Must Be 18 or older...

It's official! Natasha finally turned 18! It was such a fun day! On Monday, March 15, we moved her in. And the next day was her BIG DAY!! At school she was surprised in her English class by a few of her friends. They made a giant card for her and presented it to her in front of the class (which is kind of funny because she absolutely hates having all attention on her). When she got home from school, Jenna came over (her bff) to spend the day with her. Unfortunately, I had a doctors appointment and had to leave them with the girls for a bit. It didn't take me long to use her to babysit. I felt horribly guilty about that, but didn't have much choice given I had an ear infection and sinusitis. By the time I got home, the girls had finished unpacking most of Tasha's boxes and actually started making her bedroom look like a teenage girls over sized decorated locker.

When Jer got home from work, we all headed to meet Hillari's and Jill's families for dinner at Sizzler. To my surprise, not only had Tasha never been to Sizzler, but neither had Jenna. What kind of sheltered lives do these girls live? I had to laugh. Once Tasha got a little tipsy from her Mountain Dew, we decided to give her the gifts from everyone. Oh she was a happy girl. We happen to have a little connection with the phone company so we couldn't resist giving her a purple cell phone. And she got money and lots of little happy birthday drawings from all the kids.

After dinner, we told her we were going home and said goodbye to everyone else that came to dinner. But, much to her surprise, we went to the church for a little PARTY there. She was the cutest darn thing! She walked in and just as quickly tried to walk back out. I didn't realize how hard it is for her when all eyes are on her. I keep telling her it's because she's so dang cute that people love to stare at her, but she's not uglying herself up much to make it stop.

All of this may seem a little over the top to some, but there are so many people that love this girl and for heavens sake - a girl only turns 18 once! We invited everyone we could think of that has had an interest in her so that she could see just how many people love her. Tammy made a darling cake for her and everyone there showered her with more gifts. I don't think she knew how to take it. It makes me cry every time I think about it. She came to me in the middle of all the chaos and whispered "I have that thing in my throat that makes me cry and it won't go away." I know the whole day was overwhelming for her and she was worn out by the time it was all over, but she's so deserving.

Once home from the surprise party, Jenna had 18 more gifts for her. She had gone through all their memories from the last 4+ years and gotten gifts for every little inside joke. They are great friends and I'm glad they have each other. It's been so fun to watch the two of them grow and change in the last year and to appreciate the friendship they have.

It took me forever to post this, but I have been so emotional about everything lately, I had to wait until I could keep it together. :-) Having Natasha in our home has been the biggest blessing in so many ways. I love her so much I can't even put it into words. I hope one day she is able to recognize all the good that she has done for us. She is a beautiful girl inside and out and I feel so blessed to have her. Love you, Tash and welcome to the family!!