Sydaleigh turned 9!!!

Sydaleigh turned 9 years old!!!

I can't believe it, my first born child is growing up so fast. She is developing into the loveliest young lady. She is leaving behind the "little girl" phase and transitioning into the "young lady" phase, and it is a joy to watch her grow and mature.

She turned nine while we were in Virginia over the holidays and we celebrated with family by going to Jumpology and then having a little gathering with pizza and cake afterwards.

 The kids had such a great time, jumping and dangling and doing crazy things.

 Emma and Victoria came out to spend the morning with Sydaleigh and everyone had so much fun.

Here is Sydaleigh trying out her new quill. I try to be really intentional with my gifts and get the kids meaningful things, and Sydaleigh has loved the movie Little Women for the longest time and ever since seeing Jo write with a feather quill, she has wanted one as well. So that's what I got her. And, she completely loves it. This girl is a lover of unique things. She's just such a cool kid.

 9 super cool things about YOU!!

My tradition of writing a list for the number of years they're turning with cool things about them. 

Upon returning to Burkina, Sydaleigh wanted to have a small celebration with her girlfriends from school. So we planned a slumber party for all the girls in her class to come over. It really served two purposes, to celebrate Syd's birthday with her favorite friends, and it was a great excuse to have a sleepover...something they have been asking to do since the beginning of the school year! 

These are the sweetest friends a mom could ask for for her daughter.  They are so kind and considerate and all so close. The five of them are from five different countries around the world and it was so cool to sit and listen to their conversations around the table...."when I was in Senegal...when I visited Morocco... when we go to Iceland...I'd like to move to Dubai because....this one time in Denmark...this one time in Ghana....". Not your average conversations from nine year old girls! I love the diversity. I absolutely LOVE the diversity and world awareness that living here has brought into my kids life.

A horse cake I made for my horse obsessed riding loving girl!

The girls played the Wii, had pizza, cake and ice cream, decorated crowns, painted nails, did make-up, and watched movies all night long. They had a blast!

So happy for the opportunity to help my kids make meaningful memories!

Happy birthday sweet Sydaleigh girl! We love you so much and delight in your presence in this family! You are an absolute joy and I count myself blessed to get to be your mom!

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At nine years old Sydaleigh.....

-LOVES horse back riding! It is her new favorite hobby. She adores horses and would very much like someday to own her own horse and stables.
-is a great big sister. She enters into both Marvelly and Steve's worlds and plays with both of them very well.
-definitely a first born! Displays lots of leadership (aka bossiness- ha!) and loves to be in charge and make the rules
-has developed a deep love for reading this year, thanks to the library books "Pony Pals"
-she reads every night in bed before she goes to sleep
-is still super ticklish and loves to be tickled.
-she still really likes shows like Backyardigans and Curious George. Despite the fact that she is getting older she is still sweetly innocent and likes those sweet childish cartoons.
-also really likes "real people" movies, some of her favorites are "Flicka", "Wild Hearts Can't be Broken", "Little Rascals", "Little Women"
-favorite foods are still black bean and cheese quessadillas, macaroni
-has started liking potatoes this past year!! She will eat potatoes now and even say they're "good".
-loves to dress in sporty clothes, like basketball shorts and tanks/tees. She doesn't care about being fashionable or trendy, just comfortable. But she does very much like getting dressed up still.
-wants to be an artist, author, and famous horse rider when she grows up
-excels in reading and writing in school and is progressing in math!
-her feet are almost the same size as mine
-only likes to drink water
-some of her closest friends are Hannah from church and Jada from school
-adamantly believes in the existence of mermaids and tells me that's the first thing she is going to ask Jesus about in Heaven! And her reasoning for belief, of which we discuss frequently, is that, "mom, just because you haven't seen them doesn't mean they don't exist. You haven't seen God, or dinosaurs, and you know they are real. And the ocean is so big that they could be in there and haven't been discovered yet." Smart girl right there! And I honestly can't argue with her reasoning, it's pretty well thought out, so I'm just gonna let her believe in mermaids if she wants to!