The Reveal

We finally told our kids were were going to Disneyland.

We wanted to do something special so we made a slideshow of our last trip to Disneyland and at the end, we tacked on our own little clip telling them that we were going.

 I don't think we'll make the Disney commercials, but it was pretty darn cute. Make sure you watch all the way to the end because it took awhile for Jane to get the gist.

Recitals, Rehearsals and Remembrances

So... here is how our week went after Emily's birthday.

Yesterday was Emily's dance recital, so this week included two dress rehearsals (perhaps a bit of an overkill for a class that is called PREdance), which made for quite a busy week during which I went through more hair gel and bobby pins than in the last several years combined.

The time between the last rehearsal and the recital was spent in Rock Springs for Chris' grandma's funeral. We will miss her.


It was nice to see Chris' side of the family, though and it also afforded Emily the opportunity to have Birthday part II.


(I somehow missed getting pictures at my parent's house, but there was more birthday cake and you can rest assured that the American girl can now boast a healthy-sized wardrobe - part of which she wore to the funeral - yes, the funeral. Some battles are worth fighting. This wasn't one of them.)

After the funeral, we made it back home just in time for more hair gel and bobby pins so that Emily could look the part of the beautiful ballerina.

Emily has been able to take dance class with her bestie, Kaylee this past year, which has been a great opportunity for them to stay in touch after the school district did its best to split them up into two different elementary schools.

The recital went well. I was very proud of Emily. My parents and my sister and her husband and kids were able to make it here for the performance. Even cousin Simon enjoyed the dancing.

Jane and cousin Lucy made it most of the way through.

And afterwards, Emily was generously rewarded for a fantastic performance.

She even shared the loot with her sister.

 And then back to Grandma and Grandpa's for ice cream and... MORE birthday.

 Phew... what a week.

Now We are Six

This past week, Emily turned 6. Although this seems hard to believe, it is indeed true. We had a pretty laid back birthday celebration this year for a couple reasons.

1) We are going to Disneyland soon which she does not ( I repeat does NOT) know about yet because we thought it may raise unrealistic expectations for future birthdays. We're planning on telling her soon.

2) This was one of the craziest weeks our family has ever had (more stories to follow) and we decided that there was a good chance I would lose it completely if I had to pull off a big party in addition to everything else we had going on.

That being said, Emily still had a great birthday. She got to be the birthday girl at school

and share cupcakes with her friends,

which I wish I could say I made, but that would be a blatant lie. They were, nonetheless lovely and although I have never had a churro flavored cupcake before, it is an experience I hope to repeat in the future.

Where was I?

Oh, yes. I was able to pick Emily up after school (with the help of a generous boss who allowed me to work flex time this week and also with the help of Chris who had to take a bit of vacation time so Emily could still make it to school) and she then she helped me decorate her cake.

You'll notice it says "Happy Birthday, Emily P." After reading the Ramona books, she is rather taken with us using her last initial in all written references to her. You'll also notice there may have been some frosting sampling happening. But if you can't sample frosting on your birthday, when can you?

Following a dinner at Red Lobster (Yes, Emily is allergic to fish, but she insisted. She says she loves their chicken strips and that she wanted to see the lobsters in the tank. Weird.), we got to the real celebration which involved presents.

She saved the big box for last, but she already knew what it was. Still, she was delighted to have her theory confirmed.

I was afraid she wouldn't appreciate the doll, but so far, she has treated it as her most precious possession. She combs its hair and dresses it for special occasions. It's very cute and only mildly disturbing. I have to admit, it was kind of good to give her one big birthday present instead of a whole bunch of junk she'll just treat with indifference and eventually break or lose. 

She loved the doll so much she could hardly tear herself away for cake. But she did. 

Happy, Birthday, Emily P.! We love you!

What the Postman Delivered.

It came in the mail yesterday.

It smells of  pretentiousness.

It is an abomination.

It is on par with Aaron's golden calf.

It is all Emily has been able to talk about for the last year and a half.

She told us it was ALL she wanted for her birthday. I hope she means it because this doll and the accessories she came with represent our entire birthday purchase for Emily.

Next week we'll see if she really does mean it.

Oh... and if it takes the last ounce of strength I have in my body to refuse to have a party for this doll, or to dress this doll in a dress that matches Emily's so we can properly attend a high tea/formal dinner/garden party I will gladly expend that last ounce. Just so you know...