Wahoo! Today I’m celebrating. Well, actually I’m celebrating all month, because that’s how I roll. I highly recommend that when you have a birthday, you celebrate all month too. I can’t take credit for that brilliant idea. It’s a suggestion I got from a friend of mine a long time ago and it means the month of August totally rocks every year. I’ve officially reached “antique” status. For those of you who don’t speak the language of my 2.0, that means I’m now 25 years old. Don’t fault her for the whole “antique” thing – she’s only 11, so 25 is bound to sound ancient.

There are so many blessings in my life! In honor of turning 25 today, I thought I’d list 25 things that I’m grateful for. Yep, this is going to be a long list. Deal with it – it’s my party, and I’ll write what I want to.

1. The Gospel of Jesus Christ and my membership in His Church
2. Mom
3. Dad
4. Alisha
5. Logan
6. Jessie
7. Reece
8. Wade
9. Sam
10. Cassie
11. My law degree from BYU
12. Running my own law firm
13. Living in KCMO
14. Cute running clothes
15. The color blue – that totally bright, really happy blue.
16. Cupcakes
17. Country music - Trace Adkins, Carrie Underwood, Justin Moore, Jason Aldean, Jaron & the Long Road to Love… all those good people.
18. Four Inch Heels
19. The Piano
20. Scented Candles
21. Calla Lilies
22. Italian Food
23. Texas Roadhouse Rolls
24. Men who open doors
25. Big dreams. And little dreams. Just all sorts of dreams.

I picked up a card a little while ago. There’s a quote on it and it’s how I’m determined to live. “This is your world. Shape it or someone else will.”

I’m the oldest kid in our family, and I didn’t come along until my parents had been married for 3 years. They thought they’d maybe never get to have any kids. (Bet you’re surprised about that one, eight kids later!) When I was little, I was definitely a daddy’s girl, and my Dad knew it. Just in case anyone else forgot it, he taught me to say “Love my Daddy best.” So much for the whole candy bar theory, right? Thank goodness my Mom was patient with him.

Cassie’s got me beat though.  This week, she made “Love my Daddy best” seem like very. small. potatoes. She and Dad were doing dishes this week when I walked in on their conversation.

Cassie: “Dad, I’m going to be SO spoiled when I’m looking for a husband, because I’m going to want him to be as good looking and as hardworking as you. I’m not going to find ANYONE like that.”

Dad: “Well, it’s not time for that yet. But when it is, you’ll find someone.”

Cassie: “Oh, no I won’t. I will be too picky because of you.”

On Father’s Day today, I’m counting my blessings that I’ve got my Dad. He’s the best man I know, hands down. So even though Cassie’s got me beat, I’ll say it today – I love my Daddy best.

In about a week and a half, I’m moving away from living with the 2.0s (and the rest of the family – the 2.0s don’t live on their own yet!) down near my office in KC, cutting my commute from what’s turned into almost 2 hours one-way (gotta love construction on I-35) to about 7 minutes. (Between the time and the gas, it’s a no-brainer decision right now.) Thank goodness though, that I didn’t move any sooner. I would have missed out on an important big-sister job.

I was asleep this afternoon (recovering from a bad tooth infection – see, not a charmed life!) when Cassie came downstairs and woke me up with tears in her eyes. Our dog Spike got hit by a car, and he died. It wasn’t the driver’s fault – Spike loved to chase cars, and he’d never listen when we told him not to. It was such a common occurrence that our neighbors down the road identify our house as “the house with the two big black labs who always chase cars.” The driver today was going the speed limit, and Spike ran right in front of him. Even though the driver slammed on his brakes, it was too late for Spike.

I got to hold Cassie for awhile while we cried together, and then we went outside with the rest of the family while we buried him. Mom suggested we bury him right by our gate so he could keep an eye on everyone – now he’s our Guardian Dog. For once, I think he’ll listen when we tell him not to chase cars. But we’ll sure miss having to tell him that.

Christensen women get a little vocal when we’re mad. I’d like to say it’s part of our charm… after all, you won’t ever have to guess IF we’re mad or WHY we’re mad. So all of you men that say you can’t read minds… there’s no need at our house. You can thank my mother for that gene. (Or my grandma. Or my great-grandma. So really, it’s probably not a Christensen gene. It’s more like a Jones gene.) My 2.0 wasn’t too happy this past week. One of the boys did something to set her off. When she started to give him an earful (she wasn’t expecting a mind reader, after all), he made the unfortunate mistake of telling her “You’re so cute when you’re mad.” He was quickly corrected:

“I am NOT cute. I am MENACING.”

Take note gentlemen. You heard it here first.

You might wonder why the smiley face is in honor of Cassie. It could be because she’s so pleasant. Or because we all smile when we’re around her. Or because we thought she looked like red ketchup on a bun. Take your pick. If you really want to know what it’s for though, I’ll tell you. A few months ago, I took the kids to Ma & Pa’s (Dad’s favorite down home diner). Cassie got a burger. And when it came time for the ketchup, she Very. Carefully. Drew a smiley face.

Mom and I went today – and in honor of Cassandra, there you have it. One happy little cheeseburger.

Let me lay it out for you – Reece, Wade, and I versus Logan, Jessie and the 2.0s. We had a definite strategy on our team. (Of course, laying it out here might put us at a disadvantage for next time, but I’m pretty sure that they caught onto what we were doing.) Basically, I guarded OUR flag and the boys went after THEIR flag. And we captured their flag three times. It was when we varied from that strategy that we ran into problems. (It could have had something to do with the fact that Jessie wasn’t around for the first two games either, but Logan and the 2.0s should have been able to take us.)

You see, I’m not faster than Logan. Have you seen that man? What was I thinking? Of course, at the same time I was thinking that I could be faster than Logan, Wade also thought he was faster than Jessie. And most of the time Wade is. But somehow Jessie caught him. (Don’t worry Wade, I’m sure it was a fluke.)

Enter Reece’s last stand. Surprisingly enough, he lasted for quite awhile against the four of them while Wade and I watched. Finally I got up and took a few pictures – totally against the rules, but really, what were they going to do about it? He did look a little crazed by the time they were done with him. See his picture above if you don’t believe me. And see the rest of our pictures to see how much fun we all have together. (ALISHA, this is reason number 2491.)

PS – Notice that Sam and I ARE really close to the same height.

T2 managed to surprise me all the way from England when he sent a fruit basket from Edible Arrangements to my office. When it arrived, I was out of the office in court. After I got out of my hearing, I had a message from one of the other lawyers in the office letting me know I’d “found a keeper.” Thankfully, everyone waited for me before digging into it…nice of them, don’t you think? Once I got back, we opened it up to share. And hardly made a dent in it. Even with five people. One of the gals at the office is really hoping that T2 “stays in the UK a LOOONG time so that ‘we’ can continue getting gifts like this.” Personally, I’d prefer he was here, but that’s just me. Since he’s not, I’ll content myself with eating pineapple. It was my VERY. FAVORITE. PART. I think I ate more of that than anyone else. I feel totally justified about it, don’t worry. After all, it WAS addressed to me. Despite the “we’s” and “us’s” that I heard about “our” gift.

After we tried (and failed) to finish it at work, I decided to take the rest of it home to my family. I knew they’d do their part to make sure that it didn’t go bad. They did not let me down. It seems that they all felt T2 sent it specifically for them. (And I’m going to let them think that.) Jessie summed it up best. “I’m glad T2 loves us so much.”

Yesterday, they conducted yet ANOTHER interview. I think this makes the third round. And don’t ask me – I don’t know how many more they’ve got in store for him. Thank goodness T2 is a great sport. Besides, the 2.0s ask some fantastic questions. It’s probably in MY best interest to let them keep interviewing him.

In yesterday’s interview, Cassie was particularly impressed. When she asked if T2 thought I was gorgeous, his response was that “Leila is MORE than gorgeous.” Cassie reported that to my brother Wade this morning. His response?

“Well GOOD, he’s not blind.”

I swear I have the world’s greatest brothers. And T2? Well, he’s a pretty great boyfriend.

I’ve discovered it’s easy to keep the title of “BEST SISTER EVER.” No, I did not give myself that title. I totally earned it. Just ask the little girls, who proclaimed it today. (Sorry Alisha and Jessie. I’m the oldest, and I’m likely to keep it.) Today, the rest of our family (minus Logan, who had to study, and Alisha, who is busy in Utah compiling reasons that she should NOT move to Missouri) headed to Nebraska today to attend the Winter Quarters Temple. (Alisha, you can’t count the long drive to a temple as reason number 1309 because we are getting a temple in KC. Scratch that off your list.) Once a temple’s dedicated, you need a recommend to attend it, and little kids can’t get recommends.  You can find out more about temples here or here, if you’re curious. The temple in KC will have an open house for whoever wants to come see it before it’s dedicated.

Since Sam and Cassie can’t go yet, someone had to keep an eye on them. I volunteered and we decided we’d make a girls day of it. It was SO fun! The 2.0s put together a soundtrack for our adventures (iTunes is a wonderful thing), we put it in the CD player, and we were off to Kansas City. They got to check out my new office (loved it!), went to Union Station (to pick up my mail, but they thought it was the coolest building ever), to the Nelson-Atkins (my favorite museum in KC, which is now their favorite too), and to Miller Park (where we ate the picnic they prepared and they ran around for ages). It. Was. Great.

And the whole “best sister ever”? Don’t tell the girls, but I already know who really has the title. Here’s a hint – it’s a tie between four people. Alisha, Jessie, Sam and Cassie have me all beat. For now though, I’ll claim it. After all, isn’t that the point of being the oldest?

At first we said we’d have a “girls night plus Wade.” He quickly corrected us – we were going to have a “girls night plus THE MAN.” And we did – a little popcorn, a movie, cupcakes and some nail polish. (The Man skipped out on the nail polish.)

This isn’t the first time this week that Wade has cracked me up. Mom and I were hanging out at the table while all the boys were being their usual crazy selves.  I said we needed to think of a word to describe them – without skipping a beat, Wade had one. “Sexy.” And then he walked out of the room.

Can I just tell you I love my life? Really, how could I not?