Double Digits

Dear Natalie,

Today you are TEN!  Double digits are a big deal! 

I know I tell you all the time that you are my baby, but the truth is you are not little anymore.  You no longer need help getting dressed, or washing your hair.  You wear deodorant (what?) and can make your own breakfast and school lunch.   

On the other hand, I am glad you still let me hold your hand in public, snuggle with you at home, and kiss your nose.  I love the young woman you are becoming!  Being around you is always joyful and has a calming effect on me.  As I always tell you, “You are my medicine”.

This year there have been some firsts for you:

You made the choice to be baptized and committed yourself to Jesus.  This decision made all of us very happy.

You went to Summer Camp for the first time and loved the experience.

You participated in your first Triathlon

You hiked the Grand Canyon with Daddy and Grandma.  I am so proud of you.  That is a big accomplishment!

You started clarinet lessons at school and are progressing very well.

You joined the Pathfinders Club

Some things have stayed the same:

You are still a “Daddy’s Girl”

You love fashion and putting outfits together

You read all the time

You love Star Wars and Comics

You still sleep with your stuffed animals

You absolutely love your kitties and they love you

You still like to play video games and watch TV a little bit too much

As you leave your single digit years behind, my simple wish for you is that you stay in a relationship with Jesus Christ and let him be your guide when you are making choices in your life. 

  

I also pray that our relationship lasts a lifetime, that through our ups and downs you always remember I am in your corner, cheering for you, ready to help when you need me and ready to rejoice in your accomplishments.

I love you to the moon and back "baby"!

Mami

Last day of Fourth Grade

Natalie, this is your last day of Fourth Grade.  Our mornings are always so hectic trying to get out the door on time, but when I drop you off we always say "I love you" to each other and blow a kiss before you start your school day.

This morning you woke up so early, and had so much energy.  We butted heads about your playing piano at 6am  but you were so sweet and patient with me my mood quickly improved.  You happily posed for these silly pictures your mom wanted to take and even agreed to change your shirt so I could get my "after" shot.

I am very proud of the young lady you are becoming.  You are very smart and oh so sweet.  You are growing up much too quickly.  In just a few months we will be celebrating your 10th birthday.  I can't wait to see what the next ten years of your life are like being your mom.

You make me so happy!  I love you to the moon and back!

Mom

A Valentine's Day Celebration

Since the girls had no school on Monday, I decided to take the day off work and put together a little party for some of Natalie's friends.  It worked out well because I got all the decorations on the sale after the holiday.

The kids decorated cookies, made a candle and played a game of Valentine's Bingo.  It was short and sweet and they all seemed to enjoy it.

Hope you had a great Valentine's Day!

Cake for Breakfast: My Baby Turns 9

My little Natalie turns 9 today!  I can't believe it!  I was looking at some of her baby pictures last night, and just couldn't believe how much her baby days are a blur to me.  In some ways it seems it was just yesterday she was born in other ways I can't remember life without her.

Natalie is a beautiful, charismatic and "sparkly" little girl who is growing up in front of my eyes.  She is loving and caring and funny and just a joy to be around.  Of course, she also has her "spicy" moments but even those are fun to deal with.

At nine years old Natalie:

Is 4 feet 9 inches Tall
Weights around 64 pounds
Enjoys playing piano
Loves all types of comics
Has a special love for Snoopy and the Peanuts Gang
Reads, reads, reads all the time
Is a daddy's girl
Still sleeps with mom and dad most nights
Is a little fashionista
Is a TV junkie
Has gotten into Star Wars thanks to her dad
Loves Legos and Playmobile toys

Happy 9th Birthday to the best little daughter a mother could wish for!

Catching Up - February

It has been a while. It would be great if I had something wonderful or exciting to share, but I don’t. I have just been living life, going through the everyday routines. The days go by in a blur and when I think about blogging I really have nothing to say, so I don’t [grin].

With all the disasters going on in the world, it sometimes seems trivial to sit here and write about my everyday life. But hey, it’s my life, and I want to document a little of it for my girls, since I have given up on scrapbooking and don’t even print pictures anymore, this little blog might be all they get [grin]. So here is a quick recap of the february highlights.

We did not do anything at home to celebrate Valentine’s Day (hubby and I went out to eat the Saturday before) and Natalie was so disappointed we decided to have a belated party for all of her Build-A-Bear animals. She dressed them all up and we made marshmallows dipped in chocolate, cupcakes and chocolate covered strawberries to celebrate.

It was great celebrating after the actual holiday. We got everything 90% off.

We had Adventurer Club meetings. Natalie's class made sock puppets and then put on a cute puppet show about friendship for the rest of the club.

At the end of the month, Natalie’s second grade class put a little program together for their families. She was very excited to show us what they had learned. Everyone did a great job!

The teacher made these cute origami flowers for each kid to give to their family

We baked these cupcakes to take to the potluck. They were a hit with all the kids.

I even squeezed in a little bit of crafting.  Natalie and I made this clipboard for a little friend at church that likes to play doctor.

All in all it was kind of a blah February and now you got to share the "blahness" with me [grin]. 

Family Tree

Natalie worked on this family tree during her last Adventurer Club meeting in church!   It turned out so cute!

Most of the other kids just added eyes and a mouth to the circle, but she wanted hers to look like portraits and was very meticulous about choosing the right colors for everyone.  I loved seeing how much thought she put into it.

Her dad got blue eyes and a Red Shirt because he loves the Nebraska Huskers.

I got a green shirt because that is my favorite color.

Kaitlin got side bangs and an orange shirt since that is one of her favorite colors.

Since purple is her favorite color, that's what she chose for herself.

It took her a lot longer to finish than the rest of the kids.  And when the teacher’s assistant told her to hurry up because she was going to miss the next activity, she told him:  “that is exactly what happens to me at school.  I lose play time because I take too long to finish.  But that is fine, because I want to do a good job.” [grin]

She has gotten much better and interested in drawing and seems to really enjoy it.  Of course it is easy to impress me because I can't draw or sketch anything for the life of me.

Day Three-Hundred and Thirty: Game Day

Natalie attended the Nebraska vs. Colorado football game today with her Dad and her Uncle.

Her grandmother made sure she had all the gear she needed down to tattoos for her face.

The weather turned out beautiful for the game and made it a lot easier for her to enjoy the experience.

Kaitlin and I had bet that she was going to get bored soon, but we both lost.  She loved it!  And came home very happy with her souvenir cup and box of popcorn that she saved for her sister. I was glad Joel was finally able to share his Huskers Love with his little buddy.  And to make it even better Nebraska won 45-17.

GO BIG RED!

This Little Girl of Mine

Do you know that this little girl of mine

I want you people to know

This little girl of mine

I take her everywhere I go

 Oh do you know that this little girl of mine

Makes me happy when I’m sad

This little girl of mine

Loves me, even when I’m bad

I love this little girl of mine.

Credits: "This Little Girl of Mine" by Ray Charles.

Natalie's Magical Birthday Party

Right after she came back from Nebraska Natalie started talking about her birthday party. We are big on theme parties in this family and she wanted to come up with a good theme for her party. One night after much back and forth I casually suggested a “Magic” related party.Her eyes opened real big and at that moment it was decided that “Magic” was going to be the theme.

For several months now Natalie has been really into doing Magic Tricks. Most Fridays after her dad picks her up from school they end up at this fun STORE and she has collected quite a few simple magic tricks that she enjoys showing people. Our religion does not believe in magic or in people having supernatural powers, we always explain to her that magicians don’t have special powers they just practice their tricks a lot and get really good at doing them.

I wanted to find a magician that would do a simple and fun show for the kids without getting into any of the “dark” or scary tricks. One of the first magicians I contacted scared me off when he explained that his act ended with him levitating the birthday child [grin]. I finally found one ONE that met my criteria and everything was set.

We decided on the color scheme and started the planning. The party was held this weekend and it was a success. We had 14 children and 16 adults and it was all done inside our under 1800 square feet house. I had planned everything to be done ouside, but the forecast called for rain all afternoon and I did not want to risk it. In the end, it did not rain and the kids got to go outside and play once things wound down inside.

My husband helped me take out our dining room table to the garage and I set up the kids tables in the space. The chair covers were borrowed from my sister. I think it turned out very cute.

We started with the Magic Show.  And Lorenzo did a great job of keeping the kids interested.

Here the magician was holding a balloon and the kids were getting ready for it being popped.

Natalie got to assist in several of the tricks.  The magic phrase for the day was "Happy Birthday Natalie".

We were surprised that Lorenzo was dressed in Purple and matched perfectly with the party colors.

Lorenzo kept telling her to "Smile like you are having fun"

Several of the kids got to go up and "help" with the tricks and everyone got a "Magician Certificate" to take home.

He even did some tricks with a live dove and a rabbit.  At the end of the show Natalie was able to get her picture taken with them.

After the show was over everyone was ready to eat.  The menu was pizza, popcorn and punch.  We sang Happy Birthday to Natalie, and everyone had a cupcake and some ice cream.

Other

The girls

The Boys

The Cousins

Gift opening was a little bit hectic.  All the kids were crowding around Natalie making it almost impossible for her to open anything.  I was afraid she was going to lose it and tell everyone to leave her alone, but she graciously let others grab things out of her hand "help" her open them and other than a couple dirty looks here and there, she kept her composure.  Her favorite gift by far was the remote controlled "Stunt Granny" her daddy gave her.  She had been wanting that toy for a long time and just couldn't believe he actually got it for her.

My one regret is not delegating the picture taking to somebody else.  It proved a little stressful trying to play hostess and at the same time take pictures.  Also the afternoon was cloudy and the dark colors inside made the pictures turn out too dark.   Other than that I am very happy with the way things turned out, it was Natalie's first big birthday party involving kids other than family, and she loved everything about it.  If she is happy, then I'm happy.

We love our almost seven year-old "baby".