She's SEVEN!!!!

*I wrote this whole post in April and never published it.  Oops!  Well it was fun to reread.  T's Birthday is February 16th so she is now 7 1/2!

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My baby girl is now SEVEN!!!  My mind still can't comprehend that she is seven... and yes she has been seven for almost two months at this point!   We are so blessed to have T for our daughter!  She is probably one of the coolest people I will ever know in real life.  She finds adventure everywhere.   She is creative and has a style that is all her own.  She thinks outside the box and isn't afraid to try new things.  She laughs easily.  She learns quickly.  She is excelling academically and devours books just like M did.  She has many tender sweet moments that melt your heart.  She loves to memorize the Scripture each week at iGnite and can be heard singing all the verse songs every time she is in the bathroom! 

She still has several growth areas, and we are hopeful that year seven could lead to some therapies which could help her process things in ways that previous therapies have not.  We have seen much growth in her in the last year.  T started taking a couple of meds and these have truly helped her have more control over her emotions when she is upset.  We are thankful for her gains and praise God for His work in her life. 

We can't wait to see what God has planned in T's life in the next year!

Her Birthday was on a Saturday this year.  This meant a full day of celebrating and festivities planned by her.  For a girl who used to want literally every single thing in the store as a gift and every person she met at her party, she has changed some through the years.  This year she just wanted one friend, our buddy L who has been friends with both M and T from day one. 

The day started with T writing a story in the basement while Brandon biked indoors and I walked.  

I am a seven year old writer!

Once I got home she was ready for opening presents right away!

T: What could it be? 

T: I just love the bag!!!

LEGO sets!!!!!

M: I LOVE my half Birthday gifts!

T: I really really really wanted a lamp like this!

I hopeed for my own bank and I got it!

After presents it was time for pancakes!!!  I made lots of pancakes and the kids ate lots of pancakes.  After breakfast they began to investigate their LEGO sets.

T and M: We love getting new sets!

Brandon and I have decided that LEGO's are truly the gift that keeps on giving because the kids want to do them right away and the focus that it takes to put them together is so helpful on a "big day."  In the past holidays have been really tricky, but now that we have LEGO's in our life the day goes much more smoothly.

Getting started!

While the kids worked on their new sets I worked on baking the cakes.  It was a full day of food prep for me!

T: I am on bag  2!

The kids continued to do their LEGO sets for most of the morning.  I was able to get my Sunday School class set up and Brandon was able to help them and get work done at home.  I can't remember every detail of the morning.  The kids might have watched a movie in the morning or perhaps worked on LEGO stuff all morning.

In the afternoon we went up to pick up L and have a little party.  The whole time was planned by T and I just went with whatever she suggested.  The kids played pretty well together.  It is tricky having a group of three, but I was quite impressed with their willingness to take turns.

T: I am thankful that L and M were celebrating with me. 

CHEESE!!!!!

7 going on 13!

The wind up!

The Blowout!

T had various ideas and games that she wanted to play.  They did sort of a ninja warrior thing where they challenge each other with stunts.  This is something that T loves to play!

T: I could do this all day!

The three kids worked together to find candy around our house and then make a piñata!  I was quite impressed with their idea and design.  They even found a way to hang in it in the basement with very little help from me. They each took turns giving the box the hardest back they could.

T: Here I go!

T: I will get you box!

L took some fierce swings as well!

M got in a huge hit and it fell and opened!! 

After the piñata T wanted to play twister.  We all had such great fun laughing at the positions they were getting into.  T is incredibly flexible and no position seemed to phase her.

T: Make it hard L! 

Eventually we brought L home and came home for a pizza night.  I was able to prep the crust and the toppings during the playdate party so all we had to do was bake them when we got home.  We have had some pizza flops over the years, but this pizza was by far the best pizza I have made.  T was so thankful for her Birthday meal.

T: This pizza is perfect!

I am pretty sure that we watched an episode or two of "The Cosby's Show" (we are working our way through the series as a family) after dinner.


We were so blessed to celebrate this special day as a family!

End of the day Birthday Girl Shot!!!