Mary Cate, age 7

Happy birthday to Mary (about a month and a half late...)! She has had an amazing year - she's learned to do so many new things and grown in so many ways. This was the summer of new skills: a) Riding a 2-wheeler, b) tying her shoes, c) rollerblading, d) swimming, e) started piano lessons, f) played on a soccer team, and g) spent the night at Grandma Linda's. At least those are all the things I remember!

Mary is also becoming increasingly helpful, generous, and thoughtful. We're always getting encouraging notes, kind words, and hugs. Of course, she can also hold her own with her big brothers and sisters. Mary does not like being told what to do...as you'll read in her interview. :) 

I'm so excited to have a front-row view of her next year. We love you so much, Mary Cate! Life would be waaaay more boring without you!

Still loves rainbows and pandas!

Sporting her new helmet and padding

Birthday hike at Woldumar

She was the only kid who wanted to go camping for Labor Day, so we set up the tent in the yard.

First time tying a shoe - Dad's shoe made for good practice at a soccer game

How do you feel about being seven?

Awesome. You get less presents that are more fun and more that are useful.

What kinds of new things do seven-year-olds do?

Well like I said, you can get presents that are more useful - like my locker accessories for writing reminders and notes. Now I'm braver about things, so I can do more things like piano and soccer.

What are you most looking forward to in the next year?
Turning eight, because that's my favorite number to pretend to be when I'm playing games. And I'm excited to get more useful things for Christmas and my birthday. When you're older, useful stuff is more fun. I'm excited to go on vacation and swim now that I learned how to swim.

Who are your best friends?

Hannah, Emma, Lydia, and Abigail.

Who are your favorite people to play with?

I like to play with Anna and other friends at school. I like to play by myself sometimes, and I like to play with my siblings when we can be together all at the same time.

What kinds of things are you good at?

Well, first, climbing. And then piano probably, running, teamwork even when I don't want to play with someone. Definitely reading, writing my name in cursive. Art and science. And that's pretty much it!

What do you want to be when you grow up?

A teacher and a doctor. An engineer or a scientist, either one of them. Maybe like a famous artist.

Why are you interested in those careers?

Well like a scientist or engineer, I like to test things and guess what's going to happen. I would like being a teacher because I already have some lessons planned that my teacher does. And now I'm better than when I was four at being kind. I'm good at crafts so even if it's not a fun thing, like in high school, I think I can do a good job teaching art.

What’s your favorite song? 

I don't know because I always hear new songs and then I like those and my favorite song changes to that. [Can you tell us a song you like right now?] I like to listen to soundtracks from any movie and then I find new songs I like. 

What's your favorite food?

Pesto pasta or macaroni and cheese.

Favorite movie?

It depends on what I just watched. It would have to be a numbered movie, like Zombies, Guardians of the Galaxy, Back to the Future.

Favorite book?   

Any of the Ramona series.

Favorite color?   

Blue, teal, or blue and purple mixed together, or a very hot pink.

Favorite place to be? 

Home or someplace really fun, like Defy or a restaurant with a play area or a jukebox.

What are your favorite things to do?   
What I really like to do is run like running a race. Play piano, play Switch, play outside by myself because no one tells me what to do and then I can practice things like soccer, challenging games, races, and no one tells me to stop. I like to play school and go places but not with my siblings so they don't tell us where to go next, I can just go where I want to go.

What is your favorite birthday present that you received this year?

Okay, well, it's a really really really really hard decision. But I liked the fly fishing coloring book, the locker accessories, and getting my ears pierced and going to the arcade.

Is there anything else you want us to know about you?

No!