Kianna's 7th Birthday

Our little girl is officially 7 and she couldn't be more excited. The day began with her eagerly waiting for Trace to wake up so she could open her gifts. I should back up though because the celebration continued last night with a trip to Ann Arbor so we could eat pizza at one of her favorite pizza places, The Pizza House. I think it is her favorite because she went there last year on her b-day and received a free chocolate milk shake, which she had again this year and was just as thrilled. Following dinner, Grandma Becki and I took the kids to see the new "Planes" movie, while Daddy and Grandpa Bob went to a grown up movie. Okay, back to the gifts this morning. Kianna excitedly received a unicorn stuffie (those commercials always get her), a new backback with her name on it, some of my old Precious Moments dolls, a fancy new dress coat for this winter, and a new skateboard.

We had walking tacos and buster bar for lunch and then spent the afternoon at The Centre path, so Kianna could practice riding her new skateboard. The rest of the evening was spent at Vacation Bible School, which began tonight. It was a fun day and we are so happy that Grandma Becki and Grandpa Bob were able to celebrate with us.

So here is a little more information about our seven year old:

• She still loves frogs. I just caught one a few days ago when I was mowing the yard, so the kids have a new pet frog named Bumpy.
• She enjoys being active whether it be doing flips on the trampoline, swimming in our pool, playing on the swing set, riding her scooter, or playing sports (soccer and basketball).
• Swimming- Kianna loves anything water. She is quite the little swimmer. She can now swim underwater with ease and is a pretty good diver. She is currently in swim lessons and is learning how to tread water and learn the strokes. She currently prefers the doggy paddle technique.
• School- Kianna is really a smart little girl and excels at math and reading. At the beginning of the summer she finished her reading lesson book, Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons and earned a trip to the roller skating rink, which she loved. She has begun reading chapter books this summer. Unfortunately, Kianna has recently begun saying she doesn't like school, because she gets bored. We hope this changes with the start of a new school year and a great new teacher.
• She loves doing crafts, especially the beads that melt together when they are ironed. These keep our kids busy for hours. She also is a very good artist. She is especially good at drawing cows.
• Kianna LOVES stuffed animals and is a sucker for all the commercials offering pillow pets, dreamlites, flashlight pets, stuffies, seatbelt pets, etc., She wants them all.
• Kianna still likes playing with Barbies and Polly Pockets, but also really enjoys Star Wars and Super Heroes. She especially enjoys the cartoons of the latter two.
• Kianna is a good sister. She enjoys playing with both Kaylee and Trace, although she usually pairs off with just one of them depending on the day. 
• Legos- Kianna really enjoys building houses and playing make believe with the big lego sets. She also enjoys playing with the little lego sets.
• Messy- Kianna is our messy girl and is a bit accident prone. She often forgets to clean up after herself, drop things, and gets food on her clothes. Silly girl!
• Singing- Kianna loves to sing and can often be heard listening to her CDs and singing at the top of her lungs, as I type this the girls are upstairs singing.
• Friends- Her two closest friends are currently Jenae Erd and Lexie Johnson, besides her brother and sister of course. She has had fun every Tuesday this summer spending the day with Jenae while I'm at work. Lexie and Kianna have been friends since Iowa. Lexie and her family just moved to Adrian earlier this summer. They are excited to be reunited.
• Alone time- We have discovered that Kianna really needs time to herself. She has a great imagination and likes to play in her room by herself. We have been encouraging alone time at home versus at recess when her friends are asking to play with her and she just wants to be by herself. Her daddy and I both like time alone as well, so we can't blame her.
• Dates- Kianna thrives on going on dates with either Mommy or Daddy. Maybe it is a middle child thing, but she loves spending one-on-one time with us. We really enjoy it too!
• Apples- We discovered this year that she has a slight allergy to apples. She gets a rash around her mouth when eating them, but it disappears as soon as she is done. Honey crisp apples are the worst for her, but taste so yummy. The doctor says she can still eat them unless the reactions start getting worse.
• She weighs 49 lb and is 49 inches tall. She is in the 47th percentile for weight and in the 60th percentile for height. We love you Kianna. God made you just right and we are so blessed to be your parents!!!