Well, the last few weeks have been a blur of amazing progression with Raquel’s health as she’s fighting a terminal illness, but her sweet 16 birthday party was so much fun that I need to write a whole post about it!

I invited a whole bunch of her friends to come over the night of her birthday which was a Friday. A few days before I just happened to look at craigslist and found an amazing couch for our basement for cheap, and I was so excited to actually get it.

That morning I looked at my email and saw a Costco ad for a ping-pong and foosball table on sale. I told my husband that’s what I wanted for Christmas so we could finish out our basement and make it a fun hangout place.

He said that was fine, so I sent my father down to St. George to pick up the tables and then we needed extra help to put them together before the party. A couple of Raquel’s friends helped out and our neighbor. Thank goodness!

Sweet 16 Cake

Another neighbor, and mom of some of Raquel’s friends, Laura Curry, made the most fantastic cake. It was shaped as the number 16, covered with fresh berries and pomegranate seeds. It was one of the most delicious cakes I’ve ever eaten, and it was a huge hit!

The friends just kept coming, and coming!

After everyone arrived and hung out for a while, we sang to Raquel and had the cake with ice cream. 

After that we all went downstairs and played games.

Raquel sat on the couch with her best friend the whole time and had a sing-along!

It was so much fun and I was so happy for Raquel. She was beaming the entire time! Here’s a video glimpse of her great night.

Raquel is making amazing progress with her healing! We are so blessed! Check back soon for a general update on how well she’s doing.