See how 14 she is?

 I think I have told this story before, but when Ivy was little (maybe three years old) she would bring me the tape measure and say, "Let's see how 14 I am." Then we would measure her. She also refused to believe she was only three and would cry and scold us if we said she was anything but 14. You can imagine our relief yesterday when she actually turned 14 years old.

 In the middle of the day she said, "I think birthdays are less and less of a big deal the older you get." I agreed with her. At the end of the day she said it was her best birthday ever.

She got up and ran for cross country first thing in the morning. Will dropped her off, but had to go to work, so I picked her up after.

She jumped in the pool after running to clean out some of the rocks and leaves in the bottom of the pool. Then later at 11:07, we shared our yearly scream. :)

We did our scream differently this year. I waited outside the house and at 11:07 precisely, Ivy came outside and we both screamed together (that's how she was born.)

We then had to run errands and pick up the donuts for her party. At 2 we met her friends at the rec center to swim.

Andrea (next door neighbor), Nora and Ophelia (Ivy's ward friends). Sierra and Emily showed up later.

After swimming at the rec center we played fugitive to get home. (Will and I gave Ivy and her friends a 7 minute head start on foot and then we drove around looking for them. If they make it home without us finding them, then they win. If we spot them, then we win and they have to get in the car to be driven home.) We found them.

At our house we ate pizza, broke the strongest piñata ever that Ivy and her friend Emily had made for Spanish class, had donuts and opened presents. Then they swam until Andrea's mom called to have her come home.

Below are Emily and Ivy with the "broken" piñata. Emily took it home as it was all still in one piece!

As I was leaving to take Sierra home, Will said, "Come back fast." When I asked why, he said, "I can't say. Just come back fast." So cryptic! 

When I drove up to the house Bill was outside talking to a neighbor. Before long a black Camry drove up with a bunch of people inside. We realized it was Collin with his family! Then Faith popped out of the car!

Collin's sister, Emma, had to fly the Cashman's jet back to Las Vegas and it was flying empty, so they asked if Emma knew anyone who wanted to fly to Vegas, so Collin, Faith, Cheri (Collin's mother) along with her mother "Grandma" came along for the ride. The Justices dropped Faith off with us for 2 lovely hours while they went and got something to eat. Faith had a bit of pizza and the last donut, which was perfect and we discussed her dream of having her wedding reception at the Eureka Opera House (in Eureka, Nevada).

We also discussed the giant ladder in the back of Kohls that Will got to climb and the first article Faith is writing for the Reno Gazette Journal (which is a terrible story about a vet with mental illness who was shot by a RNO police officer on accident).

It was a big day and a great 14th birthday!