loving these photos – she just seems so much older this past year! (Okay, 0 to 1 was a big jump too!)
Newborn – everyone’s favorite Christmas present in 2010!
Yummy! 1st time cupcake eater!
Why is the cupcake so small for age 2?
I’ll take 3 for my 3rd, please!
4 is better than every before – celebrating with a pool vaca in FL!
Now I’m 5 – time for my pre-bday pedi!
I’m S-I-X!
Happy 6th Birthday, Natalie!
Height / Weight: For some reason, I’m thinking 48 inches and 48 lbs. so I must be wrong with one of those. She might only weight 44 lbs.
Personality
Even just thinking about how to describe Natalie makes me smile. She is joyful and fun. She is strong-willed. She is an independent thinker and wants her ideas to be heard, yet does a really good job incorporating others’ into her play. She wants to “do well” and she tries hard. (That is where she is probably most like me.) She is very silly and loves bathroom humor (that is where she is most like her Dad…. Although there are many other finer qualities she has taken from him as well.)
Key Milestones
- Writing all letters – still prefers capital but is definitely writing more lower case letters
- Sounds out words when writing
- Very beginning reading – sounding out words
- Writing and knowing numbers – still working on the “teens” but has made significant progress
- In the summer, she was building some confidence in swimming and would dog paddle.
- Super far away from riding a bike
Natalie’s Favorite Activities
Natalie likes ballet a lot. (She hasn’t been interested in trying a sport with a ball.) Especially when she needs some downtown, she likes to play independently with set-ups, dolls, shopkins, in her bedroom. She will sometimes go along with Elliott’s wishes and play things like superheros, forts, etc. She enjoys imaginative play like babies and “hot lava” too. She also loves “wrestling” with her dad and dancing to “Under the Sea”. (Even that has changed a lot over this year – Natalie as Ariel used to “run” away from Daddy Triton to the shore and taunt him, whereas now she just does her own graceful moves without paying much attention to anyone else.) She likes to play games, especially Uno. I have definitely learned a lot of “sneaky” strategies from her (like holding onto the Draw 4 closer to the end of the game, especially when your opponents calls “Uno”). She likes to go to the library or bookstore, read books, BounceTown, Children’s Museum, and play dates. She likes to write, do crafts and loves to draw. Her drawing skills have really developed – and surpassed my stick figures. She’s more into Barbies and that size of dolls vs. other dolls. She likes dressing those dolls and her American Girls dolls too. You should also see her set a table. She has beautiful design and is very diligent. She also likes fashions.
Natalie’s Favorite Books
Natalie really enjoys listening to chapter books like Missy’s Super Royal Deluxe series and Magic Treehouse Series. She still likes more traditional pictures books like Elephant and Piggy (by Mo Willems) and Fancy Nancy.
My Favorite Activity with Natalie
I love some of the “structure” of playing with Natalie vs. the totally open play. I love playing games like Uno or Trouble or Sneaky Squirrel with her. I love reading stories with her – we definitely have similar interests in books (I’m excited for her to get old enough to read things like Matilda). And I love going on “dates” with her! She’s too fun to be with to just choose one activity.
Favorite Memory
Hiking with Natalie is a lot of fun. I especially liked hiking with her in Maine; she was climbing on rocks and continued wanting to explore further.