It's GREAT to be 8!

This has been such a fun birthday to celebrate!  Emma's excitement and enthusiasm for her upcoming baptism is contagious and invigorating.  I love her so much.

Emma wanted twice baked potatoes, ham, cantaloupe, rice, and salad for her dinner.  She wanted a layered blue cake and thankfully she was thrilled with what I came up with.  She is always pushing my abilities :).  Uncle Brent came up with the awesome 'banana game' where you lay on the floor and pass a banana with your feet down the line to the end of your team.  Emma loved it and I think it will be a famous game at our house from now on!  We all filled out questionnaires to see if we knew all of her favorite things.  It was a blast!  I had just learned that this year her favorite color changed from pink to blue.  

Kurt and I decided that this year for the gifts we give our children we will focus more on experiences than objects.  We took Emma out on a date with just us {and the baby} and she dressed up fancy and chose to go to Qdoba.  We tried to talk her into a sit down restaurant but she had her mind set on Qdoba.  After that we got shakes at Chick-fil-A.  Kurt also put new tires on her bike and got it all fixed up for her so she can get back to riding {and wear out that back tire again by making skid marks}.   

Emma is so passionate and full of emotion.  I love that and sometimes I don't love it.  It love it when she throws all of her feeling into her excitement and into choosing the right.  It isn't as much fun when she has all that emotion to share about a small scrape or about not being included in a game.  She loves all things fancy and she has become very responsible.  She wears high heels everywhere we go and even rides her bicycle in them.  Emma enjoys playing with her doll and has grown to be completely engrossed in reading this year.  Going to the library once a week is often not enough for her.  Emma loves to write out place cards for dinner every night and to set the table nicely with candles.  She loves music and dancing and all things fairy, princess, or royalty.  Emma does not love cleaning her room and when it comes to chores she is a professional at making herself scarce:).  We're working on it.  

We love our Emma. 

Sailing On, 

E