. . . addi turns eleven . . .

. . . there will always be something extra special

 about this little lady . . .

. . . on this day in 2002, 

i became a grammy . . .

. . . the girls and i rushed 

straight from the airport to the hospital 

to meet addison leigh hansen . . . 

{and to congratulate her sweet mommy, amber}

. . . we had managed to miss her birth 

the day before 

{she came three and a half weeks early}

 because we had travelled to nauvoo, illinois 

for the dedication of the temple . . .

 {me, addi-1dayold, amber-21, amanda-18, amelia-16. fine . . . i was 43}

. . . i was pretty excited about the way 

this blessing dress turned out . . .

. . . i designed and sewed it 

to match her mama's wedding gown . . .

. . . matte satin and chiffon . . .

. . . lots of horizontal tucks . . .

. . . it was pretty, but she was prettier . . .

. . . and just like that 

{and seven more grandkids later} 

she turned eleven . . .

. . . she's a lovely, smart, funny young lady . . .

. . . with the best hair . . .

. . . and she'll always be my 

favorite oldest grandchild! . . .