Happy 12th Birthday Sari!!!

Today is Sari's 12th birthday! It is so hard for me to believe that she is 12 already. The number 12 birthday is big for us because it means that Sari now gets to participate in all of the youth activities in Young Women's instead of being in primary with all of the children. It's a little scary for me to let her go be with all of the big girls but I know she will do well. This post is a tribute to Sari :)

Sari came to this world 2 weeks early weighing in at a teeny 5lbs 13ozs. I had been very sick throughout my entire pregnancy with her and her low birth weight was a result of that. That didn't hold her down though, she quickly began gaining weight and by her 2 month checkup was already in the 95th percentile in weight and height. Sari was the sweetest little baby. I didn't realize how good she was until Ashlie came along :) I learned very quickly how well tempered Sari had been. She developed a stranger phobia very early (about 4 months old) and wouldn't let hardly anyone near her except Craig and I, my parents, and my sister. (We had moved to California by then.) That only lasted a few months and then she began to be a little more pleasant with strangers.

Sari grew, and grew, and grew some more :) Sari has always been big for her age and because of that many people expected her to act older (including us at times). We would have to remind ourselves, she is only 2 or 3 or whatever, we can't expect her to act like a 5 or 6 year old even though she looks that big. Sari was always happy and loved to watch tv. Her favorites were Barney and Teletubbies. Ugh!!! We got soooo tired of those shows! For her 2nd birthday we even hired Barney himself to come to the party and she loved that.

Sari is an excellent student in school. Her teachers have always raved about her and how good she does and how sweet she is. We recently found out that her Science Fair Project was selected to be judged in the County Science Fair in one week. We are very pleased that she worked so hard and did such a good job to be chosen. There were only 3 projects selected from her school to go. She is a kind friend and loves to please others. She has always been a leader with her peers looking up to her. Sari is a great example to follow and helps keep us on the straight and narrow. She always makes good choices and is kind to others.

Sari's hobbies include horse back riding, reading, swimming, playing Rock Band, and watching tv. We recently got her started in riding lessons which she dearly loves. She also plays the piano (she's in her 5th year) and is doing great. We love to listen to her play.

If we were to pick one word to describe Sari it would be "sweet". Sari is a sweetheart and we are so blessed to have her in our family. Of course she is the typical pre-teen girl with her typical attitude, but we wouldn't trade her for the world. We love having her in our home and love the spirit she carries with her. We love to give her kisses and hugs and call her Sari-bo-Bari or Banana Fana, which she is liking less and less :( Can you guess where her nickname came from??? Sari Sari bo bari, banana fana fo fairi, me mi mo mari, Sari!!! That is our most favorite theme song of our family :)

So our Sari is 12 and has already ditched us for the Young Women's! She was invited to attend the snow trip that just so happened to land on her birthday :) What a lucky girl! So she should be home pretty soon, just in time to shower and get ready for a Rockin' party (we're doing RockBand). So to our Sari, we love you and are so happy you are part of our family :) Happy 12th Birthday!