Happy Birthday Emmalee!

Emma turned 8 on Friday (March 6th). She had a great birthday. She kept telling me "8 is Great." She woke up that morning and found her gift that grandma had brought for her (a gift card to Micheal's - her favorite store). She looked so cute for school dressed in this amazing little outfit that she got the day before from Nana. I totally think green is her color.
Our friend Kim had come into town for the day and she and I went to help in the classroom that day. It was fun to see Emma pass out her treats and be all cute with her classmates. They were all so sweet to her.

This is Emma's favorite picture of her dress. I think her hair is so cute in ringlets.

That night she got to choose what she wanted to do. We went out and had a girls night (me, Emma, Kim, and my little sister Julie) Emma had a list that she wrote down and we did everything until they were all checked off. Our afternoon started with a trip to "Build-a-Bear." She has wanted to go there ever since Fiona chewed up her other bear a few years ago. We just never remembered at the right time. She remembered now, and it was the right time. I, of course, was lame and kept forgetting to use my camera at the right time, so my pictures only show the aftermath of everything. Lame, I know, but we were having so much fun I just forgot.

The next thing she wanted to do was go to a "fancy restaurant." We had a hard time choosing where to go. In the end we settled on Carrabba's. We were at the mall and it was the closest, fanciest place. This is wear I remembered to use my camera. She loved the food. She got spaghetti and meatballs (the meatball was her favorite thing - it only came with one), and a bowl of Mama's something or other soup. She loved that too. In fact she said next time she just wants a bowl of soup (so I guess, that was her favorite). She was so full she couldn't even eat the ice cream they brought her for desert. It was so fun and so yummy.

We couldn't believe they had a David Archuleta shirt at Build-a-Bear. Emma was in heaven, He is her favorite. She has a poster of him on her wall next to her bed. She named her bear Samantha (the name of her best friend at school).

After dinner we went to the LDS bookstore for her to get her own scriptures. She is so excited to be baptized on Saturday. She had so much fun picking out her stuff. She got black scriptures with gold trimmed pages. Julie inscribed her name on the cover in gold leafing (Emmalee Christensen). They are very pretty. Kim got her a real silver CTR ring and a pillowcase that she can color, iron, and keep forever. It has a picture of a little girl being baptized by her dad with some inspirational writing all around it as a border. She has already almost finished coloring it. Emma is our artist so that was right up her alley. Kim had to leave then to catch her plane.

The next thing that was on Emma's list was to go home and watch a movie, but she realized we were right next to the temple and begged us to go there. I love that on her eighth birthday, all she wanted to do was go to the temple. She asks to go there a lot, but since we are kind of far, it doesn't happen all that often. So we went. She loved it. She says the temple is one of her favorite places to be. She will just stand in the visitor center and listen to all the little shows and things they have available. She really has a sweet little spirit.

Afterword, we went home with Julie and Aunt Tiffany came over and watched a movie. We watched a Hallmark film called Lucky Seven. It was a cute little romance film. We popped popcorn and checked everything off her list. She loves being eight.