8 is Great!!!

I don't think I will ever forget how much we (maybe really I) wanted to have a baby.  And after trying for 2 1/2 years, Megan finally came.  I remember being so THRILLED when they said she was a girl.  I have always really wanted a daughter and it was something of a relief to have the first baby be a girl -- I hope in the future that doesn't make Abby and William feel bad because I love them dearly too -- I was just so excited!!!

Then she came and the world changed!!  And I don't mean that metaphorically -- I quit my job, we moved to a different state, and I gave birth in about the space of a month.  Or less.  It was a hard transition.

And that poor first child is when you really realize that you have no clue how to raise children or what it's really like!  And although that new life is not without it's trials, it certainly is also sprinkled liberally with joys and blessings.

Today there are many aspects of Megan's personality that are older versions of what she was like as a baby and toddler.  She can STILL focus incredibly well and engage herself in any activity she's interested in.  Lose herself sometimes even.  When she was about 18 months, Chopper and I were browsing at a Goodwill and she sat on the floor and looked at books, real books, for ages.  Other shoppers commented on it.  Today she still has that same absorption with books (chapter books and any nonfiction about the world and especially animals and she also enjoys graphic novels like Geronimo Stilton and LOVES Calvin and Hobbes). art (she's got several adult coloring books and does beautifully with them), writing, and her imaginary play.

Megan still has a lot of the anxiety and dislike of being the center of attention.  She rarely smiles for pictures or gets up in front of people for any reason.  She doesn't like crowds or being in large groups of people that she doesn't know or feel comfortable with and she doesn't like being put on the spot.  She is very affectionate though with the people that she loves, when she wants to be.  Right now I would say that includes her best friend Samantha and her former primary teacher, Duana Blakey.  Sister Blakey is now her Activity Day Girls leader (she's in Activity Day Girls!!!!!!) and it's wonderful for Megan to have that person that she loves.  She also really really likes her teacher Mrs. Kremer and I do too!!  She has a great sense of humor and we've found that humor dispels so much anxiety for Megan.

Megan is very smart and learning comes easily for her (although triple digit subtraction is giving her a run for her money!).  Her favorite class in school is art and her least favorite is PE but music comes close -- when it's time for the grade level concerts anyway.

She has a unique sense of what she likes to eat.  She will now try pretty much anything I make for dinner and eats almost everything (I thought she'd be horribly picky her whole life!) but her favorite foods are anything tangy and sour and she likes strong flavors.  For her birthday Saturday we are having tacos (with home fried shells -- she'll eat 4), shrimp, lemon cake, and rainbow sherbet.  She still does not drink anything fizzy.

Megan likes fairies (Tinkerbell mostly) but for the most part it is all animals: Palace Pets, birds, cats, snakes.  The girls have a menagerie in their room rather than dolls.  She recently changed her mind and no longer wants to be a veterinarian but rather a scientist who studies the earth.  I love that she changes her mind according to her interests.

She kind've had a Star Wars birthday this year.  We decided on no party but spent Saturday watching Star Wars movies and she asked for a Star Wars cake and gave me directions on how to decorate it.  For her birthday, she got some TinkerBell doll figures with clothes, some great books (a bird encyclopedia, Geronimo Stilton, and a joke book) and a small stable with lots of horses.  She was actually very pleased with her presents which made me glad.

I just realized recently that next year we'll be halfway through our life with her in our home (based on leaving the house at age 18).  And that scares me a little.  It doesn't really seem possible for her to be 8 years old and a baptism at the end of the month!!  But I feel like we have a good relationship overall and I'm hopeful that it will help carry us through those pre-teen and teenage years that are coming way too quickly!!!!

We had lunch at school with Megan on Friday -- this was the best she would give me!

Only 2 candles because . . . I kind've forgot to buy more.  She wasn't upset -- easier to make wishes that way!!  William was disappointed that he didn't get to blow the candles out AND was very eager to open presents.  Poor kid is the last birthday of the year in our house so he is definitely learning some patience by seeing everyone else have their birthday!

Grandpa and Grandma Gasser sent a baptism book!!!  Seriously -- I'm not sure how she's old enough for this.

Smiles!

Chopper couldn't resist buying her a peacock.  And I will say, I get more people tagging me on Facebook with peacock pictures or videos or things to make than anything else!!!  Everyone knows she's fascinated!!