Taking deep breaths over here today... my youngest is officially three! She's as sassy as ever to me, Conor and Holly, but can be quite shy in public. She loves Frozen, her dollies, Bun-Buns, Sleeping Beauty, collecting toys in all sorts of different bags and then hauling them everywhere with her, dresses, skirts, nightgowns, ballet flats, hummus...

Greta continues to be a beautiful challenge for me. She's a wonderful, forgiving girl and she's forever loyal to our little family. Greta is an absolute joy and a blessing and has been from the day she was born. I am so grateful she's my daughter! Happy birthday to my darling Greta Elizabeth.

Yesterday, we went on a family walk/hike slightly north of Santa Cruz at Wilder Historic Ranch. The area is a wildlife preserve which in turn means we saw a lot of wildlife, mostly birds. The path was a loop and most of it was along the coast with beautiful cliffs. We saw a whole group of seals catching the last of the day's sunshine and some slipping into the ocean. We always talk about being outside more frequently and going on more walks/hikes, but our follow through isn't amazing. However, every time we have a success, I want more! We live in such a beautiful part of this earth.

My sweet Greta is very attached to her Jellycat Bunny. The poor thing has had his stuffing loved out of him. I actually had to make a repair, but more on that later.

When Greta turns three (in just 9 days!), she has to hand in her soother (pacifier), so I really wanted to take some photos of her as she is, still clinging to a tiny piece of babyhood. Greta loves her soother and her bunny so much. She tells us all the time how much she loves Bun-Buns and gives him the loveliest kisses and hugs. Childhood is so beautiful. And I'm so grateful I get to be her Mother.

On Christmas Eve day, some of my family members went tobogganing. Holly was continually going down the hill with whomever was on the way down, and then freeloading rides on the way up. Greta spent most of the time watching and laughing from the top of the hill. Alanna coaxed her down with a ride on her back, such a sweet thing for her to do. I wanted her to have a full ride or two, so I took her down without permission and she laughed the whole way! It was a gorgeous sledding day! And an absolute dream to spend it with my three siblings.

While in Calgary, we spent an impressive amount of time in the snow for a family that lives in temperate California. Holly especially loved the snow! And Greta enjoyed it after a week of becoming used to all the gear the snow requires. This sledding trip was short, since we were still recovering from travel.