A Beauty... 10 Years In The Making!

It's hard to believe that only ten years ago today, my niece Kacee was brought into this world. It was an exciting time for me. I had just days earlier graduated high school and was set to begin at the University of Utah that fall. It seems like just yesterday that I held this squirmy and cute little being in my arms and today she is a young woman of 10.

I was thrilled to be an Aunt for the first time and even more thrilled that my sister had asked for my help with little Kacee, as her girlfriend was going to be traveling and not able to help out with the newborn for a few weeks. I had no idea what to do with an infant. My brother's infancies were too long ago for me to remember and I never was huge into babysitting. Kacee taught me a lot over the first four years about patience and how to let loose and have fun.

Although my sister and her family moved to Washington about six years ago, I have tried to maintain an active role in her life and stay involved in everything she is into.

Happy Birthday Kacee!! I love you!

At one of her t-ball games during our visit to Washington in 2004. A girl after my own heart, she has a love for softball and plays catcher for her team. She rocks!

She has always loved adventure. Here's her looking for whales on our whale watching trip!

When Tracy and Steph were blessed with another little girl, Kacee was the perfect big sister. She liked to tease Kailee, but I think she is an awesome example to her little sister.

This is Kacee with her horse Gallee. For being 10, she has a lot of responsibility on their little farm. She feeds and waters the horses every day as well as helping care for all their other animals.
When we went to visit in 2007, we hadn't seen everyone in over 3 years. She was so good with Tyson and doted on him the entire visit.

This was Kacee and Tyson on our last trip up there in October. They are still the best of buds and Tyson follows her everywhere!

This is the blanket my mom and I made for Kacee's birthday this year. I like to make handmade gifts when I can and I knew she would love and appreciate the thought and time that goes into it. We looked long and hard for horse themed fabrics and finally found what we thought was a good combination.