Party Like a Five Year Old

It's amazing how fast time flies by. 

How quickly 24 hours can turn into 72. 

That is what Gracie's birthday was this year. A 72 hour bonanza ear marked by the arrival and departure of family, with a moonbounce and lots of sugar in between.

FIVE

To Grace on your 5th Birthday:

This is a day we've been counting down to for so long, the promise of five. It really is such a big number officially declaring you the big kid in a school full of littles. It is such a proud number for the both of us, five years of not only survival, but a thriving vivaciousness for life.

Your energy bubbles, pulling everyone around you into your giggles. When your happy your eyes twinkle and your smile sings. Your ability to empathize makes my soul happy, and I know it will make you a great person long after my days of parenting are done.

You, my big girl - my FIVE  year old - are one of the best people I have ever known, and I am so proud you are mine.

Love,
Mama

Unplugged

Today is my birthday. *Dah nah nah nanana*

But this isn't really about my birthday.  Although it is about gifts.  And freedom.  Wireless freedom.  Mmmmm - techie presents.

It is about the fact that I am sitting on the couch typing this instead of being tethered to our circa 2001 PC in the other room.  It is about empowerment.  About being unplugged
AND

the fact that I think you will be hearing from me a lot more often again.

If my chubby little fingers can figure out where the key strikes are on this little keyboard that is. :)

Two

Clare-

You are a perfect combination of storm clouds and sunshine. I guess, by default, that makes you my rainbow, huh?

And you are two today.

When you were born, I was so afraid for your ability to thrive. You showed me though. You've blossomed and grown like a wild vine, weaving a path of your own choosing. Your eyes sparkle with laughter and mischief, your voice sounds with clarity and force. You leap blindly and fearlessly into adventure. You twirl uninhibited, stretching your limbs into service for your own joy and our amusement.

Happy Birthday my Love. I can't wait to watch you grow, making your colors as vivid as your personality.

Love,
Mama

Four

You are four now. No more of this almost business.

This morning when you came downstairs, there was a demure batting of the eyelashes at the birthday paraphernalia hanging from the ceiling, and you whispered a sincere Thank You.

You will be a brilliant four.

In the last year you have grown so much. So full of life, beauty, kindness and empathy. So full of creativity, curiosity and chutzpah (at times). You reason and love more than you fight and cry. You hug with your whole body and snuggle with your whole heart.

 We love everything you are and all that you will be. Happy 4th Birthday Gracie!

Almost Four

Sunday was Gracie's birthday party. It's been under discussion for the last 10 months. She was very specific in her wishes.

One, a princess cake:

These cakes are how you know I love my children. A weekend of test cake making and then a full Friday/Saturday combo of baking and decorating went into this beast.

Two, a pinata:

Carefully selected with the inspection given to dozens before this unicorn was chosen. On the way home from the store, she hugged it and whispered how it was beautiful, but she was going to whack it with a stick and it wasn't personal.

Three, the ability to dress up:

So do you see what Sugar and Spice in all their Princess Glory are holding in this picture? Yep, the head of the unicorn. There is a whole series of photos where they entertained themselves by pummeling the broken paper-mache carcass.

The irony of it though? Grace was REALLY upset when I through the bits into the dumpster.

The best part of the party for me? A concentrated mass of mom's from her new school telling me how sweet, well mannered and kind she is.

Family Circles

It’s funny how you can love babies before they are even born. How you know you will protect and love them in every way you can before you even see eyes fluttering to look at you. How it doesn’t even matter that they are not part of your flesh and a product of your womb.

I have added another boy to my ranks of children today.

I raced to claim the status of the first outside of the family to caress him. I rocked my swaddled bundle for an hour before I relinquished my hold on his warm little body. I can still smell the sweet, blessed odor of newborn on my skin.



R.K.M.

Welcome to this world little man. You come into with so much more love waiting for you than you can possibly realize.

One

Things you MUST know about Clare on her 1st Birthday:

1- The girl loves the wind on her face and in her hair. Promising spring breezes to fridgid winter gusts, it is all the same to her. Her eyes sparkle with smile and her chin always lifts to greet it.

2- She likes to ride in the shopping cart like she’s backing down a driveway. You know that position. Body half twisted, arm up on the seat, head looking backwards. She wants to see where she’s going, not where she’s been.

3- Clare hugs with her whole body. I swear, sometimes think that if I let go, she would stay fastened around my neck. Bumped heads, teething, stolen toys- all can be fixed with a strong hug.

4- She loves her sister fiercely. (As Grace does her) Already they sit close, pressing foreheads together, whisper nonsense words and giggle for the fun of the nonsense. It makes my heart so happy.

Happy Birthday to my little girl- our lives are so much richer with you in them!

Shooting Stars

Gracie’s birthday – or the party on Sunday anyway – passed with a blur.

Literally.

We rented one of the carpet covered warehouse spaces filled with moon-bounces and assorted inflatable’s. Children flew from every corner and off every surface. Which is why, sometimes, they failed to bounce again without a brief interlude of tears.

See. Flying!

There is not a single picture that the party that is in focus.


OK - so this one is in focus- and it's climbing, not flying - but there was death defying tumbles (or belly slides) from the top rungs back to the base.

Even the birthday cake pictures are out of focus. Well, not the picture of the birthday cake itself. That is quite clear.

(Obviously)
And my Curious George efforts were very well received- only to be outdone by the birthday cupcakes that I made for school on Tuesday.

Never before has my baking received so many complements. I’m more of a savories chef due to my lack of belief in pesky things like measuring spoons / cups / and directions in general. Thank you Martha Stewart for the chocolate chip cupcakes with chocolate chip frosting recipe.

One Thousand Ninty-Five Days

It’s 4:47 PM. You are officially 3 years old.

Have I ever told you how much I wanted you? How much I desperately wanted you? How much I needed to have you with every cell in my body?

You name is not meant to be religious. Grace as an action, not a state of being. I meant it as beauty and light and movement. You know what though? You are my grace, my gift from God. You are my proof that He exists.

You run through this world now with such confidence and speed. You take death-defying leaps off furniture and climb nerve-racking heights up ladders. You know the world is yours for the taking, with the wide eyes and unfettered dreams of a child to make it happen.

You are 3 years old. Still in need of my snuggles and help with juice cups, but no longer my baby.

Strong and polite. Mischievous and independent. Proud and beautiful.

Perfect in every way.

Happy Birthday my Love!

Three-Six

Birthdays are another marker by which we measure.

~~Life, love, accomplishments ~~

During the 12 years I’ve been a part of yours, you continue to amaze me with your unfazed determination to pull every ounce of joy possible out of yours.

Happy 36th Birthday Matt. 36 years doesn’t seem nearly enough time for all that you are.

Two

Two years have passed.

It's funny how time with little children seems infinitely slow and lightening fast at the same time.

Two years of hugs and kisses. Two years of tears and tantrums. Two years of walking and talking and playing and loving. Two years of us, of a family.

Without this blog so many memories would have been lost in the lightening fast.

I wish you a lifetime of joys and discovery like you've had this year my love. A lifetime of seeing the world through the eyes of a vibrant, inquisitive child. A lifetime of unabashed love and impulse.

Happy 2nd Birthday Gracie - not that you need my suggestion to be happy.

They Say It's Your Birthday...

Traditionally, yellow roses are representative of friendship, joy and well wishes. I guess dad got the joy right, because in our family, yellow roses are birthday roses.

My father is not one for flowers or presents in general, for that matter. As far back as I can remember, either I bought gifts for him to give to my mom, he gave her a horrible one he picked out himself (ehem - can you say roadside emergency kit?) or he just doesn't buy her anything at all. I am 100 precent sure he has never bought a single gift for me himself.

Except for one.

When I was born though, he came to the hospital with roses. As mom tells the story, two dozen perfect yellow roses. One for me and one for her. I have an affinity for yellow roses. In my mind, yellow symbolizes love a million times more than boring old red roses.

Today, a rose bloomed in my back yard.

Gifting

Birthdays are hard. So hard. There is so much pressure for perfection.

Christmas is a mass celebrations. Everyone gets in on the action on some level. Birthdays are all about an individual. Your one day. Which is so much more special.

This year… today… Matt is 35.

I got my idea for his birthday present during my Christmas shopping.

Oooo! He’d really like this book, but it would put me way over the damn budget we set. Meh, I’ll just wait for his birthday! No budgets there!

So I did and now I am second guessing my choice.

----------------- I bought him this -----------------


And from within the book's pages I bought him this….

------- Sandeman 20 Years Old Tawny Port -------

********************* And this *********************

-------------- Bonny Doon Le Cigare Volant ---------------

********************* And this *********************

----------Chateau Ste. Michelle Eroica Riesling-------------

Notice a theme here? Yeah, that's how we roll.

I know he will like it, but all of a sudden it feels so selfish. Not because it is something I bought for myself, but because it is something that I know he will insist on sharing with me. Who drinks wine by themselves? Isn’t the point of this book to taste together??

Oh, well. It was selected with good intensions in my heart.

I guess I should have gone with the Old Style bike jersey though.

While this still follows the booze theme, you could bet every penny that I would never want to put it on my body.

Happy Birthday Matt!

The Big Three-Five

"I mean, what is an un-birthday present?"

"A present given when it isn't your birthday, of course."

Alice considered a little. "I like birthday presents best," she said at last.

"You don't know what you're talking about!" cried Humpty Dumpty.

"How many days are there in a year?"

"Three hundred and sixty-five," said Alice.

"And how many birthdays have you?"

"One." - Lewis Carroll

Today is Matt's 35th birthday. Hope you have a great day my Love!

From Babyhood to Toddlerdom

The Milestone has come and gone. One year. One year of life on Earth. One year of being a parent. One year of keeping her safe. One year of poopy diapers and sleepless nights.

And I wouldn’t trade them for anything.

How do we mark this milestone transition of Babyhood to Toddlerdom?

With cake of course!

It was a splendid party, teeming with family, friends that might as well be family and indispensable neighbors. The circles blended seamlessly together, but is it hard not to with a yard full of children whacking each other with Lightsabers and pool noodles.

In fact, if any of you actually took photos of the backyard shenanigans, please pass them along!

Presents were opened with a gusto only brought to the table by four children under the age of 4, all helping to tear away the fantastically crunchy paper and tissue of lovingly wrapped treasures.

Cake was shared, eaten and smashed (not necessarily in that order) by all. There is nothing quite so gratifying as hearing the unintentionally uttered yums, while your of a labor of love is devoured.
After the party was over, family stayed to exemplify the word. Under my sister-in-law Jeanine's instruction, project Let's Assemble Toys was implemented. Oh, and was I grateful. The box of 45 cardboard stacking bricks sure weren't going to configure themselves, and now 30 minutes of family togetherness did what would have taken me hours.

With all the controlled chaos of family and party events though, I forgot to be sad. I forgot to lament the fact that my baby is no longer a baby.

And that is a great thing.

My baby will always be my baby. The passage of time will never change that.

Happy Birthday

To my Gracie on your 1st birthday:

If I could give you any gift in the world, it would be ....

Joy.
I hope you have fun in life. That you take joy in the world and it takes joy in you.

Adventure.
I hope you embrace adventure. That you live out your dreams and follow shooting stars.

Wisdom.
I hope you are wise. That you appreciate opportunity and make the most out of every situation.

Confidence.
I hope you are confident in yourself and do not let faulty opinions lead you.

Health.
I hope you are healthy and do not inherit my challenges.

I have a million more wishes for you, and I’m sure over the coming years I will have a million more. If you read this in your journey into adulthood, please know that these are not expectations. They are not obligations. These are just some of the things that I would like to wrap up with a bow and hand to you today.

Although I suppose that your journey to these things will be the creation of the gifts themselves.

Happy Birthday my Love!

Love,
Mama

Closing Days of Babyhood

One more month.

We have exactly 30 days until my baby is no longer a baby. I know I have blogged about this before, but I am sad. Is it possible to be excited and sad at the same time?

I can only imagine the developments that will take place in her last month of babyhood though. Gracie has grown so much. She is crawling so quickly and pulling up on everything. She is reading books with us and knows what comes next. She will eat a quarter of a chicken breast and a full adult serving of veggies at dinner!

Oh, and she is feisty too. Apparently, she screamed when she wasn’t the first to get her diaper changed at daycare yesterday. Her teacher, who is an immigrant, always says it is good that Gracie is a fighter. That in America you have to fight for everything.

Is that really true?

Well, I still have 30 more days to baby my baby. And on the 31st day, I will still baby her. I don’t care if the title changes to Toddler. She won’t HAVE to fight on my watch.