I'm Grateful For... #9

Birthdays!!! They are so much fun to celebrate and I love seeing each one of my family grow with each year.

Today, it's L-Infinity's 17th birthday. So here are the past seven years starting with this year's. Enjoy!


We went to the Rainforest Cafe in Grapevine, Texas. Look at that massive sign!
Kila and L posing just before we ordered.
And here's the gorgeous Mr. Man with L. She chose to order Soup and Salad- her staple; clam chowder and ceasar. I-Dude found the Shrimp & Chicken combo delish while J-Pony savored her Pasta Alfredo. Kila had Burger and Soup while Mr. Man and I both fell in love with the pasta dishes. Yum! Can you say, "We'll be back!" (in your best Terminator voice?) And of course... We had coupons to use! I-Dude earned 4, count them, 4 FREE KID'S MEAL for having good grades each quarter last year. Yay for good grades and free food!!!
Mr. Man and L ordered frozen drinks and we got to take home these cool glasses! They light up!
Look at that dessert! It's called, "The Volcano". It came with a sparkler on top. The impromptu tablescape, compliments of Mr. Man. Great job, honey! We got a video of the crew singing to her while she stood up on her seat. It was soooo cute!
Of course, we brought along our other cuties, J-Pony and I-Dude. They had so much fun exploring the cafe and looking at all the animated animals as well as the fish tanks full of exotic fish!
She finally have her own birthday Build-A-Bear! We haven't had a chance before, but I'm very glad we waited; this one's more special... Both share the same birthday, November 9th, Monday night! Seriously! I told you the panda's special...
This is second year we took a picture together on her bday time, 9:35PM. Mr. Man took this shot. It is my job to "lead" her after all... ;-D In the background, our front door, was heart attacked by one of her leaders. We were home at the time, so she just let us know what she'll be doing. It says, "Happy Birthday", "17", "L is Awesome", "Laurels Love L" and "Hey, hey, hey, it's L's Birthday!" We all thought it was just a great touch to a great birthday!

She will be college bound by next Fall, so we made sure that this birthday was truly special. Now, for the rest of the year, I plan her Debutante Ball. *sigh* My work never ends! That's ok, she's definitely worth it!

Last year, for her 16th birthday party, she was the last victim of her "Extreme Makeover" game. She celebrated with her BFF Shelby, who flew in from AZ, Kila, Tyler, Daniel and Sadie. Kila provided most of the makeup.
The group shot afterwards... Kila left earlier. In the evening, Shelby, L and Daniel went to a Stake Youth Dance. The make up went from silly to gorgeous, so all was well.
This was on her actual birthday last year, at 9:35PM, when she was born. Our first together picture. For her other birthdays, I was mostly the photographer or I would just plain forget. ;-(


Her 15th birthday, we just celebrated at home; I made her cake and cupcakes to share in Seminary. I love this picture of her and Mr. Man.


This is the only 14th birthday picture of the three I took that she was in it. Most were videotaped. We had a simulated outdoor restaurant of The Cheesecake Factory. I was the chef, the photographer, the host, the waiter and the decorator while Mr. Man and my friend Midori were the waiters. he was also the construction foreman. ;-D She had 11 people come out the 12 she invited and they all had a blast eating and laughing afterwards during the "Who's Line Is It Anyway?" game. They feasted on Costco cake and Cheesecake Factory cheesecake slices.

For her 13th birthday, I made her favorite, chocolate cake though now, it's marbled cake.


This is her 12th birthday party... back in Gilbert, AZ. I made everything except for the cake. We also invited the missionaries and our great family friends, the Fosters: Randy, Midori and back then, only Derrick was their child. There's J-Pony with baby I-Dude...
Afterwards, Mr. Man and Randy took the kiddos to the movies, I forgot what they saw; it was either "The Incredibles" or "The Polar Express".

This is just after she turned 11. I think we used a regular camera, hence the lack of birthday pictures. She earned a Citizenship Award for Character Counts Recognition Night at school. I'm glad I have that. ;-D

The last 7 years, I've watched my oldest daughter grow into a beautiful young woman who is loved, appreciated and full of promise. Everyone that loves her wish her the very best!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!