Seraphina is 5!

Our little girl is 5 and I just can't believe how much she has grown. 5 years ago we met the little baby who would grow into this beautiful little girl.

This is the last picture of Seraphina at age 4.

My favorite view. This is as you cross the George Washington into NYC. We were stuck in traffic so I had a chance to snap the picture.

Being silly before the game. The walls of the real Yankee Stadium that are still left standing behind her. By the end of the season they will be gone and the rest of the current view is heart wrenching.

Sam playing catch with Anthony

The first cotton candy of the season!

It was cold and Goo Bobby makes a warm pillow for Sammy

A real highlight of her day "Happy Birthday from the Yankees" courtesy of Grandma and Grandpa

The kids actually sitting nicely for a picture.

After the game. As you can see in the background the stadium is in pieces.

Our silly birthday girl in the crown that Grandma made her.

Let's eat some cake!

A ballerina piggy bank complete with a crown

Sam reading her the card he wrote and making Grandma cry

Very touched by the card Seraphina actually ignores the camera for a second

A "very soft pig" from Sammy

And she is back to paying attention to the camera

gifts a plenty

pig slippers

Reading a card with her Daddy, who had to be with the guard this weekend but made it back in time for a little bit of her birthday.

A glimpse at sassy Seraphina. She is clearly telling me something I didn't know in this one.

Princess Tiana dress

Mama reading her a card

Opening her gifts from Great Grandma, Aunt Susan and Uncle Thomas (he hides from cameras too)

In her brothers viking gear with the pigtails she fits right in

Sam is too sweet to be a viking

A pig cake made by Grandma!

This pig flashlight is a big deal to Pheenie. She got one for her Daddy when he was in Iraq and she tries to steal it back all the time. As you can see she is so happy that now they each have one.

Back at home modeling her fairy costume among the gift bags and laundry.

The last five years have flown by and I am amazed at how quickly she has gone from a baby to a little girl. I am amazed that there was a point in my life when I didn't want a daughter. In many ways Seraphina is just like me yet she is very much her own person too. She is bubbly, sweet, caring and smart. In so many ways she is the exact opposite of what I thought I would be getting if I had a girl. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't laugh with her. I am so very lucky to have such a strong relationship with the little girl I didn't think I would be able to handle. Right now she is worrying about going to school because she thinks it will change that somehow. I know that she and I will remain close but explaining that to a five year old is hard and I don't delude myself any more that school won't change anything. Life changes us everyday though and I know that no matter what happens she and I will always be able to come back to where we are right now. (Even if it takes her having children of her own to get to the point where she understands why she wasn't allowed to hang out at the mall with all her friends. Thanks mom :D) Life with my children is beautiful and I am so glad that the powers in the universe knew better then I did what I could handle. There are so many things in the world that amaze me but nothing as much as Sam and Seraphina do. Happy Birthday to my sweet little girl and thank you for sharing your heart with mine.