5 Years & Nine Months

A routine trip to the pediatrician on Monday confirmed two facts - #1, my eldest child is indeed five years old, and #2, my baby is now nine months old. No shots were given, just a little poking, prodding, and peering into eyes, mouths, and ears. It was a great visit for both Ashyn and Luke. No tears were shed, and a clean bill of health was given to both. In fact, the only one injured by the visit was me. I was hit with the realization that my kids are getting too big and growing up too fast. It makes me sad. It makes my heart ache. And it makes me want to shed a few tears.

Anyway, life goes on. Accept it. Embrace it. Cherish it. Savor it. Because I swear all I did was blink and my baby girl went from this:

To this:

And this little guy?! Who does he think he is, eating big boy foods with his eight teeth? Eight teeth!!

Actually, Luke isn't growing too fast. He's only in the 15% for height and 25% for weight. Ashlyn on the other hand is in the 60% for height. One day she will outgrow her momma, but only by a few inches. Dr. Lash estimated her adult height to be 5'5". It will be interesting to see how accurate that is.

Ashlyn turned five almost two weeks ago and we had a fun-filled couple of days. It has taken me awhile to recover and find the time to blog about it. She was lucky enough to get two parties this year - one for friends, and one for family. She also got to eat dinner at her favorite restaurant, The Old Spaghetti Factory. Plus, Grandma & Grandpa Lifferth took her to Build-A-Bear where she got to build her very own bear...no wait, I mean a horse, of course!

But not just any ol' horse, a ballerina horse! Who knew?

It really was such a fun couple of days and I hope she remembers it for a long, long time. I, on the other hand, am grateful that birthdays only come once a year! They wear me out!

Party #1 Recap

Ashlyn had her very first friend party this year - a tea party. I decided she was at an age where she would actually remember having such a party and it would be a good chance to have some of her friends over. Now, when I say 'some', I mean ten. Yeah, I know, I might be a little nuts to voluntarily have that many little girls in my care. But it was actually really fun with no drama - give it a few more years and that will change! We actually invited 11 girls, but one got the dates mixed up and thought the party was on Saturday - bummer.

We got the table all set up the night before so that all we had to do that morning was prepare the food and give Ashlyn a nice, warm bubble bath and then get her all dolled up - hair, nails, blush, and all.

Once the girls arrived, I had Ashlyn open a present - a book called "Tea for Ruby" written by Sarah Furguson, the Duchess of York. It is a cute little book that talks about all the proper manners necessary for a tea party.

After I read the book, we reviewed our manners, including: sitting up straight, saying 'please' and 'thank you', not talking with your mouths full, putting your napkin in your lap and using it to pat or blot your lips, and raising your pinkie finger when you sip your tea. Then the girls practiced walking with a book on their heads. They were given jelly beans (up to ten) according to the number of steps they could take before the book fell off.

Then it was time to get all fancied up for the tea party. The girls each received a pearl necklace, feather boa, flower clip, and a ring. We had told Trent before the party started that his job was going to be to pass out the rings. It was a job he took very seriously!

Finally it was time to have our tea party! The girls found their assigned seats and the food was served. We had egg salad sandwiches, pb&j sandwiches, fruit kabobs, olive and cheese kabobs, and desserts: chocolate covered marshmallows, melting moments, and cream puffs.

And of course, tea - aka, strawberry juice. I put in a small spoonful of sugar into each cup of tea and the girls stirred it around and then drank it up. It was especially fun to see them all raise their pinkies!

Some girls finished sooner than others and so they went down and danced to the classical music that was playing.

Presents were then opened, group pictures taken, and then we played "tea, tea, party" (duck, duck, goose style) until it was time to go.

A serious shot:

And a silly-face shot:

The girls went home with all their new fancy accessories, along with the tea cup they used, filled with M&Ms.

It was super fun and I am already planning on having another tea party with all her cousins this summer.

Party #2 Recap

The celebrations continued on Saturday, March 12th, when we had our family party. Since Ashlyn still loves horses, we went with an "All American Cowgirl" theme.

I was so excited for this party, and for mainly one reason - we rented a pony! It was so much fun. Totally worth every penny. I'd do it all over again in a heartbeat.

We rented the pony for three hours and had it scheduled to come one hour before the party began so that Ashlyn would have the pony all to herself for awhile. Ashlyn didn't have a clue that a pony was coming to her party. So, when the pony arrived, I took Ashlyn and Trent upstairs to change into their party attire (click here if you want the pattern for her cute handkerchief skirt) while Brian got the pony into the backyard and hid her on the side of the house, out of view. Once we were all dressed, we took the kids out on the back porch and sat them down and gave Ashlyn a little talk. I think she was a little confused at first ;o)

We told her how much we loved her and how important she was to us, and then we told her that we had a surprise for her. Then Brian walked the pony around to the back. Now, Ashlyn really isn't the 'jump up and down' type of gal, but I could tell by the look on her face that she was thrilled.

We made sure to tell Ashlyn right away that the pony was only staying for the party and wasn't hers to keep. Once Ashlyn got up on the pony, she told Brian, "Dad, this isn't just a cowgirl party, this is a horse party! This is so awesome! Thanks Dad!"

After only a short time, she started wondering when all her cousins were going to come. She wanted to make sure they didn't miss out on riding Penny the pony.

I don't think Ashlyn left Penny alone for a minute during those three hours, except to occasionally get her a carrot or apple. She was in heaven! And she has already told Brian and I several times that she wants Penny the pony to come back again next year.

Penny proved to be a very gentle pony and after only a short time, we realized that we didn't have to worry about a thing, and Ashlyn took over with the lead rope.

Only a couple people knew about the pony rental, so it was a surprise to almost everyone who came. We had the country music playing, and when the guests arrived, the kids were each given a handkerchief and a cowboy hat before being sent outside to see the surprise.

The kids each took turns riding her or leading her. The were all so easily entertained with the pony that I didn't have to worry about doing a bunch of games and crafts. A breeze for me!

Our three hours with Penny ended all too soon and it was time for one final ride and a hug goodbye.

I was a little worried that Ashlyn would have a hard time saying goodbye, but she did great. We watched Penny (and it was when then that the owner informed us that her name was 'Annie', not 'Penny'!) jump into the back of the truck. Then we waved goodbye and watched as she drove away.

The party went down hill after Penny left. Well, not really. There were still plenty to do. Before eating dinner, the kids practiced tying knots with licorice.

As per Ashlyn's request, for dinner we had "horse food", aka apples and carrots.

And to appease the rest of the crowd, we also added in bacon-wrapped hot dogs, chips, potato salad, and beans. For dessert, 'cow pies' - aka no-bake cookies, 'haystacks' - aka rice krispie treats, and marshmallow smore pops. I opted to not make a cake or cupcakes this time since the only thing that ever gets eaten is the frosting!

The decorations were fairly simple. We had the house decked out with red, white and blue streamers and balloons. And a wanted sign with one of my very favorite photos of Ash Belle. Plus I had Ashlyn get out all of her toy horses and place them throughout the family room.

I also wanted to highlight Ashlyn's first five years of life, so I created a little hanging photo time line. It was really fun to put together, but it also made me so sad. It is just crazy how fast five years can fly by.

After dinner, and almost three hours after the party had started, it was finally time to open presents! A special thanks to everyone's generosity.

And last but not least, the traditional "Happy Birthday" song, followed by ice cream cones for anyone who wasn't sweeted-out!

As our guests left, they were each given a favor. We were lucky enough to have seven out-of-state guests: Aunt Monica and her two kids from Missouri, plus Jamie Andersen and her three kids from Arizona.

It was a very fun and memorable party, but I was worn out on Sunday! I'd like to say that I'll never do two parties again, but I probably will. But, I certainly won't do it every year, and not even every other year. Not unless Brian somehow becomes a millionaire...

And that's that.