July 14 is a very big day.

No matter how hard I try...

 This girl refuses to quit growing. 

8 years ago she weighed 6 lb 11oz and was only 21 inches long. 

Now she weighs a whopping 42 lbs and I really don't know how many inches (not many if you compare her to her peers). 

My Gracie girl loves to learn. (she gets that from her dad)

She loves to take care of people. 

She loves to play the damsel in distress. 

She is thinking about loving to run. (no pressure from dad, to be sure)

I love to watch this girl teach her younger siblings.

I love to watch her change her brother's diapers and get him dressed. 

I love to see her face light up when she sings in church. 

I love this picture. 

It feels so anti-conformist. 

It feels so "baptism vogue". 

{pictures courtesy of my awesome friend and photographer Jessica Musil}

Happy Birthday dearest Gracie. 

I thank Heavenly Father every single day for the honor of being your mother. 

In case you are unfamiliar with our religion, we believe that at the age of 8 kids are old enough to understand what it means to be baptized and are able to do so if they choose. It's tradition that the girls are given a white dress to wear on their baptism day and I thought it would be neat to have a photo shoot documenting this special time in her life.