Anna turns 7

"Parents (and especially grandparents) must provide not only outer warmth for their child but also inner warmth. They must create an atmosphere with a sense of security in which the child feels love and acceptance." -- Dalai Lama

"Respect the child. Be not too much his/her parent. Trespass not his/her solitude." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Yesterday was granddaughter Anna's seventh birthday. Wow. That seems so impossible. She is growing up so fast.

I thought both the above quotes appropriate in regard to our first grandchild, and only granddaughter. Anna is her own person. She is serious, studious, sweet and sensitive, yet she can also be nutty, naughty, and near-impossible to deal with sometimes. She's a special person with a tender heart, even though she may not always wear it on her sleeve.

I wouldn't say Anna is my "favorite" grandchild.... but she is perhaps nearest and dearest to my heart. This may partly be because she was the first, but for me, I'd say it's also likely due to the fact she reminds me most of myself. Her mother wrote a long description of her on Instagram yesterday and it was almost like she was talking about me. So, in Anna's defense, she comes by her intensity and stubbornness honestly. :)

At any rate, I love Anna and think she is a super-fantastic kid. She is a lover of any and all kinds of animals - from the tiniest bug to the largest horse. Nothing makes me laugh more than the rare occasions she gets squirly and will bop me on the head or pinch my nose. She doesn't play with toys much, but would seem to rather read a book or play a game of some kind with actual people. While it seems she is growing up too fast sometimes, I actually can't wait to see the person she develops into. I think she will be someone I'm quite fond of. :)

One of Anna's better qualities (and also worst) is her contemplative nature. I perhaps especially identify with this. While sometimes it may seem she is being disobedient, it may one day be one of her greatest assets. For example, last night she started coughing while we were at the restaurant. We all started telling her she needed to cover he mouth when she coughed, and she just wouldn't do it. I think this was a case of her not being able to process so many people telling her something all at the same time. I get that - I have the same problem. And so the more people said it, the more difficult it was to do for her. Things like this really break my heart - and my heart was breaking for Anna all night - but, again, I believe this will one day work in her favor. She won't be able to be swayed by every whim and suggestion and will be a deep thinker of great thoughts. At least that is my hope and prayer.

Birthday-wise, her parents threw her a party this past Sunday. It was just us and them, and a few friends stopped over. We had ice cream and wore pajamas. That was it. No cake - she doesn't like cake - but just ice cream. Then last night we all went to Taco Bell (her favorite place to get tacos), topped off by a Chick-fil-a milk shake afterward.

We bought her some clothes, took her to a movie, and got her a new pair of earrings for her recently-pierced ears (she got to get them pierced after she lost her first tooth in December).

So, hopefully it was a nice birthday for my Anna-bug, as I call her. She makes me smile. :)