Karaia is 7!

I know getting older is the natural progression of things, and while sometimes the fact that you're getting older can weird you out, when your child gets older it's guarunteed that you will have a few, "Holy cow! Where does the time go?!" moments throughout the day.

On December 18th Karaia turned SEVEN! It is uncanny to vividly remember the first time you ever see your child as a squishy, squirmy, teeny, tiny ball and then blink only to open your eyes and realize she has grown so, so much and you are so, so proud of her.

This year was the first birthday that she was really excited about. The I-can't-sleep-because-I-am- too-excited kind of excited. Numerous times before the birthday she would burst into a sing song-y kind of voice and twirl around the room describing her intense anticipatioin of her birthday.

She wanted Littlest Pet Shop toys


and a Santa Claus cake.

She was not disappointed, although the Santa looked a little creepy with his bugged out blue eyes


( I did the best I could, but not every time is a winner)

The actual day of her birth she had school. This is what she thought she looked her very cutest in
I just love the skirt OVER the pants. But mostly I love that this outfit is what made her feel her best. Right after this picture we remembered that she had a choir concert at school with a dress code required. So this is what she actually wore at school.

It worked out great, however, because Grandma Candace, Nana, AND Grandpa Guy were all able to make it to her concert. She felt so special!

The kids in her class sang to her, and since it was also the last day of school before Christmas break lots of people gave her lots of presents.

Latter that evening we had my step-mom's family Christmas party. Lo and behold Santa showed up and wished her a happy birthday as well!

The next day we had the family birthday party. That morning we discovered the water heater was leaking! Kevin and Dave quickly replaced it just in time to join us for cake and ice cream.

I was so proud of Karaia. She was very grateful for all the attention and everything she got. Thank you to everyone who made her feel loved and all your generosity.

I know she is still young, be we have begun to start down the path that merges being a parent with also being a friend. She is an excellent helper, very creative, good at making friends, and all around delightful to be with! I have loved that she is letting me into her world a bit more and finding her voice.



I love you, Karaia!