Our Jovi.

Little Jovi is such a spark of light. That spark is not always pleasant (as she often appears), but she sure is a bundle of joy and happiness.

She was my "if I don't have another kid I might get too bored as a mom" child. I loved the boys, and I've always had ambition for things outside of being a mother and housewife, but I knew I would be far more tempted to pursue those things to an unhealthy degree without a little more to do IN the home. I know it might sound silly, but it was one of those constraints I often like to put on myself to help motivate myself to do what I know I should.

Note: I don't have strong opinions about what YOU should or shouldn't do, in or out of the home. This is all just about how I felt led to live the life God has given me.

So, I was working hard on convincing Mark that we ought to have another. A good friend of him, who has five children, said that he has never regretted having more, to which Mark told me "Yeah, I guess we should have another." I took that as a yes, started charting my temperature, and voila! Pregnant next month. I suppose I should have clarified more with Mark, as he did not think he had said yes. But, it was a little late for that conversation.

I'm not sure if transitioning to having three children was so hard just because having three kids is so hard or because Jovi was so needy. She was just slightly crabby so much of the time, and VERY clingy. She only liked me, Mark, and both her grandpas. When we moved when she was almost one year old, I couldn't even set her on the floor for almost two weeks. She either had to be held, or sleeping to not be crying. Even leaving her in children's church has still be hit or miss, though we are on a good streak lately. Did I mention that she is now well over 5?!

Thankfully, she is doing really well with her schoolwork, and even enjoying her CC class while I am not there - hooray! She is definitely our spunkiest kid overall. FULL of energy. When she is happy, she is over the moon happy, and cuter than you can imagine. She is also insanely talented when it comes to body-awareness and movement. She can dance and do gymnastic moves with very little instruction and within just a few attempts.

She loves her schooling too. She is constantly trying to write letters, draw all kinds of pictures, spell and do math for fun. She is excited whenever we do History or Science too. The only subject she complains about is French, which is odd because she talks about it to other people like she enjoys it.

Jovi wants to conquer any task as quickly as possible, and her perfectionism can often get the best of her. She goes from gloriously happy to freaking out pretty quickly, but usually comes back to reality after a few minutes alone in her room. She is mama's girl for sure, which is usually fun, but honestly, I go through phases when I am kind of tired of it. She has been within my sight for almost her entire life, and she still doesn't like to leave me much. I know that will all change someday, so I am trying to just enjoy the time I have with her, as I know it's not time many parents or kids get to enjoy with one another.

Our girl is truly a little slice of sunshine and we cannot imagine how boring our life would be without her. I know many of you enjoy her cuteness, her antics, and her crazy little life too :) I wonder where God will take her in life... I know it will be beautiful no matter what.