Our Mariah

The girl who made me a mother is 11...I have been a mother for 11 years! Some days it feels like 100 years and other days I feel like I'm still 11. This motherhood thing is a wild ride. I feel so blessed to get to experience life with Mariah Jeanne, she brings so much light and joy to others. 

I decided to use some different questions as my kids get older for their birthday interviews. 

1. What do you like most about yourself right now? 

This year I've been trying to notice other's needs more and monitoring my interactions and doing that has made me a better person. 

2. What do you think your future job will be?

I don't know, but I know some things that I want my future jobs to be. I really want to write books because I love writing stuff and I think it would be fun to be a piano performer. And my Aunt Nattie is a painter and I might want to do that. Oh and I love animals so maybe own a farm or be a dog trainer. (I love how she has been positively influenced by three different aunts and the career paths that they pursued.)

3. What do you love to eat? 

I love Alfredo because of how creamy and delicious it is. I also love Hawaiian Haystacks because of all the        different flavors in it. You have the sweet and sour sauce mixed with the gravy and then you have all sorts of        fruits and vegetables mixed with the rice and it's just so good. I also love eating out because all the food is not what we normally have at home. (Mariah has come a long way in her acceptance of food, just don't make her        spaghetti...that always puts her in a depression.)

4. How do you like to spend your time?

I love playing with my siblings but I also at least once a day read a book. I enjoy playing outside and when I'm    really bored I draw a picture or play the piano. 

5. What are you good at?

I'm good at reading and writing not spelling but describing things and illustrating things through words. And I think I'm pretty good at piano and music. I love to sing too. I love doing soccer, I'm not a pro, but it's fun for me; it's something I love to do. 

6. Who are your best friends and why do you like each other?

My siblings and family are definitely some of my best friends. Annalie and Miri are some of my best friends        because of all the interests we share. For instance we all play the piano and Anni and Miri are kind of like my    sisters because I don't have sisters around my age so it's fun to have them come over. I also love to play with         our neighbors, especially Tessa and I go to choir and I have some friends there. 

7. Who is someone you look up to? 

I definitely look up to my dad a lot, my dad and my mom. Because they have influenced my world and I                always want to be like them. I've always wanted to be a mom so looking up to my parents shows me how I can    be in the future. (Disclaimer: Mariah sees the best in everyone, it's a wonderful gift that she has. And while        Tanner and I are far from perfect parents, we're grateful for the grace Mariah extends to us and the potential        she sees in us.)

8. What makes you sad? 

I get sad when my family is away or when family members leave; it just makes me unhappy. (Anytime family    that has come to visit leaves we have lots and lots of tears.)

9. What is your favorite outfit to wear?

On Sunday I love wearing my dresses because I just feel so nice. I love floral patterns in my clothing. I just        love flowers, they are so beautiful and delicate. I also like my clothes to be not very restricting so my pants I        like to be tight around the waist and lose on the legs. (Mariah loves to accessorize with jewelry and bows to        match her outfits...something that I never even thought of at her age.)

10. What makes you really annoyed?

I don't like when my siblings scare me really bad. That annoys me so much. 

11. What makes you feel proud?

 I feel proud that I'm a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Being a member makes me     feel like a daughter of God and I'm very proud to be one of His daughters. 

12. What makes you happy?

I love being with my family and having a good time with them. I also love giving gifts to others and I enjoy        music: playing music, listening to music. I also like reading and writing my own stories for others to read. 

13. Which of your nicknames do you like the most?

 I don't really have a nickname but I'm trying to get people to call me MJ. So far only my mom has and one girl     at soccer. 

14. What’s the best thing that’s happened to you lately?

 My birthday was in April and what's great about my birthday is I feel that every birthday you're moving on and     getting older every year. (I don't think going to The Lion King on her birthday hurt either.)

15. What do you do when you feel sad?

What I do most often is I read a book. And I like to say a prayer sometimes when I'm feeling sad. I also play the piano because it calms me down. 

16. What's your favorite thing to do with Mom? 

I just love talking with mom because our conversations can be so different and yet in every one it makes me feel so important and helps me to be happy. 

17. What's your favorite thing to do with Dad? 

Dad loves being read to so I like to read him books. I also like to play sports with him and have him teach me little more about sports. It's fun. 

18. What's your favorite thing to do with Chet?

 I like to do pillow fights because he always makes every fight so funny without even trying to. 

19. What's your favorite thing to do with Austin? 

 I like to draw pictures with Austin because he wants to learn more of that and I'm not very good but I can still     teach him some things. (Mariah will draw intricate pictures as a dot to dot for Eliza to trace and color.)

20. What's your favorite thing to do with Eliza? 

I like to read story books to Eliza because when I read funny ones she laughs really hard and it's kind of like        she becomes part of the story and I like to watch her. 

21. What's your favorite thing to do with Vivi? 

Vivi loves to "fly" so I just hold her up and she'll spread her arms and legs out and I'll run around with her. She     also asks me to "get her" so I'll pretend to be a monster and chase her. 

Mariah is so good at doing her school and is learning how to handle an increased workload as she is getting older. There are times where math can get overwhelming...hence the sad selfie. 

Mariah is such a good big sister. She is always thinking of ways to make her younger siblings happy and they all adore her. 

I love Mariah's creativity and willingness to try new things. Often I have to ask her if she really wants to do something or if she is only willing to do it because she thinks I want her to. She is learning to choose the things that bring her the most joy and fulfillment. 

Mariah still loves animals, especially Josie. She talks to her in this high voice that gets on my nerves, but Josie seems to really like it. 

I love listening to Mariah try out new songs on the piano. She has been experimenting with songs she knows by ear and changing them up. Right now she's been doing her own version of That's What Makes You Beautiful and it makes me so happy hearing her plug away on it. 

She also loves to come up with her own songs that are often funny. I took this picture of her singing her own song filled with all the random Spanish words she knows. She has been learning Spanish through Duolingo and never misses an opportunity to use what she has learned in conversations. 

Mariah loves to sing in public and has been able to touch others through her gift of music. 

Mariah loves to dance...her moves are a lot like her mother's, so she probably won't be paying the bills with her dance skills. But dancing makes her so happy and I love to see the joy that it brings her. 

Mariah has improved so much in soccer this last year. It's really fun to see her ability to be in the right place at the right time grow. She usually only plays defense and scored her first goal last week from the back (or however they would say that in soccer talk). 

Mariah is constantly doodling different things. She especially loves drawing animals doing human things. Her siblings love those drawings too. 

This girl is just so good. She is a friend to everyone and knows how to make people feel special and important. She has a quiet confidence about her from knowing who she is and Whose she is. I'm so grateful for her love for Jesus Christ and her willingness to share that love with others. We are so proud of Mariah and all that she is.