Natalie makes Seven

A few years ago we were cruising along, quite content as a family of six.

Two boys, two girls, loads of activity and noise.  We were set.  Or so we thought...

And then came Natalie.  Our Xiǎo làmèi zi (spicy little girl) for sure rocked the boat a bit as she settled in to make us a family of seven.

But it was a rocking that we needed to shake us out of our comfort zone and back into life following His plan.

Gracious am I glad we chose the less beaten path!  This child adds zest, spunk and pizazz to our family that we were missing.

We just didn't realize it until after she became part of the fabric of who we are.

As my mother in love once told me, "For sure you changed Natalie's life, but even more importantly, she has changed yours and the M family is the better for it..."

This year our seventh family member turned seven.

And so we celebrated her with Lego friends (an amusement park set to recall the games she so loves to play when we go to Rehoboth Beach in the summer), a sleepover set for her doll (because she lights up when big sisters take time to play dolls with her), a Barbie and sisters set (what could be better than playing with the Barbie sisters with your sisters) and a from scratch strawberry cake that started to slump when it came out of the fridge.

Thankfully she was willing to overlook my lack of cake decorating skills.

Maybe the relighting candles provided just enough distraction for her to miss the landslide on the opposite side of the cake.

But what I really suspect is that she saw it and just didn't care.  Because when Nat knows that she's loved and adored, she's willing to overlook a lot of flaws and bask in the moment.

Keep on the sunny side of life my love.
You are my sunshine!