The Big 12!

Michela had her 12th birthday on Monday, can you believe it?! When did my little girl grow up? Instead of a birth-day celebration she is having more like a birth-week celebration. On Sunday we had the whole Staker clan over for dinner and some birthday cake. Michela is not so much a cake fan, but she loves ice cream.

I made her a chocolate chip cookie dough/extreme moose tracks ice cream cake with an oreo crust. And to top it all off, Grandma Peggy had made her delicious hot fudge sauce. You can't get much more decadent than that! Michela could drink this stuff for breakfast.

On Monday the kids didn't have school so we let them sleep in. I attempted to make her birthday pancakes.

My 12 was a bit wonky, Mike is much better at this, but I did my best. Michela loved the effort. She got to open her present from Grandma Hunt at breakfast. Grandma made her a card with pictures of Michela on it from when she was little.

It was pretty darn cute. Grandma gave her colored paper, stencils, and a gift card to Borders.

After lunch we piled into the car and drove over to Borders to spend her present. She ended up with four books, a candy bar, and a little left over for another day. On the way home we stopped off at Jamba Juice for some yummy smoothies. For dinner we went and got sandwiches at Quiznos. Michela loves their steak sammies.

After a treat of leftover ice cream cake and oreos Michela got down to the business of opening presents from the family. We had ordered some stuff from Old Navy a couple of weeks ago and Michela has been asking when it would get here. I kept telling her to be patient and it would probably be here soon. It actually came last week and I hid it so I could surprise her with the clothes she picked and some other stuff I chose for her. The biggest surprise were the shoes she had loved but had sold out before we placed our order. Luckily on the day I finally got around to ordering the shoes magically appeared in the size we were looking for. I also am working on a shirt for her, but I wasn't quite finished yet. I'll post pictures on it's creation another day.

Now I just need to help her get ready for her party on Friday. We are having about 18 girls come over for pizza, ice cream cookie sandwiches, games, and a movie. I told Mike to take the boys and go do something together far from the giggling and squealing girls. I think he will gladly take me up on the offer. :)

12 Fun Facts about Michela on her 12th Birthday:

1. Her favorite color is Lime Green.

2. She hates Math.

3. She loves the movie "Despicable Me" and we often quote it to each other. Her favorite song is "Crocodile Rock" from "Gnomeo and Juliet".

4. She spends way too much time in front of the new computer taking her pictures in Photo Booth.

5. She LOVES Chocolate.

6. She tested out of Keyboarding Class for Seventh Grade. She is overjoyed and can now fit Art into her schedule!

7. She would much rather play with Peanut than do her Chores.

8. She loves watching Wipe Out and The Amazing Race.

9. She weighs 76 lbs. and is 4 ft. 8.5 inches. While looking at her growth charts at the doctor's office she said, "So I am taller than 15% of the girls my age? Great. (with much sarcasm)"

10. She is constantly Creating; drawing, painting, sewing, crafting, ...

11. Her favorite thing to say is "That's boring."

12. Even though she is starting to show some interest in fashion, her favorite outfit is still basketball shorts and a t-shirt.

I love Michela so much and am so glad she was my first baby. She adds so much life to our family and keeps us on our toes. I love that she is becoming a responsible, vibrant, and beautiful young woman. Happy Birthday Sweetie Pie!