You guys get each other. There are lots of things that you do, playing with him, that I think will be a bad idea. I think you're being too rough, bouncing him around too much. I think you're practically dragging him when you help him walk with his shopping cart. I think you're driving this car too fast, and he's getting whipped around. Then I'll look...and he's laughing. Apparently he likes the way you play, craziness and all. He couldn't ask for a better big sister.

Waiting in the pickup line at school. Every day when I say it's time to go get your sisters, you ask, "Will there be a line?" No matter how many times we do it, you keep hoping it will be different today, I guess. The line bores you. When your sisters were in kindergarten, you almost always fell asleep in the line, even though I wished you wouldn't. Last year we had to circle until the last possible second, hoping Liam would sleep. You would play, or pretend to read. This year you don't want to stay in your seat at all, you want to climb up and be with me. Today you were so excited when I said, "Well, this will be the last year you will have to do this wait. Next year you'll be in kindergarten, and just Liam will be waiting with me." Your face lit up, so thrilled that I was afraid you misunderstood. "Next YEAR," I repeated. Yes, you got it. That was awesome. "Will you tell my sisters that when we get them?!" I'm not quite ready for you to be gone all day with them, so I'm glad there's another 11 months to go, my baby girl, even if it does mean you have to be bored with me on a lot more afternoons.

You were telling me about a Garfield comic strip that you thought was hilarious when I took this. You girls discovered Garfield this summer, on our camping trip in Muskegon. None of you can get enough, and you love explaining the jokes to me. A lot of times when I try to take a picture of you, you get a little stiff because you're trying to smile nicely. This, though, this is your real smile, which is always what I'm actually looking for.

I think you're having a growth spurt. You've been easy to feed, ever since you started getting solids at 6 months. But last week you were cranky for a couple of days and I couldn't figure out why. Then I thought to offer you more food than usual, and you took it all and seemed happier. Whoops. It would be so much easier, sometimes, if babies could talk. You were really funny eating these noodles, pushing one end into your mouth and sucking the whole string in, bit by bit. And of course, you had to go straight to your bath afterwards.

Tonight was Rowan's first time having a friend sleep over, and we started off the night with an impromptu trip to Blank Slate for ice cream. Rowan and G. got matching chocolate fudge brownie faces. The butternut squash ice cream was fantastic. Then home after ice cream for playing horses, then pizza, then Kung Fu Panda in the basement. Rowan and G. both were fast asleep within ten minutes after me turning out the light at 9:30. A successful first sleepover.

You love doing dishes with Daddy. When you were tiny, he would strap you into the Baby Bjorn while he cleaned up and loaded the dishwasher. It didn't take long before you started fussing if he started without you. It was sad when you were too big, really, to be strapped in anymore, because you grabbed things now, and your feet would touch the sink. Now that you're on your own, you put things and take things out. Sometimes you climb right up on the open dishwasher. It's your chore with Daddy, something you do together every night.

We went to pick apples tonight. Two bags full, approximately 100 apples. Cider and donuts, which we were hard-pressed to keep away from the bees. You and your sisters climbed hay bales, rode tricycles, and got completely filthy. Your brother joined in on getting filthy, and added a new bruise to his forehead when I was not fast enough to stop him from face planting. You climbed these old tires and sang, "I'm the king of the castle, you're the dirty rascal." Every time I look at this picture I smile, remembering it.