Happy Belated to our Keki!

One week ago, on Jan. 2nd, Katy turned 14. Although part of me feels guilty for not getting her birthday post up in time, that guilt is quickly dissolved when I remember that it was because we spent her birthday on Maui. Yeah, guilt trip gone.

Some things you might already know about Katy:

*Her name is Kathryn Venice. Kathryn is after my sister and my Grandmother. Venice is after Mike's mom. A very special name for a very special girl.

*Her nicknames are Katybug, Frooleeloo, Pookie, and of course Kay-kee (given to her by Chris when she was born because he couldn't say her name), which we found out is also the way her name is pronounced in Hawaiian, only it's spelled Keki - we all thought that was awesome. We love it because not only did Chris call her Kay-kee, so did Trevor and Tessa when they were teensy.

*She gets straight A's and panics when she has an A- or (GASP!) a B on progress reports. Then she quickly does whatever it takes to bring it back up to an A. Her GPA is 4.0 - you go girl!

*She loves to make fun of me. She lets me know how old I am and that things I do are uncool. Then I catch her doing them and remind her that I am, indeed, cool. She laughed for a couple of days that I put 'GASP!' on one of my blog comments, and then I caught her texting it to her friends - now we say it to each other all the time. Even when I am uncool, she makes me feel special anyway.

*She is extremely kind-hearted and loving. She loves her friends and would do anything for them.

*She thinks that she's shy, but we've never worried about her making new friends. Mike and I have had a standing joke since she was about two that if she goes anywhere, she will most definitely have made a new friend by the time she leaves. That still holds true.

*She loves children and loves to babysit. Most of the kids that she babysits love her right back. One told his mom that when he gets big he wants to marry Katy.

*No matter where we go, people tell us that she looks just like me. When I watch her, I'm in awe, and I know that I was never that beautiful.

*She's really into boys now, which kinda freaks Mike and I out. When she and I have conversations about boys, Mike either leaves the room or covers his ears. He's just not ready yet.

*She's said for a long time that she wants to be a pediatrician, but after we got home from Hawaii, she says she might want to be a marine biologist now. I know that whatever she sets her mind on, she will reach her goal.

*She loves the gospel and has a sweet testimony. She really dislikes missing church, and was frantic when her friends were texting her that they split the ward while we were gone. She's so sad about not having those friends and leaders at church on Sunday, but I know that she will find new friends, and stay close to the ones she already has.

*The most important thing you should know about Katy is that she is wonderful, amazing, and everything good. Her smile is contagious - catch it some time!

Fourteen years ago, when my labor started, we simply went to the hospital and walked the halls for a while. When I said I couldn't take the pain anymore, but didn't want the epidural, the midwife told me I was in transition. She and Mike put me in a warm shower for about 5 minutes until I told them that I was ready to push. They took me back to my bed, and 3-4 pushes later, Katy was here... two weeks early and weighing in at 6 lbs 10 ounces. Her birth was absolutely my easiest, calmest, and most peaceful of the four.

Yep, that's my Katy. I love her so much that I could never express it in words! Happy belated, Keki!