This year Dustin and I celebrated our 18th Anniversary. We went to dinner at a yummy restaurant, and as we came out we saw these scooters sitting there. A year or so ago, we had attempted to ride these on one of our dates, but the trendy 20 year olds were getting them so fast that we could never find an open one. So on this night, in an effort to prove how young and hip we are, we paid our fee and hopped on (you pay to ride them all over the city) It was a lot of fun (and just a little scary, because we are 40, not 20). We rode them quite a few blocks away to a fun little dessert shop that we had discovered. While we ate our yummy lemon crepe stack we parked them outside, but when we came out, it was pouring rain! And one of our scooters had been taken by someone else! And our time was up on our parking where our van was! All sorts of dilemmas were happening. So, we did what any cool, hip 20 year old would do, and I rode on the back of Dustin's scooter, through the pouring rain, praying the whole time that we didn't wreck, and laughing hysterically. It turns out it is actually pretty fun to be 20. I had forgotten.
A week later, we celebrated Maren's 14th birthday. We went to dinner at a Chinese restaurant and then back home for oreo cake and presents. You'll notice in the picture that she has 2 mangoes and a package of raspberries. That was a birthday wish. That morning I had taken her to get ice cream with her friends after summer gym, and a couple of days later, she had a late night with her friends. It was a week long celebration of being 14!
Maren is a very driven, determined girl. When she wants something, she works hard and doesn't give up until she gets it. She has her own dog walking/pooper scooping business. She babysits regularly and loves it. As you can imagine, she is great with animals and kids! She is a great student and plays the piano and baritone so well! She is a talented athlete and seems to love volleyball and basketball the best, although she is also a really fast runner. She keeps us laughing all the time and is a loving, fun daughter! We love her!
Next, we had a birthday for Gramma Lana. It was also Father's Day, so her and Dustin had to share it, but neither seemed to mind. It is fun to have Gramma close so we can share these days with her. And she raised a pretty amazing son! So it was a celebration of two wonderful people!
And this weekend we went camping with the Losee's, and celebrated another birthday. Avery turned 16! We had a little celebration while we were camping (we even gave her a car for her birthday!) and then we came home in time for a surprise party that we had planned for her with her friends. It was a pool party at our friend's house. She said she suspected something was happening, but she was still a little surprised. The weather was chilly, but the water was warm, and everyone seemed to have fun. Avery felt loved, so it was a success!
It is hard to believe that our oldest is 16! These days always seemed so far away when the kids were little. And yet, the time has sped by and we are now thinking about college! Avery is a wonderful big sister. She is kind, laughs easily at her siblings antics and is a peacemaker in our home and with her friends. She plays the violin and piano and fills our home with beautiful music. She is a great student and works very hard in school. She also somehow fits in time to run with the cross country and track teams and has lettered for two years in a row. We love her a lot! And, after tomorrow, she will be a licensed driver!! (She may need to sit on a pillow to drive the car though. Although her doctor informed us that she is officially on the curve now for height and weight for the first time in 15 1/2 years, she is still just under the 5 foot mark).
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