My talented daughter!

Happy early birthday girl! 
14 on Sunday - WOW!
So far you are turning out ok, not too much fuss having a "teen" in the house.
But we are not quite "done" yet... :)
With 6 girls in a row... there's still much drama, many tears, arguments, loves, heartbreaks etc in the future.
Well, I went through all that too, so I know what's "normal" (= nothing!!).
I feel worse for my Hubby... But he's survived me for almost 15 years, so I think he'll be just fine.
Kind of.

Well.  Our 1st born has never waited for anything.
She's a real "go getter" .
It's comforting to know that I will never need to think for her or make up her mind.
She has her own plans, ideas and talents.  Lots of talents.
One of them is making her mom pull out her own hair...
At times I feel like putting my foot on the break.  Hard.  But at the same time her ideas peek my curiosity...
I want to SEE what she's creating in her head.
And if I always said no, I think her brain would suffocate.

From the day she was born she has known what she wanted.
I tried to wrap her tight in a baby blanket... only to watch her fight her way out.
She rolled around on the floor at 2 months.
Crawled on all 4 at five months.
Walked along furniture at 6....
When she was a toddler she just did what she wanted, and got what she wanted, one way or another.
There's always a way to get on top of the fridge.... (where I'd stash anything she should NOT have)
In JR Kindergarten, at age 4, she illustrated pictures to the new song they had learned.
Her teacher actually copied her illustrations and printed out a set for each child! :)
Further up in the grades when she was recognized as a "gifted" student, she was given special assignments at school.
In grade 6 she got to plan and hold classes with the younger grades.
She was the person the principal called to the office to guide a visitor to the right room.
Well... the list could go on and on... and on.
I sometimes wish I would have taken more pictures and written down some of the projects that she has come up with... so today I'm sharing some of her productions.
Her true passion these days is baking.
It's not only the decoration (although that's her favourite part of course), but she also comes up with interesting fillings etc.
She has made up a few cakes from scratch.
I know most people don't like to listen to other parents "gush" about their kids, but as a parent of this kid, I have to say that I often stand on the sidelines and watch with my mouth open!
The funny part is that she compares herself to me many times.
Wanting to be at the same level in some ways...
Well dear... you'll have time to be all grown up too.
For now, enjoy being young.
Keep being talented, creative and fun.
Even if it drives me a bit bonkers at times... I wouldn't want you any other way!
And thank you for being a great kid.
Really.

A smoothie is not just a smoothie.
It's an occation.

One of her talents, being a good big sister, in awe of her Little Brother... (and HIS talents!!)

Aaawww....  Cupcakes.

A cheesecake she made for her cousin's baptism

A cake she made in honor of the Swedish Crown princess' new baby girl

She made all the decorations from fondant for this cute birthday cake

When her grandparents visited from Sweden she made these fruitbowls as a dinner side dish the last day of their visit!

And for her Birthday she "needed" to make these Angry Bird cupcakes for her friends at school!!

A year went by!

It's been just over a year since I wrote my 1st blog post here.
Man, did that go fast!
Today our 5th daugther is turning 6, and she's one proud and happy girl.
This morning the whole gang went to sing for her, while she was still in bed.
A slice of cake with a candle to blow out, a cup of chocolate milk and a handful of candy made up the nutricious breakfast in bed.
The new Barbie made her smile, in fact, her whole face glowed!
There's nothing like a brand new Barbie for a little girl.
The hotpink package, the beautiful gown.... Aaah!
Maybe it's not the perfect role model for a young girl, but I know that this unproportional, beautiful friend, will give her hours of fun imaginary play.
I can balance out the reality for her!!

Our 6year old is a fast thinker, and usually hangs out with her older sisters.
The best thing in the world for her is to have alone time with her 4 years older sister.
Just the two of them playing.
She says
"We need some alonetime!"
And then she and big sister spend half a day tucked away in one of the bedrooms, playing and playing...
You can tell she spends a lot of time with her older sisters, she sure acts like them!
When I was pregnant with our 6th girl, I could tell how much fun our 2 oldest had together, then number 3 and 4, so I figured girl number 5 also needed a sister to "team up" with.
Well, she did get a sister, only 19 months younger than her, and they are great friends.
But if she can choose.... she picks her big sisters any time.
Good thing girl number 6 and our little boy are BFF's.
Very much.
He even tells me "M is my best friend!" :) (he's just over 2)

So...  what do I wish for our birthday girl?
She's smart and whitty and cute, and she can really drive me bonkers at times.
She really acts a lot older socially, so when she uses all the same expressions and manners as her older sisters, it's hard to remember she's only turning 6.
I hope she takes her time being a little girl.  Big people life comes fast enough.
This fall she'll be starting kindergarten here in Finland (they don't start grade 1 before the year they turn 7), so in that way she gets to be little a bit longer.
I'm all for that.
So, to my lovely and fun "big" girl: "Have a great year!"
God bless and keep you.
And you know how much we all love you. 
That's the easy part!

Last day as a child?

I was just realizing something... I know there's no age limit to being a child, I think I'm still very much a child at heart, and I can act pretty childlike (good and bad!!) at times.  But when you become a teenager, are you officially "done" being a child?  Our oldest daughter turns 13 tomorrow, and as this realization came upon me, my eyes grew a bit misty...  It really seems like only a few days ago that I was 8 days overdue with her and went in to the hospital, but was sent home again... 13 years ago today.  Tomorrow is the big day, and on Saturday she'll be hosting a birthday party with a gaggle of other giggling girls about the same age.

Today she and her friend in school, who happens to be only 2 days older than my girl, brought in some goodies for the class to share.  They must be among the 1st real teens in their class, since their birthdays fall this early in the year.  Will they get a different status now?  I'm starting to realize how long ago it is since I was their age... The world has changed a great deal, and I really don't know what she is in for.  I try to be a mom with her eyes and ears open, but at times I know that I morph into a "Tyrannosauros Rex" right in front of my daughters rolling eyes.  I know she'll read this... and that she'll roll her eyes while reading it ;) 
Guess what thou?  I remember being 13 and 14, and I remember hurting inside, feeling like NOBODY understood me AT ALL!!!  And I remember vowing to myself that I would NEVER EVER forget what it felt like to be that age.  Never ever.  And I haven't.  Those feelings can still come up fresh and strong to the suface, especially when I see my girls feeling that way too... Sure, time has put a fuzzy blanket over the intensity, but I haven't forgotten...  I still get tears in my eyes thinking about that heap on the bed, crying her eyes out, feeling so lost and misunderstood... Me. 

So to my dear daughters and all you young girls out there!  We didn't forget what it was like being you.  We did grow up thou.  A bit stronger, a bit braver and a bit wiser.  Realizing that we didn't know quite everything...
I hope that I can be a mom who will never forget what it was like being a child, and how much it can hurt when the bud starts to blossom!!