And then she was 8 . . .

Anybody who has experienced the birth of their first grandchild can feel the emotions in these pictures.





She was born 3 weeks early, weighing 5 pounds 8 ounces. We were all there for the excitement. The nurses called her "Peanut."

On my birthday that year, 25 days later, she felt like a very, very special gift.

Great Grandpa loved holding her and playing with her.

When she was only 20 months old, in fact the day her sister, Feisty, came home from the hospital, she began wearing glasses. She hated them at first, flinging them across the room, but soon learned that life was much better with them.

Here we are, age 8. How did it go so quickly? If you come around here very often, you know that Care Bear, the Birthday Girl, is an event planner. This event was no exception.

Last year I did a scavenger hunt for her to find her gifts. She now believes it to be a tradition. We had it in the back yard this time. Sorry these two are so fuzzy!







Grandma usually gets her clothes, but this year she gets to pick out her own with gift cards.




She spent one whole evening a couple of weeks ago creating a list of things she wanted this year - it gave us many options. I think we'll still be using it for Christmas!




One of the things she wanted was a mess kit for Girl Scouts.

Grandpa told her to walk 5 steps west and 25 steps south to find his gift --

It was the digital camera she's been wanting so badly.




With a memory card, of course.




Then she opened the gifts from the others at the party --





Feisty was proud of her choice from The Dollar Tree --




The High School Musical cake was a big hit - with Care Bear and with the twins!

The next day she had a bowling party with her school friends, followed by Monkey Bread and pudding pops at the park.








The new rule at school forbids sugary treats, so Mommy took bananas and goldfish crackers for her whole class.

She ended the third celebration convinced it was the best birthday ever. Now she'll start planning next year's bash!