Six?

How on earth did she go from this skinny, little red-eyed thing:

1st birthday.

to this skinny, little red-eyed thing:

Rachel's birthday pretty much ushers in the busy holiday season, arriving the week before Thanksgiving so it's no surprise I'm not getting around to blogging about it until I realize there's only 2 weeks until Christmas and the guilt sets in.  I cannot overlook this third child of mine.  She is an angel.  Except when she's not (but seriously, that is so seldom).

For Rachel's birthday, she had the lucky pleasure of having Grandma and Grandpa Jackson and Aunt Jill in town.  This was great timing, since it was also her year to invite friends for a "party", and I clearly needed the help.  (In fact, everytime my mother comes to visit, she flits around, helping where needed and I wonder how I manage to live without her 98% of the time - mom, you are wonderful). 

We took Rachel and her friends to ride horses (thanks to our good friend, Groupon).  Put a few kids on horses for half an hour apiece and they're pleased as punch.

So let's talk about Rachel at age six.  She loves to help.  The other night I was juggling multiple balls (as usual).  There were piles of laundry waiting to be folded but I was instead attaching lights to the boughs of our Christmas tree(as per the kids' requests).  I realized that, with half an hour until dinnertime, I'd better switch gears and get something on the table so I dropped the lights amid groans from my children.  Rachel was so anxious to get those lights on that she transformed into my little kitchen helper, doing everything from cleaning prep dishes, to handing me ingredients, to stirring, to setting the table.  Sure, she may have seen it as a means to an end, but she volunteered and didn't quit until dinner was on the table.  She does this often.

Rachel loves school.  She actually enjoys homework, which is a good thing, since she is one of just a few kids in kindergarten who attends first grade for an hour or so a day for a bit of a challenge (reading, in her case).  She has weathered the transition to school more seamlessly than her sisters before her, keeping dramatic mood swings at bay.  Most of the time.

Rachel really wants to be good.  Sometimes I worry that her righteous desires are in an effort to please (which could actually hurt her down the road... maybe) but who's complaining?  She's six and has read through 2/3 of the Book of Mormon already.  Who does that?

Rachel is sweet and polite.  She makes a concerted effort to thank others for things they do for her.  This kind of gratitude in children is uncommon.

We love Miss Rachel - I'm excited to see what kind of big person she will become.