A Little Pinch Before the Bling

We went to my aunt's beach house for the weekend of K's ninth birthday.We got there on Friday night, grabbed a pizza to eat and then watched Brave together. 

Sunrise over the mountains.

A little visitor

On Saturday morning we took her to Pig N' Pancake for her birthday breakfast. After she ate, the staff came over to sing to her and they got all the customers in the restaurant to join in as well. I must admit that it brought tears to my eyes. It was touching that so many complete strangers would sing to her. The staff gave her a green balloon and a little pink pig flashlight.

We met up with my aunt and uncle later that afternoon at the outlet mall. We took K to Claire's Boutique to look around for some cute jewelry. While she was doing that I talked to one of the sales ladies and arranged for her to pierce K's ears.

Waiting nervously for the piercing to start.

K picked out her birthstone in 14k white gold studs. The sales lady cleaned her ears with alcohol and then put dots on her ears with a felt tip pen to mark where she would pierce them. We had to check a few times to make sure they were lined up. I was very nervous at this point. Nothing worse then uneven holes in your head.

Then came the actual piercing. Her dad got a great shot of her face after the first one and then a shot after she was finished. I was very proud of her, she only squeaked a little bit and she didn't cry at all.

After they quit hurting, she said she was very happy she had it done. That made me feel good because I was worried the pain wouldn't be worth it to her even though she has been begging me to pierce her ears for quite some time now.

Once we were done, we headed to the beach so the girls could play in the sand and tide pools. As the tide was coming in K would play chicken with it. At one point it chased her pretty far up the sand and onto the rocks.

After playing at the beach we all headed to Mo's Restaurant for dinner. Most of us had fish and chips which were pretty tasty. Then we headed home where we had chocolate cupcakes I had made the day before. The chocolate icing is the best I have ever had, it actually tastes like chocolate. I got the recipe from a friend who has a food and craft blog. Opening gifts was last on the agenda.

She received a guitar which we are hoping she can teach herself how to play. If not, we may need to pay for lessons.

When we left on Sunday, the sea was in a tizzy. I have never seen it so tumultuous before. There were lots of churning, heaving and huge waves. We pulled over at a lookout to watch it for a while. If you compare these two photos you can  see how high and forceful the waves were that hit the shore.

K is growing up so quickly and I am impressed with how well she conducts herself at times. She is reading more and more, preferring it to almost anything else other than being outside. She just recently finished reading The Beyonders trilogy which is a set M and I enjoyed as well.

She is a camo in Tae kwon do and has recently joined the Black Belt Club. This will allow her to not only learn weapons but also help out the Tiny Tigers in class. She is starting to learn to spar as well.

She has been taking piano lessons for 18 months now and is one of the best students Kristan has. That is largely due to the fact that she practices every day, sometimes multiple times. She has recently mastered I Just Can't Wait to be King (from the Lion King movie), Tomorrow (from Annie movie), and The Cups Song (a popular song from Pitch Perfect movie).

She loves to cook and is always eager to make a treat or help with dinner. She has made me numerous breakfasts-in-bed consisting of scrambled or fried eggs and pancakes. Tonight she made chocolate mousse with just a little help from me. She has also mastered the art of spaghetti. In another year or so I may be able to turn the kitchen duties over to her.

She is now 53 inches tall (same as her younger sister) and weighs 57 pounds.  She is funny, sweet and very helpful. She is still very much into drawing and creating things with her hands. Artistry definitely runs in her veins.

She recently asked her dad to take her on a backpacking hike with him. He has started planning for a short 15 mile hike with her over the weekend this summer. It should be fun and I am sure she will love it.