Happy Birthday Rachael!

Today my very first baby is turning 11. Sometimes I feel like she must at least be a teenager by now, and some days it seems like she should still be my little toddler. I'm going to try to scan some earlier pictures of her in here later, since she was born before the digital camera, but for now these will do! Some things you may not know about Rach:

1. She has been a "little mother" since she was 17 months old. I have told people that having two babies was actually easier than having one, and for Rachael that was definitely true. She was a pretty high maintenance baby, but when Kindyl came along she had a whole new role. She loved bringing me diapers and giving K her pacifier. She was a very helpful child. She still loves babies and is in high demand as a baby sitter in our neighborhood. In fact, she is not even here with us today for her birthday because she is travelling with Rebecca's family to Utah so she can babysit while the older kids and adults are skiing. Fun!


2. She learned cursive in Kindergarten. She actually had better handwriting then than she does now;) Just kidding Rach!

3. She is a very loyal friend. One of her best friends is a girl named Savanna that was in her first grade class. They haven't been in the same school since, but they get together regularly and of course e mail and text each other daily.


4. She is a very good cook. She has been proficient in the kitchen since she was very young. She has long ago mastered the skills of top ramen and mac and cheese and has moved on to pancakes, grilled cheese sandwiches, and snicker doodles made from scratch. She can also be found helping me in the kitchen whenever I make dinner.

5. She has 5 cousins that are her age and loves to get together for Sunday dinners and family vacations



6. She is really good at math.

7. She can learn just about anything you are willing to teach her.

8. She loves to play the piano, and will practice even though she hasn't taken lessons in a while (we're working on it!)


9. She likes to play volleyball
10. I have never heard her gossip to her friends about other friends.

Happy Birthday Rachael! We love you!