Clare is FIVE

Clare turned FIVE on August 13th.

While that was nearly a month ago, she had fun stretching her birthday celebrations over the course of several days.

Her first party was in Michigan...where she celebrated with the other August birthdays from the Hillary family.

Then she had another little celebration with Mema and Papa the day before we flew back to Florida (the eve of her actual birthday).

She showed genuine excitement for every gift she opened: new dress, new books, Finding Nemo DVD, lots of crafty stuff, and some new dolls/Princess stuff.

Daddy didn't show the same excitement for all of the Princess stuff.

Daddy and Daughter are in the mutual admiration society!

Clare celebrated a final time once we were back home...on her ACTUAL birthday.

 She received five presents on her fifth birthday, and she was thrilled!

Clare requested to decorate her own cake, and here is the masterpiece!

CHEESE!

Sweet Clare...you are one of a kind!  

We LOVE YOU SO MUCH!

Clare at FIVE:

- Wants to make others happy.

- Loves her brother and is VERY excited about the baby on the way.

- Has a perfect blend of tomboy and girly-girl.

- Insists on wearing a dress whenever she hears music that makes her want to dance.

- Wants to do crafts EVERY SINGLE DAY!

- Sleeps with her "pink blanket" and "Pinkie" 

(the bear she made at Build-A-Bear when she turned four) every night.

- Eats every kind of fruit imaginable. 

- Loves Edamame...but she isn't crazy about too many vegetables.

- Checks the mailbox several times a day in hopes of seeing something with her name on it.

- Wishes that she could fly.

- Wants Daddy to do magic anytime something is broken or missing.

- Enjoys spending time in the pool.  She could swim all day!

- Brings joy to laughter to our family!

Weight = 45 pounds (75th percentile)
Height = 44.5 inches (90th percentile)

At Least 2 For the Month

I just peeked at our blog and realized that my last post was August 1st.  Today is the 31st.  It has been SUCH A FULL MONTH, and I can't believe that none of it is chronicled.  I was determined to have at least 2 posts for the month.

While this will hardly even touch all of the details of the last month, it will give a few highlights until I'm able to sit down and devote some time to getting updated.  At this rate, that might not happen until the kids are in college.

Speaking of college, our little lady turned 5 on August 13th.  WHAT?!

More on that later!

We spent 5 weeks in Michigan.  Phil was there for the second half of that time, and we had so much fun with family and friends.  More on that later.

I was BLESSED to have a "sprinkle" for Quatro.  I was literally showered with diapers and love.  More on that later.

The kids had an AWESOME summer.  AWESOME!

Much more on that later.

Fishing and Tubing

Michigan is wonderful for MANY reasons...

two of them being fishing and tubing!

 Uncle Phil was the hero of the weekend because he took the kids on several fishing adventures.  At one point, he was the only adult with seven kids.

Clare loves being with Daddy, and she loves fishing.

This rock bass was just one of their many catches.

 Clare is a perfect mix of tom boy and girly girl.  She can go from being elbow deep in the mud in search of worms to painting her nails pinky-pink to "look beautiful."

Clare has been tubing for several years, but this was Isaac's first summer getting pulled behind the boat.

I love watching these two buds have so much fun together.

 The little guy had no fear.  I was on the edge of my seat a bit as I watched my 2.5 year old swing from side to side behind a speed boat, but he couldn't get enough of it.

 One of his many runs behind the boat.

He kept saying, "FASTER, FASTER, FASTER!"

Ready for more fun!

Fremont Fun Run

 Clare officially entered the ranks of runners in the family.

 This past Saturday was the annual "Fun Run" in our hometown,

and she wasn't going to miss it!

She had quite the cheering section: Buddy and Grandma, Papa, Isaac, Ms. Marcia, and her cousin Laura.

Mommy, undoubtedly her #1 Fan, got to run with her.

The race was a half mile, yet Clare continually called it her "marathon."

She ran the entire thing!  She wanted to "wear music in her ears like Mommy and Daddy," but that only lasted a couple of minutes.

She was bound and determined to earn a trophy (awarded to the top three in every age division), so she kept her eye on the prize.

I was really proud of her, and it made me excited to think about the years of running that we have ahead.  I didn't start running until college, and Phil didn't start running until he turned 30, so she has a leg up on us.

Almost as exciting as the potential of a trophy was the other "prize" at the end.

POPSICLES!!!

It was a really fun morning!

 Drum Roll...
She was 2nd in her age group...thus earning a TROPHY!  :)

She was pretty tickled with the whole event.

Mommy was pretty tickled too.  :)

I'm thankful that it was such a positive experience because she's already asking when she can run her next marathon.

Special Days in Michigan

Today was special because our newest niece, Sarah Bernadine, was baptized this morning. 

It was a beautiful celebration with the extended family...

Here is the Brian Hillary Gang

(Marcie, Brian, Sarah, Jeb, and Grant)

Here are all of the cousins...ranging in age from 1 to 8.

The afternoon consisted of much-needed naps and then some outdoor play time.

The weather in Michigan has been FANTASTIC:

Cool in the mornings and evenings with the high temp reaching in the mid-80's.

The kids had fun in the sprinkler and lake.

Don't know if I've said this before, but WE LOVE BEING IN MICHIGAN...

...in the summer!

Dr. Clare at our 24-Week Appointment

We had our 24-week appointment today, and Clare got to be the helper girl.

Every time I get on the table, the kids become immediately concerned that something bad is going to happen to Mommy.  The midwife was really great about allowing them to be a part of the appointment, and she even let Clare handle the doppler to find the baby's heartbeat.  Ninnie was also at today's appointment.  Pretty special.

This is what my belly looks like when I'm not horizontal.

* I'm currently feeling very good.  Second Trimester is the BEST! 

* Baby is moving a lot, and Clare loves feeling her brother or sister move.
* Clare currently wants a BROTHER, and Isaac wants a BABY.
(Those are the answers everyone hears upon asking what they want.)

* Most people say it looks like I'm carrying a boy.

* Phil and I still kind of think it might be a girl.
* We're really excited about the surprise factor this time around.
* I've been craving cold grapes, peanut butter, MILK, and my daily cottage cheese.

It will be October before we know it, right?!