Happy 7th Birthday, Brenna!

Another year has come and gone and today we celebrated your 7th birthday!  Look at how much you grew this year.  The skirt length makes me laugh...below the knee at the beginning of Kindergarten and above the knee at the end. You also look so much more grown up with your front adult teeth that have come in this year. 

You had a great first year at Limestone Creek Elementary School.  You loved your teacher, Mrs. Francis, and met a whole new set of friends.  You are not the little girl you were a couple of years ago.  You gained such confidence and independence this year.  Your reading really took off in kindergarten.  You had the most Reading Counts points in the whole kindergarten and as a reward got to throw a water balloon with your Assistant Principal at the end of the year.  I think it started because you liked hearing your name on the announcements as a points leader and so you set a goal to get 100 Reading Counts points by the end of the year.  I love that at just 6 years old, you can set a goal and work hard to achieve it. Mrs. Francis always had really nice things to say about how responsible and smart and kind you are. 

The Daddy/Daughter dance was another highlight of your school year.  You and Daddy had a great time and you looked so beautiful and grown up that night. 

You are still diving and won a first place medal at a Miami dive competition this year.  You stay really busy with diving and dance, and you also played another season of t-ball in the Spring with Daddy as your coach. 

This is also the year of the cartwheel for you.  I think I've witnessed 100 cartwheels a day.  I'm glad you'll be starting gymnastics classes soon because you definitely need a place to get all those cartwheels out of your system!!!!

You and Lily are still best friends but you guys fight A LOT when you are home.  If we go out, you're fine.  If you are somewhere together without Mommy or Daddy, I know without any doubts that you will take excellent care of her.  But at home...it's pretty exhausting with all the fights.  I know it's probably hard because Lily is 3 and sometimes she is impossible but I definitely hope this next year brings less fighting at home.

You move your body with a lot of beauty and grace.  Here you are rocking the crow pose in Yoga.I just love to watch you dive and dance.  I think you are so pretty and graceful.

One thing you did this year which BLEW MY MIND, was jump off a 10 meter board at a dive camp this summer in Coral Springs.  I would have bet a lot of money that there was no way on Earth you would ever do that.  Lesson learned, I will never bet against what you can do.   This takes my breath away every time I watch it. 



One "low point" that happened this year which I'll never forget happened a few days before your 7th birthday.  You got  hurt at dive practice.  You accidentally got knocked off of the 3 meter board by another diver and landed on the cement.  I didn't see you fall but ran over when I heard you cry.  I was soooo scared you were hurt.  We went by ambulance to St. Mary's and you were soooooooooooooooo unbelievably good and brave.  The paramedics and Drs and nurses were wonderful  and a head-to-toe CT scan determined that you were just fine.  I'll never understand how a fall like that did hardly any damage.  I think you had angels looking over you that day.

After a nice summer break, first grade here you come!  There was a rainbow right outside of school on the first day and you said "I bet God put a rainbow in the sky to wish us all good luck on our first day."  I love how sweet you can be.  Happy 7th Birthday.  I love you with all my heart.  Shine on!