She's 5

This beautiful girl is 5 today. I showed her some pictures today of when she was born, her first year of life, and then each birthday since then. She enjoyed that, but mostly just wanted to get back to playing with her new presents. And can I say that I did a pretty darn good job with presents for her this year, because I did. 

We replaced her beloved "Pinky" that got lost when we moved. I made her a twin sized pinky last year in an effort to be both practical and sentimental, but she still yearned for one that was just like the old Pinky. lucky for us, the original Pinky is a fairly common baby blanket, and we picked up one that only had a difference in the embroidery in the corner. 

The other little bit of luck for us, I went to a garage sale this summer that had all sorts of Hello Kitty stuff for a quarter or two. So I picked up a few things for her birthday and Christmas. She got a stuffed Hello Kitty today, and she has hardly put it down since she opened it. It even took the place of honor, tuckedunder her arm as she went to sleep. Score. 

Grace got the other award for picking out a great present. She got a new big pink ball to replace Katie's that got popped last summer. Do you see a trend here? Anyway, Katie was so thrilled about it. My heart just melted to see the sisterly love. Grace came up with the idea herself, and was so excited to give it to Katie. And the thoughtfulness was not lost on Katie. She really, really appreciated that Gracie picked it out for her to replace the old ball she loved so much. And I will never forget Gracie's happy face as she watched Katie with the new ball. Brought tears to my eyes. 

She got spoiled by aunts and uncles and grandmas and grandpas. Each present lit up her face, and she has been a busy girl with all her new things. Thanks on her behalf!

We had a quiet birthday...no big friend party. I've decided those are just too much for my kiddos to handle while they are just little. So we invited one friend to lunch, and then had a quiet family party after dinner. Lots of fun, little stress. Best. Idea. Ever. Except there is too much birthday cake left...

Katie had definite plans about that cake by the way. Chocolate on the inside. Pink on the outside. Hello Kitty and of course, candy ornamentation. She wanted to pipe the bow on herself so I outlined it for her, and then she did the rest. She was very pleased with herself. Then she added all the M&Ms. She sure likes to have a hand in decorating her cake. She always tells me she is going to be a baker when she grows up and I wouldn't be surprised. She is always writing up recipes and experimenting in the kitchen.

I love this little girl. She sure does teach me a lot. Pushes me to be better and inspires me to never give up. I wish these years weren't flying by.

I will post pictures of her birthday at another time, when I am not using the old laptop. It's card reader doesn't work.