Clara Catherine - Yesterday and Today

Today is Clara's 5th birthday.

Clara was our 8th granddaughter and 20th grandchild.

She is an important part of this large family.

and an even more important part of this smaller family.

I wrote about Clara in 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015.  Those posts tell a lot about Clara and how her personality has evolved 'through the years' and the following pictures will show how she's changed physically 'through the years'.

So now I want to talk about Clara's todays and what's been going on in Clara's world during the past year.  First of all, after going to preschool two days a week last year, she's graduated to going to preschool every day and she loves it.

And she spent the holiday week in Gulf Shores with her large, extended family.

Then in February she visited Florida and stayed with us for a few days where she enjoyed the pool

Blue Spring State Park to see the manatees,

Disney World,

and Universal Studios where she won these valuable prizes all by herself.

Then she spent a few days with her dad visiting all the Disney sites and attending and being a part of his surprise (for the kids) wedding.  And just this Fall she started ballet lessons.  Here she is at her very first one.

So it's been a busy and eventful year for Clara.  She's interested in sports and looks forward to playing soccer next year

  which is not surprising because she's always showed an affinity for this kind of activity

And she continues to be very active - especially enjoying playing outside with her brothers.

She also enjoys being creative and artistic.

 and spending time with her best pal brother, Eli

her biggest brother and frequent helper, Noah

and her adored sister, always helper, and mentor, Anna

And I couldn't end this post without mentioning how much she loves her daddy

and adores her mommy.

And of course I have to add a few more important facts about Clara.  She's a bright, loving, interesting and interested little girl.  She doesn't miss a thing and is always thinking.  She figures life out as she goes along and nothing is boring to her.  She's active, happy, engaging, and a lot of fun.  For these reasons and so many more, we're wishing her the best birthday possible and a year that's even better than her special day.

Happy Birthday, Clara!  We love you so much!