Happy Birthday Makenna!!

Christmas is great......Easter's loads of fun too.....but a birthday is a day that's all about YOU!

It is my goal as their mom to let them know how special they are on their birthdays. I enjoyed the months leading up until their births and feel the birthday is a celebration for both of us. We decided to keep things simple, the kids do not do big parties with friends on every birthday....only the big ones 1, 5, 10 and 15 for boys, sweet 16 for girls. The inbetween birthdays are celebrated with family and a few of our close friends that we guilt into coming as bodies to take up space :) Actually.....the inbetween birthdays are the best because they are stress free for me. I don't have to worry about other kids and Jean and I are able to visit too.

The tradition continues....last night Jean blew up the balloons (Makenna asked me to be sure she had balloons) while I decorated with ribbons and chose a special gift for her to open in the morning. She woke very early and was anxious to get her day started but she was so good and stayed very quiet. She waited for the family to surround her before opening her first gift - I dont enforce that they wait, it is optional. If they want to wake up, tear into it and enjoy it on their own, the can....but mostly, they choose to wait and share with the everyone watching. She's tickled its her day....finally!! Happy Birthday my girl!

Be prepared for princess talk.....princess dresses, and all things Disney as we are only one week away from going!!! I plan to blog from there but was thinking I'd keep it very simple for the blog and maybe even start another blog just to preserve my own memories of this trip. Its a lifetime trip for us (maybe lame for some that Disney is a lifetime trip) but we have never vacationed more than a 10 hour drive from home for more than four days together! My business has always kept me home and I never had the desire to go to Disney with an infant so here we are....14 years of marriage, oldest child is 12 and youngest is 3 and is old enough to walk and talk. This has been a dream of mine for a very long time - I know the magic of Disney and how much my children will appreciate their time there. So, yesterday while shopping I found these princess dresses for.....$6.99 each....I bought five!!! The store is a hit-or-miss store and I knew if I didn't snatch them up they might not be there next time. The girls are always in dress-up clothes so they are perfect for them.

The minute we got home with them, Marleigh put hers on - just in time to wear it for her nap. Makenna came home and was delighted to find a blue one in her size. They twirled around the room dancing to a Barney video that Marleigh is hooked on.

I think she'll be excited to see they have these in Disney!

I'm off to build a cake and gather the things for her little party.

Have a super day!

~kel~