"Okay mom! Count!" She lined herself up oh so carefully to achieve the perfect entrance to the water - the ones that leave very little splash - we'd been watching the Olympics and she loved the divers. Without of lick of fear in her little 6 year old body she dove just as surley as she would sit down to a game of checkers with her sister. No fear! The next day at the grocery store she noticed the man standing behind us in line looked as if he was probably from Asia - after a slight hesitation and a nod from mom, she turned to congratualte him on the excellent diving she'd seen his country preform the night before - "I liked the one that went around and around and flipped over like 20 times!" she told him. No fear! Over and over again I am amazed at the courage that Debra shows. Over the years she has continued to grow in her sense of judgement and when fear is a good thing - but she has a great determination to follow through on the things she feels good about. As a sister she encourages both her older and younger sister to "be brave!" when they feel a little intimidated by an upcoming challenge. As she is learning the difference between right and wrong she becomes more and more determined to do what is right.
Debra is our little fireball of fun - she is always on the verge of a dance, laugh or joke. She brings so many smiles into our home and loves getting all the sisters together to play a game - she hates for anyone to be left out and can always talk her sisters out of a bad mood if it's keeping them from joining in the fun.
Her crazy fun imagination was a great addition to our family. Her big sister Emily is very studious and never really "make believed" until Debbie came along. From the beginning the two of them have been great little buddies. Debbie loves to be tickled by Emily and can take anything Em is willing to dish out. She is always overflowing with laughter when she gets to spend time with her sisters.
When Lizzy joined our family, Debbie was eager to have a new little person to please. At first, it was all we could do to keep every baby toy in the house from being piled around Elizabeth - Debra was at her beck and call. She has spent her years as a big sister coming up with plans to keep her little sister entertained and smiling back at her. She likes to clap and cheer for Liz anytime she achieves something she has worked on (like taking a bite of broccoli at the dinner table or perfecting a summersault across the living room floor).
We love how Debbie can walk into any room and within a minute or two she's got the mood set for giggles and loves to make sure everyone has a part of the fun. Under her bubbling fun and giggles lies a sweet heart. If someones toy is lost, or there is only one piece of candy left, Debbie will be the first to offer up hers as a replacement. Each night she fervently prays that she will be able to have another baby brother or sister to play with.
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