Katie turns SEVEN!

I have never really appreciated when people have commented, "Enjoy these days with your young ones, they go by so fast." I seem to always want to respond by saying, "Ok, since you enjoy them so much, how about you take them all for an hour for me..."! But instead I smile nicely and nod....But the other day when I was at Park City a woman noticed that I was struggling in line with the kids and offered to let me go ahead of her! That was WOW number one. But then she went on to say, "I always say, the days as a young mom go so slow, but the years fly by." THAT'S IT!!! That is the truth! I wanted to hug her and tell her how encouraging that statement was to me...but I refrained from the hug and just used words. : )

Katie just turned seven and that saying, "The days go by slow, but the years fly by", couldn't be more true!!!


We were so thankful that family was able to come for her party!!!

Eric's parents came all the way from Lewistown, and his brother from New Jersey! It was so good to have my parents and brother there as well, along with My grandma Givler and my Grandpa and Grandma Shellenberger.


This is Eric's brother Nate and my brother Rich. Ham sandwiches and chicken corn soup were the meal of choice for her birthday dinner.


Katie and Grandma GG.


This is my old American girl doll. Yes I had a doll. and no I never played with it. : ) Thankfully My girls are enjoying her, and making up for the time that I wasted. But the doll is 20 years old and had managed to lose a leg. One of her birthday gifts from her grandparents was to send the doll to the "hospital" in New York city for repairs. She came back in a cute hospital gown and hospital bracelet!

Oh the fun to be had with birthday hats!!!

I love this picture! I think they really look related : )



Creating a birthday cake "theme" has been a fun tradition for our family. But this year was a challenge. Eric and I had decided a while back that we would get tickets to Sight and Sound and take Katie to see "Joseph". It was a surprise but I wanted her cake to be a clue. Thankfully Renee Alshouse, gave me the idea of a pillow cake, since Joseph was a dreamer. I then added bubbles at the top to symbolize some of the dreams that Joseph had or that he interpretted. ( ie: moon, stars, grapes, wheat, and cows.)
We asked Katie to guess what her present was based on the cake and she said, " I think it has something to do with going to a farm at night?" : )

I ended up taking Katie and one of her best friends, Ana Eckert, to see the play. We sat seven rows back from the stage and the girls were able to see everything clearly, and the animals and actors walked right beside us! I learned soooo much from the story of Joseph that day!

Thanks Katie for blessing us these past 7 years!!!


This song is for you this year.

DREAM BIG

(Ryan Shupe & The Rubberband)

When you cry be sure to dry your eyes
'Cause better days are sure to come
And when you smile be sure to smile wide
Don't let them know that they have won
And when you walk, walk with pride
Don't show the hurt inside
Because the pain will soon be gone

And when you dream, dream big
As big as the ocean blue
'Cause when you dream it might come true
When you dream, dream big

When you laugh be sure to laugh out loud
'Cause it will carry all your cares away
And when you see, see the beauty all around and in yourself
And it'll help you feel okay
And when you pray, pray for strength
To help you carry on
When the troubles come your way

And when you dream, dream big
As big as the ocean blue
'Cause when you dream it might come true
When you dream, dream big

When you laugh be sure to laugh out loud
'Cause it will carry all your cares away
And when you see, see the beauty all around and in yourself
And it'll help you feel okay
And when you pray, pray for strength
To help you carry on
When the troubles come your way

And when you dream, dream big
As big as the ocean blue
'Cause when you dream it might come true
When you dream, dream big