It's great to be 8 Adyson!

Adyson turned 8 on May 4th. Yippee! In our family 8 is such an important birthday that this day was quit a happy celebration. She knew she could ask for just about whatever she wanted and she would get it. But, how do you say no to her cuter than cute face and sweetest voice? We couldn't.

We had crepes for dessert...something that's replaced the traditional birthday cake in our family.

She got so many nice presents...clothes, shoes, a necklace, hot pad weaver loom, purse, scriptures with her name on it and a scripture purse, journal, wallet, and flip flops galore. She was a happy girl!

Ady's requested meal was homemade pizza and fruit salad inside a watermelon. That's a meal that's never been requested in our house before. We all had fun making it and eating it.
When I went outside to take some pictures of her she got the giggles so bad. Each time I would shoot the picture she would have a giggle rise in her throat and sneak out. At first it was frustrating because I was in search of the perfect birthday picture and she wasn't cooperating...but after looking at the pictures that resulted we had a good chuckle at how darn cute Ady is. These really capture her personality anyway.

Ady has been slow in losing her teeth, the all of a sudden she lost a bunch in a short amount of time, so she has all these crazy gaps in her mouth. Mrs. Gilstrap, her teacher calls her spaces parking garages.

Adyson is the peacemaker in the family. She's stuck at a hard position in the family, after Maryn and before Emmy...2 very dominate personalities. Ady handles this like a trooper, except when she's getting bullied from both ends then she knows how to stick up for herself. She usually is quiet and can keep herself occupied for hours being artsy...coloring, taping, cutting, writing. She can make anything with markers, paper, scissors and tape. She recently made a robot from a large moving box. She currently is writing a book about Jaguars. She loves to write people notes. She's a great reader. Before we moved to WA Ady was the smartest girl in her class according to Ms. Kaliterna. Now, she's working up to that spot as she is so conscientious about her homework. She's quite a perfectionist in her writing...erasing and rewriting a letter until it is just "so." (drives her parents crazy!)

Ady has the best little, strong body. She loves gymnastics and has only been taking for 18 months. In Redding she moved up 3 classes in 4 months and after her first class in WA she was asked to be on the pre-team. If we didn't have to drive 20 minutes we might consider it but the time commitment is huge. She is so strong...can do back flip overs under our kitchen counter...does the monkey bars at recess...can climb the doorways of our house. She is the fastest runner too. A year an a half ago Ady did soccer. She loved the practices but when she got out to the games she wasn't aggressive. We would yell for her to go after the ball but she would always respond, "but they had it first." She just didn't have the competitive edge for it! Needless to say she hasn't been signed up for any more sports. She is awesome at double dutch jump roping...where 2 large jump ropes are swinging in opposite directions. Watch out for Ady! She's determined to do anything that you say she can't do.

Ady is playing the piano so nicely. Our new teacher, Mr. Jackson is pushing her to move along, playing more challenging pieces. He thinks she has so much potential. She also might pass Maryn up in her note reading.

Ady is so gentle. Her favorite thing in the whole world is to be softly tickled on her back, neck, arms or face. She loves it at night when she's in bed but she will do anything for a tickle. Today I made some carrot juice from our juicer. I asked her if she wanted some and after making a face she said, "no way!" I told her that for every sip she had I would tickle her for that many minutes. Of course she was right over and gulped down 20 sips!!!! I guess I owe her now.

Ady is my best helper in the kitchen. She loves to cook and stir and measure.

I call Ady a fashion designer. She has to look just right when she gets dressed every day. According to her it has to feel good and look good. Even when we lay her clothes out at night for the next day she wakes up and isn't in the mood for what we already picked out. She rearranges, readjusts, takes off and puts on. It takes forever for Ady to get dressed in the morning. It drives me crazy! But, she always looks super cute and put together. She loves clothes and putting together new outfits from the clothes she has. She also must have her hair fixed when she leaves for school each morning.

Ady has the silliest fake laugh. She likes to make people smile. She is always so thoughtful of other people. One time when we went to a play in a large theater Ady couldn't see the stage in her seat. I told her to sit up on her legs to be taller. After sitting taller for a few seconds she went right back down on the seat again. I asked her what happened and she said, "the little boy behind me couldn't see when I was sitting up taller." So, she sacrificed her good view of the show so the little boy could see better. This is how she is...she is always thinking of others. She loves to pick flowers on her walk home from school to give to me.
She loves animals. She wants a puppy so bad. She digs for worms with the neighbor boys.

She is so tenderhearted and sensitive that she can't stand being yelled at or getting in trouble. Jeff and I have a hard time disciplining her because she gets so upset at being punished. We have (had) a rule that we don't do sleepovers anymore...well, Ady got a birthday party invitation last week for a sleepover party. She wanted to go so bad. She talked to me about it and then talked to Jeff, saying, in her highest, sweetest, softest voice, "but I've never had a sleepover. I've always wanted to have a sleepover. All my friends will be there and I don't have very many friends so I need to be good friends with the ones I have. Please, I will be so good and do all my jobs and practice the piano and be the best girl. Please can I have a sleepover? Please? Please?" Well, she went to the sleepover and had a great time! She has lots of friends, but she always needs encouraging to play with the friends that are her age. She is good at hanging out with Maryn or Emmy's friends and doing what they are doing because they are so socially dominant.

Ady is preparing to be baptized on July 5th. She's taking it seriously as she's had the discussions with the missionaries...reading her scriptures and writing in her journal. She just joined the Activity Day girls group and loves it...I love being her leader. :)
We sure love Adyson and are so glad she's in our family! She brings sunshine and sweetness. We love to call her Adyson, Ady, Ads, Ady Mae, Adyson Marie, Adilicious. I love you Ady!