December Ladies

I realized that I never did post about my 2 wonderful daughters and their birthdays during the month of December. Emma was 9 on the 13th and Mary Catherine was 15 on the 30th. WOW!! I can't believe that Mary Catherine is 15 any more than I can believe that Emma is 9. They are such great ladies, though.

Emma's birthday was actually celebrated the weekend before her birthday since I was going to be gone on the morning of her actual birthday. We invited friends from church and friends from school. Of course, Sarah Beth helped her type up and invitation and make a list of who to invite. They made cute invites for an "American Doll Party" complete with pictures of Emma's Molly and Emily Dolls. She still LOVES those dolls. The rest of the invite was this:

Emma’s Birthday Party!!!
When-Saturday, December 6, 2008
Time- 11:00-4:00
Where-Emma’s house (72 Horseshoe LN.)
What: An American Doll Party. Bring one of you favorite American Dolls and if you don’t have one Emma has plenty. We are going to do a “Molly Mystery” and y’all will each get a character to be!
Call For Directions: (337)-625-8457 or (337)-526-3827
HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!!!

Well, we PLANNED to do a "Molly Mystery". I even paid extra to get the Molly Mystery game here in time for the last minute planned party. The game was on sale for $5 so I thought I could justify the extra expense. Well, on the day before the party I got an email saying that there was a problem with my card. I called immediately only to be informed that they had already shipped it, but could not guarantee that it would arrive the next day for the party. It go here the following Monday. I was SO angry. There apparantly was no real problem with the card but I still didn't have what we needed for the party. Major bummer. And did you notice the time of the party? 11:00 - 4:00 because I was supposed to have a game already planned AND a cookbook I ordered to try some cooking with the ladies.

Oh, well, we had a wonderful party anyway. We had "tea" with little sandwiches, hot chocolate, and strawberry crepes. Later we ate cupcakes. We talked about the history associated with the American Dolls, introduced the real ladies to each other, and had a wonderful time. They played some games, watched the Kit Movie, and played some more games outside in the wonderful weather. It was a great time. I am so glad Emma has such great friends. She has grown up so much even in the last year. She says things in such a growny way lately that shows that she thinks little kids are so cute. She is much more in control of her emotions and is lots of fun to be around. She LOVES her teacher, Mrs. Bowen, and is always quoting her. I love all the things she shares with us from school. Just today, on the way home from church, we passed the I-210 boat launch area, and saw 100s of Christmas trees stacked up. We were discussing what they do with them and she said...."they put them on the Delta to save the coast." She just seems so much more aware of what others are telling her and what is going on around her. She is really growing up. One of my favorite things that she says often is "a bit". Instead of a little, or some, she says, "just a bit". It is so cute and soooo grown up.

Mary Catherine's birthday was on a Tuesday, but her cousin's, Rebecca and Erica, were leaving that day, so at the last minute they decided to have her party on Monday night. Mary Catherine has so many wonderful friends, too. It was a sad day, though, that Whitney would not be here for the first time in Mary Catherine's life. We teared up a bit, but went on. We decided that we would try out the camp on the river. We loaded up food, cake, and drinks and headed out there. Zack even bought a few fireworks. It was the perfect night out there. It was cold, but not freezing so we sat around the fire for about 4 hours talking, listening to music, laughing, and roasting sausages and marshmellows, and doing a few fireworks. It was wonderful. The wind was not blowing so the smoke went straight up and out of our faces.

How grateful I am that at 15 Mary Catherine was content to spend her night with her parents, little sisters, brothers, and friends doing nothing special. She has definitely matured over the last year. Her spiritual development is so obvious. Her goals for the year are to SMILE, read scriptures, and pray morning and night. Also, no soda or chocolate..........ALL YEAR!! Wow, that is tough. I know she likes the way she feels when she feels the spirit and wants to do things that will bring her closer to the spirit. I am so impressed by her. She is a wonderful example to her little sisters. She loves to laugh and be happy. It is contagious, but can be a little annoying because she is so loud.....don't know where that came from!! What a wonderful .