three kids and a little whine....: The Lovable 7's

OK....so, I'm obviously not getting these blogs written in a timely manner.....BUT - I am getting them written....so here we are. Only a couple months late.

The morning of November 13th, I woke up to the pattering of running feet down the hallway. Natalie ran into our room and said "Mom, look! It's almost my birthday!" I looked at the clock and it was 6:24 am. She was born at 6:27. So, she crawled into bed with me and we watched the clock together. She was giddy with excitement as we waited for the momentous minute. "Bye Bye 6!" she said in the final seconds of sixdom. With a great big grin, she clapped when the clock finally turned 6:27 and said "I can't believe I'm 7!". As her mom, that was an awesome moment, never imagined 7 years ago as my first and only baby girl was put in my arms for the first time.
The Lovable 7's.....that's the title to the Parent Center email I received on her birthday. Hmmm....lovable? Is that what this year will bring? Oh, I would love that. Don't get me wrong. I love my daughter with all my heart and am so happy I get to be a Mom to a little girl. But lovable is probably not the first word that comes to mind when describing my Nattie Bug. Ornery, determined, observant, curious, innovative and bright. Really, she has a lot of great qualities that will translate into great things as an adult. But right now, as her mom, she can be challenging sometimes. She questions everything, and wants things done her way (hmm...where does she get that from?). I'm constantly reminding myself not to get into a battle of wills with her (although, I fail at that more often than I'd like). But on the positive side, she is a little girl that loves to laugh and giggle. She loves to plan parties and events (sometimes months in advance to great detail - she is currently working on her brothers surprise birthday party - in June). She's curious and eager to learn how to do new things, like cooking (and yes, cleaning!). She wants to learn how to sew so badly and how to play the piano (although, I'm not sure she realizes that both of those take time - you don't just take one lesson and whip out a symphony piece on the piano).
To celebrate the big day, Natalie invited her BFF and cousin, Lauren (and of course, the rest of the family - Aunt Boo Boo, Uncle K, and Baby Tsey - as the boys call him) to Build A Bear workshop and Dinner at TRex Cafe (which has become the favorite place of birthday celebrations for the girls these last few years). The kids had a fun time making their latest special creation (because the 5 million stuffed animals we already have at home aren't quite enough....and each one is "their special one" when it comes time to clean out the playroom). Tyler and Natalie honored the upcoming Christmas season by picking Frosty the Snowman and Clarice the reindeer. Of course, all the appropriate accessories must come along with it....For Frosty - the corncob pipe, broom and scarf (none of which stay on or ever anywhere near Frosty himself), and for Clarice - the red Santa-ish dress (which also hasn't stayed on her, but has at least made it onto another stuffed animal and not on the floor). Nathan went a different route, and picked an owl, which he cleverly named Rapunzel and picked out a perfectly pretty dress for. I made a few attempts to talk him into a boy-ish outfit (only to make sure he didn't regret his choice later), but to no avail. He stuck to his guns....and that is why I love my little Nater Gater. He's the typical little boy who loves to wrestle with his brother and play with superheroes constantly. But, he's also very in touch with his feminine side and loves playing with Princesses just as much. (At Disney World, he was probably the most excited about our Dinner with the Princesses and sweetly asked them if he could take a picture alone with them. The smile on his face in each of those pictures is beyond priceless.) Lauren went appropriately girly with her pick of a Purple bear (also with a Santa-ish dress) and Baby Trey made his first ever brown teddy bear.
Next, the kids enjoyed the play area and a Carousel ride or two before heading to TRex for dinner. On the ride over, the birthday girl started feeling under the weather. But, she was determined to have her birthday dinner on her birthday so we kept our reservation. Unfortunately, she layed down on the bench through the entire dinner and really didn't enjoy any of it. But, later in the evening, we learned that apparently the best medicine is presents and cake. She perked right up, when it was time to open presents. Her big present was a new Nintendo DS accompanied with a Camp Rock game. She's been wanting it for a year, so was very excited. She was equally excited about her gift from Lauren - a shiny, silver Christmas tree to decorate her room, with all things pink to decorate it. And next, the grand finale! Time for the (sort of) cake. The entire staff surrounded our table singing Happy Birthday as she shyly smiled, but loved every second of it. Then, her eyes got wide as she saw the "cake"....An impressive erupting volcano of chocolate cake, ice cream, and whip cream. It was so yummy looking that even my anti-sweets boys had to have a taste. Besides her temporary bout with some unknown ailment, I think Natalie enjoyed her day to the fullest.
She celebrated a "Triplet" birthday party with her friends Maya and Evan a week later, along with all the first grade girls at the Indoor pool. Whoa...was that crazy! But they had a blast. As I watched all those girls swimming, giggling and squealing I realized (for the millionth time as a parent) how quickly time flies. 7 years old....no longer a baby, no longer a toddler or preschooler. She's a kid now....and I know I'll blink my eyes and realize she's a teenager soon and want back those moments of her snuggling next to me at bedtime and calling me "Ma-Ma" (her mom name for me, when she's feeling very affectionate) and her lion cub kisses (a wet, sloppy lick that stems from her love of Lion King when she was a toddler). Lovable? Maybe more than I realize. And I also realize that I need to open my eyes more and cherish all these moments of this thing called being 7. Because, as she said the morning of her birthday "I'll never be 6 again!"