Sixteen

I have a daughter who is sixteen.

Just need to wrap my mind around that for a minute.

Here are sixteen reasons why she's my favorite daughter:

1) She is wickedly funny.  Emma doesn't always try to make you laugh like her brothers do, but she is plain funny.

2) I gave her a tour one time of where everything goes in our new kitchen and she remembers.  I tell everyone else constantly where to find a spatula or where that bowl goes.

3) She is way smarter than I am.  Which is convenient when I need help.

4) I am better at 1010 than she is (a new game app she has introduced me to).  It makes me feel better when you consider that she is way smarter than I am in every other way.

5) She is good.  She wants to be good.  She has a crush on a boy because he's so good.  I don't worry about her.

6) Her work ethic is incomparable.

7) Her ability to sleep is incomparable.

8) She is one of my very favorite people to be with.  Combine her low maintenance personality and her clever wit and I'm happy for the day.

9)  Emma is extremely independent--she fills out her own paperwork and only needs me to sign it. I love that!

10) She is pleasant even when she doesn't get enough sleep or isn't feeling well.

11) She is fearless.  She doesn't like talking to strangers but will advocate for herself when she needs to.

12) She writes beautiful music.  And poetry.

13) Emma is a loyal and kind friend and sister.

14) She could talk her dad into anything but she doesn't exploit that ability.

15) She is absolutely impervious to peer pressure.  Or mom pressure.

16) I like her more and more the older she gets...which makes me happy, since she keeps getting older.

Emma invited a group of friends over yesterday for a little party.  They made these Harry Potter wands out of chopsticks and hot glue and paint.

You don't even have to be a big Harry Potter fan, they are pretty great wands. 

I like Emma's friends.  In addition to having clever ideas on how to make Harry Potter wands, they are a nice group of girls.  When we sang Happy Birthday, Adam said it sounded like 18 part harmony.  Most of the girls are in choir, and they're good at it.  They gave Emma sweet and thoughtful gifts.  With funny homemade cards.

Adam and I went to buy them pizza after he got home from work.  We discussed the amount.  We scaled way back from what we would have bought if Braeden was having a party.

They only ate half the pizza.

Here's something you may not know:  boys and girls are different.

Here's an example, they're doing Emma's hair:

Braeden and his friends have never done each others' hair....

And here's my pretty girl with sixteen candles:

I love her!  Happy Birthday sweet girl.