Happy Happy Birthday Anna!

Anna is 8!!!  Our sweet, intuitive, smart girl is getting so big!  I can't believe it!  She had fun celebrating Easter and her birthday on the same day this year.  She also had a fun sleepover with her best friend and a yummy dinner...her standard birthday request (filet, caprese salad, green beans and dinner rolls).  They are getting so big!

What is your favorite color?  light blue

What is your favorite toy?  Karoake microphone 

What is your favorite fruit?  strawberries

What is your favorite tv show?  Kickin It

What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? pasta and mac and cheese

What is your favorite outfit?  shorts and t-shirt

What is your favorite game?  Headbandz

What is your favorite snack?  Trader Joe brownie and oat bars and yogurt

What is your favorite animal?  puppy

What is your favorite song?  It's Time by Imagination Dragons

What is your favorite book?   Ramona and Beezus

Who is your best friend?   Emily and Lilly

What is your favorite breakfast food?  pancakes

What is your favorite thing to do outside?  play, make a candy or lemonade stand

What is your favorite drink?  Lemonade

What is your favorite holiday?  Easter

What do you like to take to bed with you at night?  nothing

What do you want for dinner on your birthday?  filet, caprese salad, green beans and dinner roll

What do you want to do when you grow up? don't know

What is your favorite sport?  gymnastics
Where do you wish you could go on vacation?  Paris
What would you buy if you had $1000? don't know
Who is your biggest hero?  Mom and Dad
What is your best memory? when i met Emily and became friends
If you could have one wish, what would it be? don't know

What do you hope you will get to do before your next birthday? play at the beach with my cousin Geneva

A look back at her past birthdays

Anna's Arrival!

Anna at birth!

1st Birthday pics

1st birthday

1st birthday

2nd Birthday 

3rd Birthday 

4th Birthday 

5th Birthday

6th Birthday

 7th Birthday

8th Birthday

Birthday breakfast!

cake time!

My dearest Anna,

How did you grow up so fast?  I can't believe that you are 8 years old.  We are so very proud of you! We love you more than words can possibly describe!

You are such a sweet, loving, smart and intuitive girl.  You have such great energy and creativity.  We are so proud to be your mommy and daddy.

xoxo

Happy Easter!

Happy happy Easter!  We had a wonderful Easter this year...it was super exciting because it was also Anna's birthday!

We had an egg hunt in the morning and then headed to church!  Anna and Henry joined us in the sanctuary for the service and we all sat with our sweet friends.  Anna and her friends were on the front row!  :)  Henry was so proud to sit with some of the big boys he admires so much.  We sat right behind him.  It was a great service.  A funny thing that happened was when we did communion (which Henry did and has done before, but never reacted this way) he dipped his bread in the grape juice and as he ate it, he told us YUMMY!!!  with a huge grin.  It was so funny!

We went to our friends house for Easter lunch after church and had a great time.

It was a joyous day!

Easter eggs

We dyed Easter Eggs and made nest cookies with some of Anna's friends the other day.  They all had a great time!

Nest cookies...came out yummy, not so cute!  Oh well!  They were fun!

Anna's Amelia Bedelia Fashion Show

Second grade had a super cute Amelia Bedelia Fashion Show the other week!  They had a "cat" walk and the kids showed off their adorable Amelia Bedelia inspired fashions!

They were so creative!  Anna wore a "checked" shirt and "sun" glasses.  She also accessorized with a "book" bag.

Henry and I watched the fashion show and he served as my photographer...

Lately...i-phone dump!

Lately we have been busy... Chad got a great new job that we are thrilled about!

We had a great Valentines day!

Henry learned to ride his bike!  Anna has been enjoying lots of playdates and after school activities.

Henry is playing soccer again!  This time we have our awesome coaches from last season and a coach helping out who also happens to be a coach for UNC womens soccer (one of the best in the country!)  I don't know how we got so lucky!  Henry LOVES soccer!

We have had lots of cold, then warm, then rainy days...

Anna worked on a book about gymnastics and then all of 2nd grade had a book fair to show off their books!  They were amazing!

Henry has loved having playdates and hanging out with his friends at Anna's pick up each day.  He is getting so big...I can't believe he is almost done with preschool!

Henry playing glow football...great indoor activity, right?

Book demo...She was so proud!  We were too!

Dinner with BFF at PF Changs!

All of the girls plus Henry on a rainy day after school!  

And it is warm enough to walk up to town frozen yogurt in shorts!

Rainy day fun!  

Cold again!

Very cold soccer morning!

Visit from Sara and Ava!

The girls made valentines boxes!

We had a great visit from Sara and Ava this past weekend!  It was so much fun!  The girls loved playing together and it was great getting to visit with Sara!  

Costa Rica! Take 3...

Some of our favorite places...they don't look too fancy but they have amazing food!

Kevin and Chad went deep sea fishing.  They caught two mahi mahi.  We enjoyed super fresh ceviche and grilled fish two nights!

mahi mahi (dorado) that they caught!   

pardon the fake crocs...i needed closed toed shoes and didn't want to ruin my good running shoes!

This tree had thorns like a rose, and they were super sharp!

no, that isn't a spray tan...its dirt!

adios vista magnifica...gracias!!!

They say the third time is the charm...well, I think that in our case this trip was!  The trip to Costa Rica this year came at a perfect time, and we also had the perfect amount of relaxation and adventure on this visit!  It was a great trip and we can't wait to go back!  The next trip the kids will join us and they can't wait!