Bethany turns 16

Bethany turned 16 today.

There is something about the milestone events that make you pause and reflect. I feel very blessed at the woman Bethany has become. She is as beautiful on the inside as she is outside with a spirit that is truly amazing.

I've mentioned before that now that Chase is almost 20, we have to schedule family events. Last night at III Forks (who happened to actually have a really delicious vegetarian plate) the four of us got to have some rare family time with just the four of us.

We tried to think of what to get Bethany that would be really special. Erin-the-Marketing-Diva told me about her dad giving her a ring on her 16th birthday that was really special to her. John and I picked out a blue topaz one for Bethany that was similar to one she liked one random day walking through the mall at a jewelry store.

This weekend we bought a pinata for Bethany to take to her Spanish class. (A very fun idea by Bethany.) We went to a store in our neighborhood that sells Mexican candy to make sure there were some chili suckers in the mix. (If you've never heard of them, imagine watermelon or mango candy covered by lime-chili powder. Interesting and actually pretty good.)

I texted her to ask how it went and she replied, "It was short." (The first girl that hit it took it out!)

Bethany starts driver's ed today, so last night was a scramble to find all of the official documents for her license. Good stuff, this. She can't wait.