Happy Birthday, Cassidy!

Wow! Where did the time go? My little china doll isn't little anymore- today she is 13! I can't tell you what that does to me! I still envision myself as this young mom with little kids, but I've been tricked! As much as I miss my sweet little baby, I have to admit that Cassidy has grown into a beautiful teenager- inside and out!

Cassidy has such a sweet way about her. She loves kids and they love her which makes her the best babysitter ever! She's very conscientious and responsible. She loves to plan activities for little ones and she's very creative.

One of Cassidy's favorite things to do is to SLEEP. She was the easiest baby ever because she slept so much. She would sleep all night and take 2-4 LONG naps during the day. When she was between 2 and 5, we would lose her. After serious panicking and scouring of the neighborhood, someone would think to check her bed. There she would be, the tiniest lump under the blankets of her perfectly made bed. At first glance there didn't seem to be anyone in it- but there she was! We ended up making a serious rule- Cassidy was NOT allowed to go to bed without telling someone Goodnight. She got in a LOT of trouble for breaking this rule!

Cassidy had a pretty active life right off of the bat. She was at the pool within a week of her birth and camping within 2 weeks. She was a baby on the go! She was so sweet-natured that it was easy to take her anywhere we wanted to go.

Cassidy plays the violin very well. We can't wait till she can get into High School and have her playing skills really put to the test. She's quite shy about performing for anyone outside of family, which is a shame. She makes some beautiful noise!

Cassidy has the same fear of being sticky that her dad has! She can't even look at someone if she thinks they might be sticky. She's always washing her hands and making sure that they don't have anything on them. We tease her about it plenty!

Cassidy is the most athletic of my girls. She's loved playing just about any sport! She was the pitcher for her softball team (just like her daddy). She loves volleyball, basketball, swimming, baseball, you name it! She's very active and likes to keep moving.

Cassidy is a rule follower to the annoying extreme! Especially when it comes to sports and games. She wants to know all of the rules down to their finest details. She wants to follow them and she wants you to follow them, too!

She loves playing games! Card games, board games, night games- any kind of games! I wear out on them long before she's done.

Cass is very sensitive-hearted with animals. She takes their care very personally. We have always had quite a few animals in the house, so we seem to always have one that is sick- or just getting old. We lost our ferret, Alana, a few months ago. She was sick for a few years before she passed, and needed a lot of special attention. Cassidy kept her in her room, kept her clean and fed, worried and fussed over her, and loved on her- even when she lost all of her hair and wasn't cute and fluffy anymore. I was so grateful and proud of the way she handled all of it. She has so much compassion.

Cassidy has a deep love of her family. Our family is as crazy-mixed-up as it gets, but she sees no difference between her birth family and her adoptive family

Cass loves FOOD! You'd never know it-she's so slender. But, man, can she pack it away! And then, she's hungry 30 minutes later!! She'll order 2 burgers for lunch instead of 1 if you let her. And you might as well let her, because she's hungry for it!

Cassidy and her cousin, Lizzy, share the same birthday. Lizzy was born on Cassidy's 6th birthday. I was at the hospital all day with Vel and promised Cassidy I'd make it up to her by partying crazy the next day and letting her hold the new baby first. When I got home- Cassidy had a fever of 103.0. She was so sick, and she didn't tell me she felt horrible because she knew I wanted to be at the hospital with Vel. I felt like the worst mom ever! And she didn't get to see her new cousin for a week. She was such a good sport!

This is a picture of Cassidy holding her new baby sister, Kaley. She had just turned 2. She was so gentle with her new baby. She just wanted to hold her and hold her. She would rub her little cheek on the baby's face. I think she was amazed at the softness.

Cassidy wants to be a cosmetologist when she grows up. She loves playing with hair and makeup.

If you ever need help with anything, you can ask Cassidy. She puts a lot of pride into most everything that she does. She's not afraid of hard work. She loves to be helpful and does a good job.

Cassidy, your momma wants you to know that she's so proud of her new amazing teenager! I can't imagine my life without you! You make every day a day worth living for me. I love everything about you! Well- almost everything. There was that time when you farted on me that was not too great, but pretty much everything else has been awesome! Happy Birthday!!