Happy 8th Birthday!

Dear Ella,

Happy 8th birthday. You are a gift and a treasure. Thank you for all you do around our house to help me out and to help your younger siblings. You have stepped into the role of "oldest of 5 kids" beautifully. You have always been thankful for each new baby we have welcomed into our home and have made special bonds with each of your siblings.

Your heart is beautiful. What is it like to want to give away everything you own? You have always been a giver. I pray that God gives me the wisdom to nurture your giving spirit while still finding a way to keep some of your belongings in our house. I pray that your dream will come true Ella and that one day you will run a restaurant out of your home with homeless people living in the extra rooms for you to feed.

Thank you for sharing your struggles with me. Thank you for always being willing to apologize, even if it is hours after the fact. I love it when you come to me with "I am so sorry for my bad attitude this morning Momma. I don't know why I act like that sometimes can you please pray for me?" Thank you for being patient with my struggles too and for being so quick to forgive. You have given me a true glimpse of what Jesus meant when he said that we are to become like little children. You never hold a grudge.  I pray to become like a child in this way.

I love you little girl. I pray that this year you grow closer to Christ and that you thrive in who He created you to be. I am so thankful that I get to be your momma.

Love,
Mom

I took Ella on a special birthday date. We got her ears pierced and had some frozen yogurt. She picked out some pretty pearl earrings.

Ella's birthday gift from mom and dad was a mountain bike.

I took the 5 kids to the park. 4 out of 5 rode their bikes. Ella zipped around on her bike, figuring out how to switch the gears and had a blast... until she went down a big hill way too fast and split her chin. I took a picture, but won't post it because it is too gruesome. Last time she split her chin (which was 4 years ago), our doctor told us that we should use super glue instead of waiting for hours at the ER. So, since Friday was also the evening of Ella and Karis' party we decided to follow our doctor's orders and super glue her chin closed instead of canceling the party due to being at the ER.

All glued up and ready to go :)

We had a wonderful time celebrating Ella and Karis with a few friends. I always give our kids the option of doing a bigger family event or having a party. This year Ella and Karis chose to go to play land to celebrate their birthdays. So we had a very small party for them.

The girls felt celebrated and loved.

 

And I enjoyed spending time visiting with some of my lovely momma friends.

Here is a picture from last weekend's trip to playland. We had a great time, and Ella even rode the large wooden roller coaster twice - once with me and once with Spencer. That ride is scary!! A highlight for all the kids was the log ride.