Tribute to Sadie

I haven't posted in quite some time. Mostly it's due to my laziness in uploading pictures to the computer. I finally did it and I have a lot of awesome pictures, but one really stood out, and so I thought that Sadie deserves a post all to herself.

She has been doing awesome in school. She is always amazing me by her ability to read, do math, count money, tell time, write (sometimes her handwriting is better than mine). Not only does she do well in all these things, she loves doing it. Every Friday she brings home a packet of all the things she did that week and she can't wait to show me.

Even though we still have some troubles with her emotions getting the better of her, we have seen a shift in her maturity. We see some remorse for doing something wrong and we occasionally see her take responsibility for those mistakes. The other night, we were really having a hard time getting her to clean her room and Steve and I both got upset. We informed her of a new rule that she wouldn't be able to play with friends unless her room was clean. (She didn't like it very much) After a lot of weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth (on both sides) we agreed that she would either help clean her room or she would have to pay me to do it. She doesn't have have any money, so she would have to do chores to pay for it. Steve didn't really like the idea and tried to explain to her that it would easier to just clean it. She wouldn't listen to reason. We sent her to bed. As I was saying good night, she started crying and said, "You don't like me." I informed her that I like her very much and that I even love her. As I gave her a reassuring hug, she said, "I'll help clean the room after school tomorrow."

Just the fact that she would say that surprised me. I was stunned when she actually followed through this afternoon. She didn't even ask if she could play. In fact, after dinner she asked if she could do more chores to earn some money for a doll. I think I may have blacked out for a second out of shock. She is able to think and plan a little further into her future. I think that's a great developmental milestone. It makes it a little easier for us too.

Sadie is really emotional, especially when she is tired. With the change in the weather, she has been wearing herself out and we have been privy to quite a few more meltdowns. But even among her meltdowns, I can see remorse for poor decisions and less than good behavior. She is still excellent with Dallin (usually) and she loves to "take care of" our neighbors baby. She is a lot of fun to be with, especially one-on-one. We love our beautiful daughter and are amazed by her every day. (Sometimes we are amazed by how difficult she can be, but usually we are amazed by her growth, kindness, and beauty)