Lucky Number 7

Where were you seven years ago today?  Do you know?  Because I do.  I was at Cedar Sinai in Los Angeles in Labor and Delivery giving birth to my second baby.  Today is Miss Lana's seventh birthday.

Yes, every year I marvel at how old my girls are now.  I know it gets old, but damn I just can't get over how FAST this is all going.  Everyone warned me, but when you are chained to your house waist deep in diapers you just don't believe those people.  It wasn't until the girls started school and leaving the house from time to time that I thought maybe there was something to what those people had told me.  Now I work hard to take a minute every once in a while to commit to memory where my girls are in their lives and enjoy the great little ladies they are becoming.  Even if they are a pain in the ass every day as well.  

Earlier today I was talking to the mom of one of Lana's friends in her class.  This is a recent friend for Lana, maybe since December.  We didn't really hear much about her before, but then she and Lana started playing at school and it was, "Sienna this and Sienna that."  So naturally we invited her to Lana's little party tomorrow.  Well, it's not really a party, because we don't do big ones anymore.  We are taking her and 3 of her friends mini golfing then having pizza and cake at home.  No biggie. 

 This mom called to tell me that unfortunately Sienna wasn't going to be able to make it and she felt bad about.  I understand though, we always have things going on all weekend too.  However, her mom really wanted Sienna to come to the party to hang out with Lana and her friends, because apparently she  had some trouble with other girls in the class earlier in the year.  Problems like these other girls leaving her out of playing when they felt like it, and something about a point system that can only be reminiscent of middle school mean girls.  REALLY?? We are doing this in FIRST grade?? 

I felt so bad because her little girl is so sweet.  Then I realized how extremely proud I was of Lana.  Sienna's mom had told her to find some other kids to play with when this all happened a few months ago.   Apparently she approached Lana who welcomed playing with her without incident, even though she already had a group of girls she payed with.

I guess I shouldn't be to surprised.  Lana has never been one to exclude others from playing.  Granted kids gravitate to certain other kids and form little playgroups at school.  This is something that is completely natural and  we also do as adults.  I certainly have some mom friends I'd rather go have a glass of wine with over others.  It just depends on personality.  However, if someone wants to play in her group, Lana has never been one to say no.  The more people the bigger party for her.  In a time where there seems to be so many bullies and "mean girls", I am so proud that my daughter is not falling into those categories and that she is accepting of everyone.  

In the seven years I have known my Lana, I have seen what a strong personality she has.  She is loving and loyal.  She is brave and not afraid to do something that might make her slightly uncomfortable like this:

That was her audition for the play she is doing at school.  She sang it in front of about 30 other kids from the school most of them older than she is.  She sang every word, and the musical interlude in the beginning and in between just kills me!  

On the other hand, she can also be brutally honest(wonder where she gets THAT from) and a bit temperamental(or that?).  However, she has grown into such a lovable little girl who doesn't let much bother her and is willing to accept anyone for who they are. This past year with her has most definitely been the best.  She's learned to deal with her temper and found ways to calm herself down.  That's not to say we don't still have issues here and there, but less than ever before.  As she's grown older, she's learned to deal with her temper and her anger better and has become more loving and kind.  Six for Lana has been a dream.  I  only hope seven will bring us even better times. But no matter what it brings I love this little girl with all of my heart and I am so grateful to have her in our lives. Sure there were some rough times with her in the past, but looking back it doesn't seems so bad anymore.  Funny how that happens.  Just like how "everyone" was right about how quickly this goes by.

Happy Birthday Lana Lu!  You are the second of the three extremely brilliant shining parts of my life. 

One Is Not The Loneliest Number To Her

In a couple months the family is packing up and heading to Hawaii.  (Cue the Brady Bunch creepy idol HI music.) Try not to be to jealous of me.  Okay you can.  I'm totally excited about it.  This is not a trip we would have taken right now and definitely not taken in May, but Andy's good friend, Jamie, is getting married there and he asked Andy to marry him and his fiancee, Monique.  This will be his third time marrying a couple.  It's quite a little side thing he's got going. Anyone else want to get married?  He's up for hire.  We decided right from the beginning that this would be a family vacation, even though my in-laws were pushing for us to go alone so they could come take care of the girls.  However, that would go against my "I don't fly over water without my family" policy.  Don't ask.  It's part of my anxious neurotic side.  It worked out anyway, because they decided they also wanted Georgia to be their flower girl.

You might remember that the girls were in a wedding about a year and a half ago as flower girls and had a blast.  At the time I thought that might be their only opportunity to be flower girls, since my sisters and Andy's brother are already married.  Georgia is Jamie's Goddaugther though, and there are no other girls in his family or on Monique's side either, so we win!  Monique-(who I should mention here is an avid reader of my blog and a fantastic person, and not just because she reads my blog.  I really like her and think Jamie found a great girl.  Hi Monique!)-asked me a couple months ago if Georgia would be in the wedding.  I knew Georgia would be beyond thrilled and since we were already planning on heading to HI, of course I said yes.  She wanted to ask Georgia herself, so we set up a time where she and Jamie could come for dinner so they could talk to Andy about the ceremony and ask Georgia to be in the wedding.

The week before they came, I decided to tell the older two girls that Georgia was going to be in the wedding and they were not.  I knew that it would be better to prepare them, because they all do so much together and we try to keep things even, that I was afraid of how they might react if they were blindsided by this info.  I do not have a problem with just Georgia being in the wedding.  After all, she is Jamie's Goddaughter.  Sonya was supposed to be in my best friend Melissa's wedding when she was younger, but me getting pregnant with Georgia sorta messed that up.  I'm glad I know my girls well though and decided to tell them because Sonya got upset when I told her.  I told Lana a few days after  and she didn't get quite as upset at first.  Then a couple of hours later she was saying to me, "Georgia is NOT going to be happy that she is the only one being a flower girl."

"Oh no?" I asked.

"No she's going to be sad that Sissy and me are not doing it with with her," she told me.

I wasn't so sure.

Unfortunately, about three hours before Jamie and Monique came over, Georgia was hit with one of her migraines. Since I was making dinner and we weren't going out, we still kept our plans with them.  I figured they could still ask her even if it was in a pukey state.

Monique had made a cute little invitation on the computer asking Georgia to be her flower girl.  At one point in the evening Georgia asked to come out of her bed because she wanted to say hi to everyone.  It must suck to know that there is fun going on without you and there is absolutely no physical way you can participate.  I always feel so badly for her.  I picked her up and carried her out to the living room where she shielded her eyes from the living room light.  She gave everyone a meek hello and Monique told her how she felt bad for her.  But she had something that might make her feel better.  She pulled out the card to show her, and she lifted to head up for a minute to try and figure out what it said, but we ended up reading it to her.  I'm not sure she completely got what was going on, but she nodded her head yes, that she would be her flower girl and asked to go back to bed.  I felt bad for Monique, because it wasn't exactly the response I'm sure she envisioned when she was making the sweet card.  I knew once she felt better she'd get it though.

Two days after  her migraine when she was completely better, she found the card sitting on the counter and said,

"Oh!  Let me try thisth again!"

Then she read it out loud with a big smile on her face.

"Are you excited to be a flower girl?" I asked her.

"YESTH!" she exclaimed.

Then she said, "And just I get to be the flower girl!  Not Lana or Sthonya!  Just me!  I'm the ONLY one!"  She repeated this about five times over the next two days.

Sorry, Lana.  I don't think Georgia is upset at all about being the only one to do something for a change.  It'll be a nice opportunity for her to get out of the shadows of her big sisters.  Plus, we get to go to Hawaii, so you know, there's that.  I just hope we don't come across any cursed idols.  I would hate to wake up to a tarantula on my bed.  (dooodaleedoooo...)