You have completed another year around the sun and you’re a big 8-year-old! You started 2nd grade online for 3 weeks before finally going back to school full-time. Your teachers were Ms. Stroud and Mrs. Cazares. School was different for you this year because Covid-19 was still a threat. You were required to wear masks every day, use desk shields, eat lunch in your classroom, and stay in a certain area of the playground without playing on or with any of the equipment. You made the best of this situation and were so happy to be able to be back at school with your friends. You were fine with wearing your mask and never complained. I think it was because wearing the mask allowed you to return to school.
Before school started, we watched all of the Marvel movies as a family and you became a big fan of Black Widow and are super excited to see the upcoming Black Widow movie. We also took a trip to Galveston before school started because we were tired of being cooped up in the house during the pandemic and wanted some beach time. You went on your first ghost tour in Galveston and you got scared a few times, but handled it well. Now you search YouTube for ghost stories and tours that other people have been on.
You went through a beatbox phase where every song became a way for you to practice your beatboxing skills – ha! You love to do puzzles and are currently up to 500 pieces! You also love to dance and will at every opportunity possible. If a song is on the TV, you’re dancing to it! Your best friend is still Skye and you both enjoyed some play dates and sleep overs together. You also had several Face Time chats with your friend Annabel, who recently moved to Houston.
You are still in Girl Scouts and bridged to Brownie at the end of the school year last year. You and your troop sold a lot of cookies and got the chance to go on a weekend trip to Jellystone Park in Tyler in June. The moms (and older sisters) got to go too and we had a lot of fun!
This year we had to say goodbye to our Quinny Girl and you really took it hard. It broke my heart to see the pain that you were going through. You loved that cat with your whole heart and you struggled with her death for some time. There’s a song on the radio called “Memories” by Maroon 5 and when it plays you always say how much it reminds you of Quinn and makes you sad. You have a lot of pictures of her on your tablet and every now and then you’ll flip through the photos just to see her again.
Trick or treating looked a lot different this year, but you actually really enjoyed yourself. Many neighbors were outside of their homes handing out treats or leaving treats outside for kids to pick up. Because you weren’t having to ring doorbells and wait this year, we were able to get through the entire neighborhood for the first time!
During the Halloween season we met up with the Newton’s and camped with them at Jellystone Park in Burleson. We all had a great time and participated in some fun Halloween activities. It was shortly after this trip that your Uncle Ed got deathly sick with Covid and things were touch-and-go for a while, but thankfully he recovered. While he was sick, you wanted to write to him to cheer him up, so you wrote him letters and colored pictures for him. You have such a good and tender heart.
One of your big accomplishments this year was learning to ride your bike without the training wheels! Daddy took them off and in no time, you were riding like a champ.
We had a crazy winter this year and for about a week the temperature was near or below zero with several days of snow. You and your sister (and Daddy and I) had a blast playing in it. We used one of the pool blowups as a slide and slid down the big hill in our neighborhood. We also played with friends one day on the hills by the lake.
This year also brought a big accomplishment for women in the United States. The first WOMAN Vice President was inaugurated into the White House!
In addition to watching all of the Marvel movies (last summer), we also had a Harry Potter movie marathon during the snow storms. You and sister really enjoyed all of the movies.
As a gift for you and your sister for Valentine’s Day, we bought tickets to go and play with the cats at Casual Cat Café. This led to an eventual adoption of 2 cats from the same litter, Ellie Mae and Nala (whom we renamed Sookie). They have brought so much joy to our family and you have had so much fun with them.
The Covid vaccine was released this year, so your dad and I were able to get vaccinated. A vaccine for children under 12 has not yet been developed, but we’re hoping soon.
During Spring Break, we took a trip to Fredericksburg. We went to Enchanted Rock and about half way up the rock, you started freaking out and wanting to go back down. In your defense, it was extremely windy that day (wind advisory) and it was trying to blow you off the rock! Daddy and I kept encouraging you and held your hand and eventually we made it to the top.
You finished 2nd grade with all A's for the entire year! We’re so proud of you.
This summer was filled with SO MANY fun activities! We started the summer hanging out at NRH2O with Aunt Robin, Gracie, Brittany, and Eddie. You attended several of the VBS activities at local parks around the area. We went to Jellystone in Tyler with your GS troop. Then you went to Basketball Camp at L.D. Bell HS and won the Lay Up Award for your grade level. You decided that you want to play on a team, but want to wait until next year. We went to Athens for July 4th and then you and your sister stayed for a few extra days. You went to Glen Lake Camp, which was your first overnight camp by yourself and you loved it! You can’t wait to go back next year.
After returning from camp, we took our family vacation to West Virginia for the family reunion. What a fun time we all had! You had a good time playing with your cousins and enjoying the activities at the resort (including seeing the Red Pandas at Good Zoo).
You celebrated your 8th birthday at NRH20 with Skye, Lily, Morgan, Gracie, and Mason. Your theme this year was Black Widow, which included a cookie cake of Black Widow. The following morning, we went to IHOP to celebrate your birthday with Grammy, Pap, Aunt Robin, and Gracie.
We finished off the summer with a trip to Burnet where we stayed in Falkenstein Castle for 2 nights with Morgan’s GS troop (cookie reward trip). On this trip you learned how to kayak and you also jumped off a cliff into Devil’s Water Hole on Inks Lake!
I’d say that you’ve had a very good and active year despite the pandemic. You’ve grown so much over the year and we’re so proud of you. You’ve become more independent and enjoy physical activities. You are so funny and love to tell jokes and make people laugh. You always have something to say and talk non-stop! We have to remind you to wait for your turn to talk, but it’s very hard for you because you want to tell your story. You still like to cuddle in the evenings while watching TV and I treasure those moments because I know at some point, you’ll not want to cuddle anymore.
We love you sweet girl and we’re looking forward to the coming year to see what is next for you.
Love,
Mommy, Daddy, and Morgan
