Happy Birthday, Doodle!

Today is Doodle's 12th birthday! It is so hard to believe that 12 years ago today is when we first got the call that we would be parents to a precious baby girl! A lot has happened in twelve years and most of all, we have witnessed this tiny little baby girl grow into a lovely young lady who loves the Lord with all her heart, honors her parents and is so kind and compassionate to others. While there is nothing quite as precious as holding that new born baby in your arms, this moment of truly enjoying and LIKING not just loving who your child has become and is becoming is pretty sweet in its own right. So, as my friend Lainie has set the precedent for birthdays, we are going to write our top 12 things we cherish about Doodle in honor of her birthday today.

Doodle with breakfast in bed this morning! Yummy!

1. I am always amazed by this girls love of God and how well she can memorize scripture. She not only is in Bible Bowl and doing well, but she chooses to write scripture and post it on her wall to remind her what God's Word says about areas she struggles. I don't tell her to do that and I don't tell her what verse she should use. God's Word is alive to her and I love that.

Doodle and Daddy headed to Bible Study Fellowship for the first time together~2005

2. Along with number 1, I adore watching Doodle dance for Jesus. Nothing moves me to tears quite as quickly as seeing her express her love for God through dance. Her teacher, Miss Pearl, has definitely passed on this passion for dance but more importantly a passion for honoring God in all we do. Doodle gets that she is not just learning steps to a dance but she is learning to honor God through dance. She is so reverent and has this glow about her when she is dancing for Him. That moment is precious to me to witness.

Doodle dancing at church~2006 (in the middle)

3. Doodle has the best sense of humor! She is a silly girl a lot of the time. She will dress up, use silly voices, make fun games or songs up to entertain. The girl likes to entertain and her favorite source of entertainment is through making people laugh. She loves to find a new joke to tell my dad or to hear one he has heard. That love of laughter is a shared bond with them as well as with others in the family.

Doodle dancing in the streets at DollyWood~ 2005

Doodle being silly after her shower~2007

4. Doodle has a passion for critters! She loves them and I love that about her. She does not see a toad, frog, bug, whatever that she does not want to pick up and check out. She has always loved observing this little guys and still does today! I prefer to step on spiders, she prefers to check them out and then let them go. We will have to continue to come to an agreement on that one. :) But I love her heart with it.

Doodle with a little friend on the stick...look at Bean's face! Doodle could not be more excited and Bean wants nothing to do with it! ~2004

5. Doodle has a fascination with science that is unheard of for most girls. She loves it. She also loves history. I love that she loves learning about whatever is peaking her interest at that time. Truly she has the skills to be a lifelong learner with little direction. She is able to take something that interests her and dig and dig and dig in to find out all she can until she is satisfied. That kind of diligence certainly has paid off for school and will continue to throughout her life.

Doodle's first taste of science fairs~ 2004

6. I adore this girls carefree attitude towards life. She truly doesn't' really care what others think about what she is doing, well at least so far. ;) If she likes Mickey Mouse and Belle, she really does not care if others do not. Likewise, if a friend really enjoys Hannah Montana, she doesn't and that is ok. She doesn't make them feel badly about it but the fact they like that is not going to sway her opinion. That is so cool! I never had that kind of gumption at her age.

Doodle loving Mickey Mouse~ 2003

Doodle with her favorite princess, Belle. 2008

7. Doodle loves to read and I share that passion with her. I love seeing her devour a book and get lost inside the story. We prefer to read books at the same time and enjoy that journey together but when that can't happen, I just enjoy seeing her on her many travels through the stories she reads.

8. Doodle is a wonderful mother's helper. She loves watching the little kids around her whether that is her smaller cousins, friends sisters and brothers or my friends young kids. No matter what the ages, she just plays with them and makes them feel special. She truly enjoys hanging out with them. They look up to her and that is such an honor to her. She will be such a good baby sitter one day and an even better mommy. :)

Doodle walking with our little buddies as well as her sister.

9. Doodle is an amazing kid in many ways, but one thing that I think is so cool is that she prefers to be with her cousins (and a few "chosen" cousins) rather than anyone else. She loves spending time with family. She has always enjoyed hanging out with both Matt and my grandma's. Most of all she likes hanging out with her God given and chosen family most of all.

10. One thing I could learn from Doodle, her determination to finish a task or reach a goal. She has such a gift to set goals and reach them. She loves making lists and checking the stuff off. I love to make the lists...just can't manage to cross it all off! She does! She knows what she wants to do and she puts her mind to it and does it. Amazes me.

11. Well, we can't have a list of Doodle facts and fun without pointing out one of her favorite moments as a big sister. Doodle led her little sister to the Lord a little over a year ago. They had come home from BSF with their daddy and had gone back to their room. It was very quiet. I was on the phone. Later, Bean came out and gave me a note that said:" when you are done talking, I would like to be a Christian". Needless to say, I got off that phone! I went back to find Doodle and Bean sitting on Doodle's bed. She had led Bean down the Roman road and prayed with her. I asked Bean if she understood what this meant? She relayed to me what she knew and I was convinced she understood so when Daddy got home that night, we all sat in a circle, holding hands and prayed with Bean. No one was more excited that night than Doodle! She cried tears of joy when Bean prayed that prayer. She was so excited she was jumping up and down. It was not an easy night to get them to bed, but what I love about this moment is that it doesn't stop there. She still is challenging Bean in her walk with the Lord. What a great calling to serve your little sister in this way. Now, I'm not saying they always get along, but I am saying this is an area that God has placed on Doodle to teach Bean and I am so thankful for that influence. :)

Just for fun...Doodle getting ready for a recital in 2005. Even though she is not smiling, I love this shot of my girls. Good reminder of how quickly time goes by. Look how little they are!

12. Most of all, I am thankful that Doodle is not only my daughter, but also my sister in Christ as she has accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior. She is a baptized believer and we can be rest assured that we all get to spend eternity worshiping God together. Nothing is more precious than knowing that your children are walking in the truth. Even more special is that she truly shows she loves Jesus above all else. What a precious gift!

Happy birthday, sweetheart! I could not be more proud of who you have become and are continuing to become.