Big Day, Big Big Day...

Jason and I decided that for Lena's 7th birthday (next week) we would give her the opportunity to get her ears pierced. She had wanted to a couple of years back until we walked by the store and she saw a baby wailing after a recent piercing. Talk of the wanting had died down, but we thought we would still present her with the option. We wanted it to be totally her decision...she could do it whenever she wanted from here on out. Yesterday morning I told her the news and she promptly began to ask a myriad of questions. Then she said she would like to think about it. Then she said maybe after she turned seven. Then she said she needed to think some more. As we were planning our afternoon I told her we were going to go to the beach unless she wanted to run get the afore mentioned ears pierced. Low and behold....she chose pierced. We didn't really think she would go through with it but she did!

Before the piercing she clutched a stuffed rabbit she brought from home for moral support. When asked how she felt she said, "Excited and nervous!"...
The technician (is that their official title?) who was absolutely fantastic has now put the purple marker dots on her ears. Lena starts getting very serious, is breathing a little shallow, and has asked for a second stuffed animal and my hand...

We initially thought she was going to get both ears done at once, but the other worker was busy at the time. They popped the first earring through and Lena was quite shocked at the quick pain. At this point she was getting more nervous for the second "shot" but there was no turning back and she was a champ. When it was all over she said, "I didn't even cry!"...

As we walked out of the store I asked her how she felt now. She paused for a bit and said, "Different. And older!" She was physically beaming with pride and excitement over her new earrings and exclaimed that she couldn't wait to get home and show Annika and Daddy...

Later as we drove home from the beach, she asked to use my lipstick mirror and I caught her staring at her bright pretty ruby red birthstones for a good 10 minutes. A big day indeed!!