Why do they have to grow up?

My Barbie Princess Fairy Cowgirl.

I'm just sitting here thinking. This little girl turned 5. Not possible for at least 2 reasons, #1 I'm not nearly old enough to have a Kindergartener, and #2 It can't possibly have been 5 years since I first laid eyes on my little Olivia. It's just not possible!

Olivia is so smart, and cute, and sweet, and her imagiantion is so much fun to watch and listen to, and some of the things she does and says keep me on my toes.

I have a few of my favorite "Olivia Moments" I'd like to share with you.

We were driving to Grandma and Grandpa's house, Olivia was a few months shy of turning 3. She sat in her car seat, being unusually quiet when she let us into that little mind of hers, "Dad, dogs have tails and cats have tails." This sparked a conversation on what other animals did and did not have tails. Monkeys, yes. Sharks, no. I turned around and asked, "Olivia, do you have a tail?" She took a moment to think, "No! I have a bum!"

The day came when I was able to inform Olivia that I was pregnant with baby #3. I told her there was a baby in my tummy. She got the cutest little confused look on her face and said, "Are you sure?" I told her that I was sure. She then started planning her life with a new sister, i had the sad job of informing her that we didn't know if it was a sister or another brother. "Let's just call it a girl."she said. Olivia was quite sure from early on that she was getting a girl sister and not a girl brother.

Same week I was reading the Book of Mormon with her. She was quite inqusitive about what a record was, what wicked was, and what destroy meant. I finished reading and went over what we had talked about with her. "Olivia, what does wicked mean?" Answer: "It means you don't get any treats." There's also a very fun Laban story, a bit too long for this post.

Olivia loves to make new friends. When we go to the playground, when we go to McDonald's and this paticular time when we went to Target during the Christmas rush. "Mom, maybe I can make a new friend today!" I tried to explain that this wasn't a play place and that most everyone would be rushing. That, however, failed to deter my daughter. We were walking hand in hand when a family that looked mid-eastern to me passed by going the opposite direction. They had a little girl about Olivia's size. Olivia looked at her, waved, smiled sweetly, and said....."Hola!" i started walking faster....and tried not to laugh too loud.

What can I say about Olivia? She is my favorite oldest daughter. she is the cutest Olivia I know. She is a sometimes more than others patient sister to Sam. She is a mostly gentle older sister to Emerson. She is sweet, and onery, and fun, and lovely. I love her to pieces. I want her to stay small. She, however, informs me she needs to get big so she can be a mommy, too. Not so fast, my dear... let's just try getting through preschool first.