She's 12 Years Old!

We celebrated 12 years of LOVE and LAUGHTER with our caring, creative, deep-thinking, determined, dramatic, driven, endlessly entertaining, smart, and super silly girl over spring break.

She wanted a birthday party at Defy Gravity followed by gourmet cupcakes (by Cupcakes D'Amour) at our house.   She usually loves it when her parents join in on the playful fun with her, so both my husband and I climbed onto the trampoline and jumped the entire time.   We attempted synchronized back flips.

When you are with me, my heart leaps so much I turn back flips.

When you've loved someone since the day you first met (this month marks 24 years) and you are old enough to no longer care how silly you look to others, doing life TOGETHER is what matters most, even if it's something you've never done before. #synchronizedbackflips #orsowetried

Birthday girl shows us how a tumbling run is really done.

Her guests, their siblings and even we parents had a blast at Defy Gravity.  

Ellie still participates in competitive gymnastics, so she really showed us up!

When your daughter asks you to take her to Defy Gravity for her birthday and she insists you jump and climb with her, you do it....for her. When the love of your life offers to do synchronized back flips with you and then race with you to the top of the Ninja Course, you do it, because you grew up on Bonnie Tyler lyrics and would "climb every mountain and cross every sea" to be with your man. When the bandage slips off your finger where you nearly sliced it in two the day before, you keep hanging onto those bars like a fool because your daughter is cheering for you to make it to the top. And when the fun is over, you come home convinced you are 19 again and just had the best date ever with the man of your dreams. Then the next morning when you wake up, you can't move your neck or raise your arms. Sharp shooting pains race up and down your spine and you can't get up. That's when you realize you aren't 19 anymore, and you spend the rest of the week at the doctor's office getting rehabilitated. #mylife #YoungatHeartButOldinBody #coupleswhoplaytogetherstaytogether

I encouraged a super talented friend to start a catering business, so I was eager to support and help promote her new bakery.

I decorated the dining tables and large island with pretty place settings where the girls could sit and eat, but they went directly to the porch instead withe several sitting on the floor.  I'm glad the kids and their friends enjoy our porch so much.  Much giggling took place on that porch. The laughter legacy lives on!

After lots of fruit, cheese sticks, chicken, pizza, snacks, and sugary carbs, the girls went outside to play basketball.  Most of the girls played on their school's blue team, but they were just as fierce playing against each other and their little brothers who joined in when their parents came to get them.