"a portrait of my daughter once a week, every week, in 2015"

week 30

penny: for a split second i thought about telling you not to soak your dress, but in the end i'm glad i kept my mouth shut. this hour or so splashing in the creek ranks up there as one of my favorite moments of summer.

week 31

penny: danielle and i took you and stella on a little ladies road trip to chattanooga for the day. we ate delicious food, explored in the 100 degree weather, were pleasantly surprised to find some vegan ice cream when we most needed it, cooled off in a splash pad, and practiced our cart wheels in the park. you were both so good on this trip and it's just another epic adventure to add to the penny & stella story. i can never say enough just how much it means to me that you have a best friend who is so important to you at such a young age. in the words of stella, who when asked at school what it means to be caring, stated this... "it's like how i love penny, and i show penny that i'm caring by hugging and kissing her".

i couldn't even type that without crying again.

week 32

penny: you are pretty smitten with babies these days. when you see one you make squeaky little noises and hold your hands to your face because you just think they're so darn cute. we had been telling you that when we went to visit our friends sarah & chris in philadelphia they might just let you hold the new baby, and you could hardly contain your excitement. i think this moment was everything you dreamed it would be. your very first time holding a baby. and it was intensely heart warming for me too. there's nothing quite like the feeling of watching your "baby" fall in love with one of your best friends baby. oh, little miss evan rose... we miss you so much already!