Emma turns Nine (sniff, sniff)

She turns nine tomorrow. Her last year in single digits. I can't believe it has been nine years since I gave birth to the sweetest little Sweet Pea you've ever laid eyes on. Emma Joy has been a delight in so many ways to our family. Her spirit is creative, loving, sweet. She is crafty, sparkly, girly. She is thoughtful both about other people's needs and about ideas and concepts. In contrast, she is also highly forgetful of details and instructions. She enjoys digging in dirt to find worms, competing with her family in Apples to Apples and helping me cook. She does not eat spicy food, make fast decisions or want to get in trouble. She dislikes cleaning, spiders, and getting hurt or being uncomfortable in any way. (in some circles, Emma is known as dramatic.) Remember Pigpen, in the old Charlie Brown cartoons? He walked around with a cloud of dust swirling everywhere he went. Well, Emma is the fluffy, glittery version of that. I swear she leaves a trail of sequins, glitter and small scraps of paper behind her as she walks through the house. She is messy on a very extreme level. She owns hundreds of Webkinz and has a story for each of them. She never sleeps with less than 5 tucked in her bed with her, along with her special pink blanket. She is snugly. She has never met a shoe box she didn't want to save for some kind of craft project. (in some circles, Emma is known as a pack rat.) She delights in time with her best friend/cousin Hannah, any holiday festivities and singing.

She is precious to her daddy, brothers and I. And especially to her Lord who created this amazing girl, who I get the privilege of mothering.

Yesterday, right on cue for a birthday week, she conquered a task that has been a daunting challenge to the girl who doesn't like getting even a scratch. She is now riding her bike- cute glittery cat helmet and all!