Alyssa's 8th Birthday

For several months now Alyssa has been looking forward to her birthday so she could get a fish.  The night before her birthday we went to Petsmart to pick out what kind of fish she wanted and a fish tank with all the accessories.  She picked these iridescent goldfish that come in different colors.  She picked pink, orange, purple, and a green fish.  They actually glow under the night setting on the tank.  It's pretty cool.  She had a lot of fun picking out the color of gravel, the type of plants, and a rock feature on Tuesday night. 

(Update:  Last Saturday morning the purple fish spontaneously died.  It was pretty devastating for this girl, but we've managed to replace him.  Hopefully we won't have any more deaths for a while!) 

 

On her birthday, she opened her other presents.  We gave her a new set of scriptures engraved with her name, some puzzle books, and a subscription to National Geographic Kids.  She's also going to get her ears pierced.  Grandma and Grandpa Christensen gave her this scripture tote which is right up her alley: turquoise, ruffely, and shiny.  Erik and Jalyssa sent some craft projects which she has loved doing already.   

 Here we are having lunch with Alyssa on her birthday.  Her favorite is Chick-fil-A chicken nuggets. 

 Friday night was her Luau Party.  We invited 10 girls and had a great time.  We played Island Charades as the girls first arrived.  Then they each got to decorate a pair of flip flops with jewels and flowers.  No pictures there because I was frantically trying to hot glue on flowers that consistently weren't staying on!  Ugh!  Then we played some games.  Here are the girls doing the Limbo.  Kira even had fun getting in on the action.

We then went outside for some hula hoop fun.  We played this game where the girls lined up in teams and had to hold hands.  They had to pass the hula hoop down the line without breaking hands.  It was a lot of fun to watch them be silly as they wiggled their bodies to move the hoop down. 

Then we came inside and watched a quick video on how to do the hula.  The girls were really great and had fun following along. 

Then it was time for pina coladas, fruit and of course the volcano cake.  She wanted the exploding hard sugar lava just like Tori did as well.  It was a fun cake to have and eat!  

Happy Birthday Alyssa!

 

A few of the reasons we love Alyssa:

1.)  She is so kind hearted and is quick to jump in and help her sisters or mom if they need help.

2.)  Alyssa is very compassionate.  When someone gets hurt or their feelings are hurt she's often the one to put her arms around them and comfort them. 

3.)  She is very loving and affectionate.  I love that she still likes to snuggle when she's tired.

4.)  She loves to giggle.  I've always loved her funny giggle especially when she starts laughing and can't stop.

5.)  Alyssa is very easy going and goes with the flow when things are hectic.

6.)  She's really started to love reading and gets absorbed in her books.

We love having her as part of our family!