My little grocery shopper (love that Festival Foods has kid-sized carts)
On Saturday we started celebrating Riley's birthday weekend!
Hanging out on the couch, reading a magazine
It may be cold and snowy but Chad must grill for the Superbowl
Micaela's friend Colin came over and they had a blast
Peek-a-boo!
Riley requested "Tinkerbell and her Fairy friends next to a waterfall" for her cake. I'm pretty proud of my creation
While Riley was sleeping Tinkerbell and the fairies decorated our house
Riley's birthday was on a preschool day, so I volunteered to help with the class that morning
Snacktime
Art...I had so much fun watching Riley and her friends in action
My friend Sarah not only took care of Micaela for the morning (she has an 8 month old at home too) but also made Riley a birthday lunch and cupcakes!
We went to Cranky Pat's, Riley's favorite pizza place, for dinner
Micaela loves to share
Riley and Mommy with her cake
She got all 4 candles out in 1 breath!
Time to open presents
She received dress-up clothes, including an Ariel wig
We all loved it
Buzz Lightyear battling the evil Zurg
Our super sweet 4 year old Riley
This week we celebrated Riley's 4th birthday. Its hard to believe our little girl is already 4! I love making birthdays extra special so we started the festivities on her "birthday weekend" (Chad still doesn't believe this is a real thing) with a candle on blueberry muffins. The whole family went sledding then watched the Superbowl with our friends Steve, Jenny and Colin Cavadeus. We were pretty busy with the kids during the first half but football starts so late in central time that we were able to put them to bed and watch the second half. What a game!
Riley's birthday was on a Tuesday so she had to get up and go to preschool in the morning. She was thrilled when she went downstairs to find that the fairies (Daddy) had decorated the house with pictures, centerpieces, streamers and balloons. She had been very specific about her cake: Tinkerbell and her Fairy friends next to a waterfall. I'm pretty sure that's from one of her books. She was very happy with what I came up with. I had fun making it although a 3 tier cake for the 4 of us was way too much cake.
That morning I volunteered in Riley's preschool class. I had a great time observing the preschool routine and watching Riley with her friends. She has 2 amazing teachers, it takes a lot of patience and planning to keep 20 3-4 year olds entertained and learning for 3 hours. We brought special snacks and the class sang "Happy Birthday" to Riley. She loved being the center of attention.
While I was at school with Riley my friend Sarah watched Micaela. Her daughter Anna and Riley are in the same preschool class, and Sarah also has an older son in 1st grade and an 8 month old daughter, so the 2 little ones kept her very busy all morning. Yet somehow she managed to have a special birthday lunch and cupcakes ready when I brought the girls back from preschool, what an amazing friend!
That night we picked Daddy up from work and went to Cranky Pat's, Riley's favorite restaurant. We went home for cake, icecream and presents. Riley received a lot of dress up clothes because she loves pretend play. Despite all the princess dresses, fairy wings and accessories, her favorite outfit was Buzz Lightyear. She runs around the house fighting the evil Zurg (usually Daddy or poor Micaela) every day. Its fun to be 4!
It really is crazy to think that Riley entered our lives just 4 years ago. She has developed into this wonderful little person who loves to read, tell stories and engage in elaborate pretend play. I admire her unwavering decision-making, even if it does make things a little difficult when she wants 1 specific toy and can't be talked into anything else. She can be willful and obstinate and yet is so loving and caring. I feel so lucky to be her Mommy.
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Happy 4th Birthday Riley!! I miss you so much!!!
ReplyDelete1)Chad: Birthday weekend indeed exists. In fact, we have birthday week here. Sometimes it lasts for two weeks! We celebrate so many things throughout the year, and so many of them are made up holidays, make believes, but a birthday is very real and very much deserves celebration.
2) I went to a Superbowl party. Was it my first? Not sure. I was very confused for pretty much the whole game, but the food was good :)
3) I'm so jealous that you got to observe class for a whole morning! I would love to be able to do that. Oh what I would give to be a fly on the wall (cuz you know these kids don't act the same when mom is there).
4) That cake was fan-freaking-tastic! I can't believe you decorated it all by yourself! Oh man, wish you still live here! I would order all my cakes from you! The girls are so lucky to have you as a mommy (and your neighbors are so lucky to have you as their neighbor!!!). You know, if you still live near me, there would be no such thing as "too much cake" :P
5) I see you have found my replacement :P. LOL! Glad you have a good friend who can watch your kid for you! Is she a SAHM too?
6) I admire your writing skill, and your vocabulary.
I'm very proud of you for going to a Superbowl party. Although I'm surprised you aren't totally into these, they usually involve copious amounts of fantastic food. Your kind of party!
ReplyDeleteObserving the class was AWESOME. Definitely a highlight. They encourage parent helpers; I did some cutting and other odd jobs, they did put me to work, so its a win-win. Riley didn't pay any attention to me so I think I got a pretty good glimpse of her day. One of my proud moments was when one of the little boys came up to me and said, "Riley says she's a Bears fan, I am too. Do you like the Bears?" She's been paying attention!!!
I was very happy with how the cake turned out. Especially the water, I'd never done that before so I wasn't sure if it would work. Between the royal icing flowers, baking and decorating, It took a ridiculous number of hours. But its my fun hobby so I enjoyed it.
I could NEVER EVER replace you Miriam!!!