Sophie's 7th Birthday

At the end of July Sophie turned 7!  I can't believe how big she is getting.  I swear that she looked the same from about 3 to 6, but now that she's lost some teeth and growing up she seems so much bigger.

Isaac was gone to scout camp the whole week before Sophie's birthday and was supposed to come home on her actual birthday.  One day I found the following note that made me so sad.

This year Sophie wanted French toast for her birthday breakfast.  So I cooked that for her before her birthday party.  A few minutes before her party started Isaac got home!  She was so excited.

Then she had her birthday party.  She had an "Adopt a Pet" birthday party (which we copied the idea for Aspen's Unicorn Party).  Fortunately my mom came to help me wrangle the kids.  Sophie ended up inviting about 16 kids because she didn't want to leave anyone out.  She invited all the girls from her school class, church class, neighbors, and a few from our old neighborhood.  Again I thought that quite a few would be on vacation or wouldn't be able to make it, but only 3 girls didn't come.

Each girl got to choose a Beanie Boo.  I had them draw numbers, with Sophie going first, so they wouldn't fight.  There were no complaints at all.

Then they made collars, houses, and took them to the vet for a check-up.

Then we had cupcakes and ice-cream and opened presents.  By the time we finished that, it was time to go.  I think Sophie and all the girls had a really good time.  Normally Isaac isn't a fan of giving stuff to the kids who come to the party, like a gift bag full of candy and junk, but I really liked having the "gift" the activity/craft as well.

After her friends left we opened family presents.  She got some horse toys and books because she is obsessed with horses right now.  And she got a new bike.  She was really excited about that because she had been riding a hand-me-down boy's bike from Layne for the last year.

Then Sophie wanted to go to Cafe Rio for dinner.  She asked earlier in the week if "I can get my very own burrito for my birthday".  So we let her have her first huge burrito all to herself.

After dinner we went to the Bluffdale rodeo.  It isn't PRCA, but it was still fun.  None of the bull riders lasted 8 seconds, but there were a lot of good ropers.  The biggest downside to rodeos in the valley are that they are HOT.  The Oakley one is still my favorite because of the beautiful scenery and cool mountain air.

On Sunday we had all our extended family over for dinner and cake and ice-cream.  I made a yummy avocado salsa chicken that I think tastes so fresh in the summer.  And she had a paw print cake.

I hope Sophie knows how much we love her.  Here are so things about Sophie in the last 6 months:

• Sophie loved 1st grade in the ALPS program.  It was a great fit for her and I think she learned a lot.  She's really excited to start 2nd grade, although she will miss her teacher Ms. Kirkham.  But she has been really demanding this summer.  She got used to staying busy at school and always having things to do and friends to play with, so she's been really bored this summer.  All day she asks what we are going to do and has lost a lot of her ability to entertain herself.  So I think we will both be excited for school to start again in a few weeks.
  
• Sophie was really into puppies a while ago, which is why we did a pet adoption theme for her birthday.  But now she is really into horses.  She has been watching a Netflix show called "Spirit" that she loves.  And has been reading horse books, even encyclopedia type books.  So we enrolled her in a horseback riding camp.  Today was her first day and she loved it.  She has been talking about it non-stop.
  
• Sophie has become really lazy and doesn't like helping in the yard or going for walks/bike rides.  When we ask her to get ready for bed or clean up her toys she instantly drops to the ground and starts dragging her head on the carpet.  Sometimes I call her "Sophie sloth" because it's a real talent to move as slow as she does at times.  Lately, we have been trying to teach her the value of hard work.  But that's a really hard thing to do as a parent.
• But she does love riding bikes each evening with her friends.  There are 4-5 girls on our street who meet after dinner each night to ride bikes together.  It has been a lot of fun and has really cut down on all the times they beg to watch tv.
  
• Sophie is still super sweet and leave notes and pictures for people to find.  She always draws pictures for her friends and wants everyone to feel included.
  

Sophie is such an amazing girl.  I think that we are often too hard on her because she seems much older than 7.  But I know she is capable of so much and want to see her continue to grow and improve.  We love Sophie so much and are so glad she's our sweet Sophie girl.