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Happy Birthday, Johannah!

This is not possible.  There is no way this is happening.

Johannah is now SEVENTEEN years old!

I know it sounds cliche, but c'mon:  where has the time gone?  Just look at this cutie!




One of the most memorable trips that John and I ever took was when we were dirt poor, and John was in residency.  We drove down to Florida from Ohio, loaded with Legos, books and Beanie Babies (this was before video players in cars), and toured around Florida.  Naples had a very nice beach, although it was rather cold.

Look at my beautiful baby!  She had the curliest blonde hair, and the cutest want-to-squeeze-the-heck-out-of-them cheeks.  And her eyes?  Well, they haven't changed through the years.  You can lose yourself in Hannie's baby blue eyes.

I can hardly believe that she's all grown up now.  She's a senior in high school, she's driving and dating, and she's just a really amazing person.  Hannah reeks of confidence and self-esteem, and very little of anything scares her.  She's smart, driven and goal-oriented.  She does things that she doesn't necessarily want to do (training for half marathons), and she has a tender heart for her feline friends.  She's drop-dead gorgeous, and because of all of this, she can be rather intimidating (this isn't a problem for John and me, seeing as she scares away boys quite easily).  Speaking of boys, she doesn't settle.  She gives a boy a chance, but if they don't live up to the example her father and her older brothers have set, she very gently lets the boy down and moves on.

So, for her birthday, Johannah wanted a party, but seeing as I've done more socializing in the last three months than I regularly do in a year, I wasn't too keen on the idea.  So, Hannah threw her own party, and I couldn't have been more proud.  I know it sounds sexist, but these are the skills that women need--she will be planning activities and throwing parties for the rest of her life.  Again, she absolutely amazed me.  Dinner around the fire pit outside with games too.  The kids had a great time, and me?  I was inside, making chicken divan and chocolate cake for the family party the next day.  Johannah didn't need me for one minute, and I have no doubt that I couldn't have thrown as fun of a party as she did.



It's surreal to think that by the time she has another birthday (same time, next year), she'll already be in college, moving on with the next phase of her life.  Believe me, John and I wish we could reverse time and go back to when she was little, but alas, she's ready to grow up.

We love you, Hannie!


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