Happy Birthday Kendall!

Kendall turned 15 on January 27th. Looking back through her photo album to find some pictures brought back so many wonderful memories. She was such an adorable baby. She was my little one. She weighed 6 lbs. 7 oz. She was my smallest and Brad was my biggest at 9 lbs. 2 oz. There is something about delivering a 9 lb. baby that makes you feel like a hero! Am I right? If they handed out uniforms for mothers, I am confident that a 9 pounder would have earned me a few extra stripes on my sleeve. And then everyone could salute as I entered a room. How cool would that be? Oh sure, some of you have done 10 lb. babies and multiples which makes a 9 lb. baby seem like a walk in the park. Don't worry, I would recommend that they give you extra stripes too. Mayhbe even enough to make you forget all about your stretch marks! Okay back to Kendall...

She was just so adorable. She had red hair. I really thought it would stay but it didn't. She was just so adorable and so quiet. She was a happy little camper. I do recall that she and Bryan both did not sleep very much during the day which I found distressing at the time. I sort of counted on those hours to get something done. But that's okay. Somehow we survived.

Kendall has just always been good natured and easy going. Well, at least she used to be. We tease her now because she has gotten sort of testy in the last year or so. She finally found her voice and she insists on using it all the time! It's not easy to have 4 older sisters but Kendall has always been her own person. She has never worried too much about what other people think - in a good way. I suspect that serial killers don't worry too much about what other people think so it's not always a compliment, but in Kendall's case it is.

Kendall loves to read. It has gotten a little embarrassing because she will take a book just about anywhere. You know where you stand with Kendall because if she has the option of visiting with you or reading her book and she pulls out her book, well - there you have it. You know exactly where you rank.

Kendall is a great actress. I don't really know when it started or how it happened but she is really good. She has this way of not just acting well, she becomes her character. I guess since Kendall was never prone to dramatics, her acting ability took us by surprise. We love to watch her and wish that she had more opportunties.

She is really a great sister and has always had such a big heart. I wish every family could have a child like Kendall.

Kendall has some really great friends. She knows how to pick them or they pick her, I'm not sure which. Here is a picture of a few of them. From the left there's Chelsea Manly, Dayna Bergeson, Kendall, her cousin McKayla, Alyssa Tucker and Sam Calder. Kendall and Chelsea share the same birthday so Happy Birthday to Chelsea too!

Classic Kendall moment -

One time we were all sitting in a restaurant waiting for our food and some sort of discussion was going on. I can't remember what it was about but I remember that we were all talking at the same time and there was general disagreement. Then Kendall piped up (she was probably about 7) and said, "Hey. Let's all stop this and talk about something we can agree on - like how pretty I look in my earrings." It was hilarious.

I just love having Kendall in our family. She is the best 5th daughter anyone could ask for! She doesn't even seem phased by the fact that we wanted another boy so badly. Actually, I only pretended to want boys. Secretly, I was praying for girls. Kendall is one in a million and I am so glad that she is ours!