I can’t believe Lydia is already 16! Time flies way too fast.
In lieu of a party with friends (bc Nampa is lacking in kindred spirits for Lydia currently), she thought it might be nice to do “new experiences”
It worked out perfectly that she had a day off of school, so I could focus on her, which doesn't really happen when the other children are home, needing so much attention. Pat took her out to breakfast, something she had never done before. The food was good enough; they enjoyed their time out.
Next we went to Krispy Kreme where she got 6 free donuts for all the A’s on her report card, and got an extra free Specialty Donut because I told the worker it was her birthday, and apparently you get one of those for your birthday! Lydia wanted to share them all with the family, which I thought was so thoughtful and generous.
I took her to “fancy” Albertsons for lunch. We got sushi (another “new”) and I had her try some of the fish eggs on top of my rolls. After lunch we walked over to the bakery area and chose a special dessert that she could use as her birthday cake. She chose croissants filled with strawberries and whipped cream. They were even sprinkled with edible gold dust, which made them perfect for the occasion.
After lunch we drove straight to Barnes & Noble (a store that we never go to that I thought Lydia would enjoy, sinch she loves reading so much). Realizing quickly that I wished I brought a cooler to hold our leftover sushi & fragile whipped dessert on this blistering hot day, we decided to bring the food inside with us since at least it’s air conditioned in there.
Lydia said it wasn’t quite what she was expecting (Barnes & Noble has become much more open and big box compared to the cozy warm feeling I used to get there). And of course all the books were very overpriced. As we were finished up, I surprised her by saying, “You’ll still be leaving with a book though!”
Months ago I had ordered one from a discount book site and wrapped it up for her. One the way out, I gave her the present and she was so pleased when she opened it to find one of her favorite books: The 5 People You Meet In Heaven. It makes me happy to see her so excited and happy (because usually I’m not a very good gift giver.. at. all).
When we arrived home, I got some things done while she made a giant cookie. (She said that she wanted a giant cookie instead of a cake). That was before we knew there would be donuts and strawberry cream croissants. Lydia concluded later that we had WAY too many sweets! (It took her DAYS to eat it).
Lydia has really matured this year. She already communicates better than Pat and I did in college! She's a loyal friend. She follows up and commits. You can count on her. Lydia has done some beautiful portrait sketches and I absolutely love to hear her play piano. She loves a party and being with good friends, but also needs solitude and quiet. I love you Lydia!
For the 2nd year, we volunteered at the church orchard to do peach thinning. It’s an easy way to serve: gets us outside in good weather, we can go on our schedule, and the whole family can participate. It was trickier this year to get the kiddos to stay on task. They are often more interested in throwing the baby peaches at each other, or collecting them in their pockets than actually getting the work done, which was pretty frustrating for Pat and I. But we survived and I hope one day it will be a good memory for the children.
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