With this being her last semester at Moody Bible Institute where she is finishing up her degree in Children's Ministry, we headed downtown to spend the day in celebration of her.
And what better way to start off the day than flowers from her dad?
Well, and how about adding a pumpkin into the celebration as well?! Dave saw them at the store when he was buying her flowers and couldn't resist bringing one to her as a fun reminder of the years we grew them in our garden and harvested them for her birthdays!
My fun first gift to her? A box of her favorite raspberries!
With the day being so gorgeous, the next order of business on her birthday was to grab coffee and sit outside soaking in the sunshine together.
Time slowed down on this delightful fall day as we talked for hours with our girl.
Lunchtime eventually led us to Lula Cafe, where we enjoyed an incredibly tasty "farm to table" lunch of wonderful taste combinations. And more wonderful conversation - can never get enough of that!
Since we were in the Logan Square district, our next coffee stop was an easy decision.
This Intelligentsia Coffee shop is where Tyler worked for the past two and a half years, before moving to Chattanooga with Lara and Judah. Though he wasn't there to make coffee for us, it was still so fun to be in his old stomping grounds with Claire.
We had so many things to talk about and catch up on, that it wasn't until the last half hour of being together that we finally got around to cards and presents!
While others around us went about their normal Saturday afternoon affairs, we loved celebrating twenty two years of God's goodness in bringing this dear daughter into our lives and family.
She's a treasure, a gem, a darling, a much beloved daughter to this mom and dad!
Dave captured her loveliness in this photo as we ended our day of celebration with our dear daughter.
"From the day of your birth Claire, you have brought joy, brightness, delight and richness to our lives. It thrills us to see you maturing so beautifully, following the Lord with all your heart, and loving people along the way. May this coming year be even richer for you in knowing the depth of your Father's love and His good plans for you!"
Looks like a perfect fall afternoon to celebrate the birthday of wonderful Claire!
ReplyDeleteI'm a few days behind in reading your blogs but LOVE that you captured all these pictures on Claire's birthday. So many awesome pictures and you're right...the last one of her is priceless. But I think my favorite is actually the one of her with a box of raspberries. She is beautiful, inside and out (just like her mama!). :o)
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