Teenager!? Aubree turns 13!

When Aubree turned thirteen, Katie told her, "I remember that when I turned thirteen, your mom said, 'Just because you're a teenager now doesn't mean you have to act like it!'" Ha! I guess not too much has changed in twenty years!

Aubree's birthday celebrations started the Sunday before her big day with a joint family party with Jordyn. Aubree chose corn chowder for dinner and Katie brought brownie sundaes for dessert. Yum!

Aubree gave Anna teenage attitude lessons.

On her actual birthday, Aubree was able to celebrate at co-op by making apple-puffed pancakes in her cooking class (birthday kids get to choose what the class makes) and sharing pumpkin cookies. When she got home she opened birthday presents then helped out at Pack Meeting. That's right; this awesome girl spent the evening of her birthday leading a station with groups of rowdy boys! She's a rock star! It helped that one of her friends, Lily, came to co-lead the station.

One of her favorite birthday gifts (pulled from her Pinterest account wishlist) was this shirt which reads, "A day without reading is like... Just kidding. I have no idea!" Pretty much sums up her life!

Thirteen is a birthday party year, and Aubree knew exactly what she wanted. She planned the whole thing from beginning to end. She invited all the co-op girls to go ice skating on a Friday morning. 

Mark tentatively planned to work from home that day to watch the younger siblings, but at the last minute had to go in to work for meetings. That meant all the littles joined us. Later that night in his prayer, Graham said, "Thank thee that dad had to go into work so we could go ice skating!"

The boys all had a blast skating. Nellie originally said, "I do NOT want to go out there!" but we got a seal and soon she was loving being out on the ice.

The girls seemed to really enjoy themselves as well. It was fun to watch their skill level and confidence grow over the few hours we were there.

Most importantly, it was just what Aubree wanted.

On the way home, the siblings and I stopped for pizzas while the party girls drove home with a couple other moms. When we came in the house, we were greeted with a comical sight - eight girls passed out in the living room. They were pretending of course, but admitted to being legitimately exhausted from skating.

They perked up quickly after eating mass quantities of pizza and apples. Aubree was spoiled with attention and gifts from friends.

We ended the party with root beer floats.

Aubree is a phenomenal young lady. She is poised, capable, helpful, bright, and enthusiastic. She still loves babies and little kids (especially Nellie and Jonah [a younger sibling of one of the co-op kids]) and is a fantastic baby sitter. Aubree loves music, much to Mark's delight. She also still loves friends and is eager for any and all social situations. She seeks out opportunities to perform and lead, and has great plans for her future. Overall, we just love being around her and think she's an incredible gift.

An Interview with Aubree:

Favorite Color?: "Teal."

Favorite Candy?:  "100 Grand."

What do you want to be when you grow up?: "An author.”

If you went on a mission, where would you want to go?: "Utah."

Favorite Church Song?: "Peace in Christ."

Favorite Animal?: "Penguin and tiger."

Favorite Movie?: "Princess Bride."

Favorite Thing to Do?: "Ice skate and roller skate."

Favorite Food: "Pizza."

Best Friends?: "Nellie and all the co-op girls and all the young women in our ward."

Favorite Book?: "All of them."

What makes you happy?: "Nellie."

Favorite thing to do with Mom?: "Half-birthday dates."

Favorite thing to do with Dad?: "Watch shows."

What do you do really well?: "Play with Nellie and school."

What makes you laugh?: "Nellie."

What’s the best time of day?: "Right after school or church gets out when I get to do whatever I want."

What are you afraid of?: "I'm not afraid of them, but I definitely don't like spiders."

What do you like to do with your family?: "Play with Nellie."

What do you love to learn about?: "Cool crafts to do."

What is your favorite class/subject?: “Cooking.”

Where do you like to go?: "Ice skating.”

If you had one wish, what would it be?: "To have any super power I wanted, whenever I wanted."

What would you do if you had $1,000?: "Buy a laptop."

What is your favorite song?: "All of them. 'Don't Kill my Vibe' and Girl's Camp songs."

Who's your favorite Super Hero?: "Supergirl."

What do you hope you can do before your next birthday?: "Finish my honor bee"