To celebrate Kathryn's birthday, we had a family party here at the house yesterday evening. It was lovely to visit with some of the family that we don't get to see very often: my sister Debbie, my nieces Katie and Sarah, and my mountain-man Dad. It was equally as lovely to have family we do see often: my mom, my aunt Beckie, my cousin Jonnia & her son Cullen, as well as our neighbor Marsha who has become like family. We cooked supper, but the kids, of course, played a whole lot more than they ate! Look how adorable my little two-year-old grand niece Wren is... couldn't you just eat her up?! 
Kathryn doesn't like cake, so she requested a birthday apple pie instead. Candles stick in pie just as easily as they do in cake, and I enjoy making something homemade for her birthday... just one of those things I hope will be a fond memory to look back on when she's grown. 
Our main gift to Kathryn was a big-girl bicycle (partly visible in the photo above). She can ride well without training wheels now, and she has outgrown her little Dora the Explorer bike, so it was time to move to a more grown-up bike. It's hot pink with black tires and trim: girly, but not frou-frou. We'll be going shopping this evening for a bicycle basket she wants to buy with some of her birthday money.
We always request donations to the charity of Kathryn's choosing each year instead of presents. This year, we decided to collect items to put in our Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes. We got enough goodies to fill a few shoeboxes; we'll add some of our own items and Kathryn will include a letter to each child as well. The family still usually ends up giving Kathryn birthday gifts as well... however, they do try not to go overboard. {smile} Kathryn got a new sleeping bag and lantern--complete with a built-in compass--for our future camping trips. She received some fun craft things as well, and a few books. Granma gave her a cute set of puppy pj's and quite possibly Kathryn's favorite gift: monkey slippers of her own. She was so excited when she saw them, and told me that now she could stop being envious of my monkey slippers!
Today we had a little tea party with a few friends. Kathryn made place cards for each girl, helped decide what to serve, and set the table herself. She provided necklaces and such for each girl so they could all be "fancy" at tea. 
After tea and treats, they all headed outside--a gaggle of barefoot little girls playing outdoors on a beautiful day. What a fabulous way to celebrate a birthday.
Kathryn doesn't like cake, so she requested a birthday apple pie instead. Candles stick in pie just as easily as they do in cake, and I enjoy making something homemade for her birthday... just one of those things I hope will be a fond memory to look back on when she's grown. Our main gift to Kathryn was a big-girl bicycle (partly visible in the photo above). She can ride well without training wheels now, and she has outgrown her little Dora the Explorer bike, so it was time to move to a more grown-up bike. It's hot pink with black tires and trim: girly, but not frou-frou. We'll be going shopping this evening for a bicycle basket she wants to buy with some of her birthday money.We always request donations to the charity of Kathryn's choosing each year instead of presents. This year, we decided to collect items to put in our Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes. We got enough goodies to fill a few shoeboxes; we'll add some of our own items and Kathryn will include a letter to each child as well. The family still usually ends up giving Kathryn birthday gifts as well... however, they do try not to go overboard. {smile} Kathryn got a new sleeping bag and lantern--complete with a built-in compass--for our future camping trips. She received some fun craft things as well, and a few books. Granma gave her a cute set of puppy pj's and quite possibly Kathryn's favorite gift: monkey slippers of her own. She was so excited when she saw them, and told me that now she could stop being envious of my monkey slippers!
Today we had a little tea party with a few friends. Kathryn made place cards for each girl, helped decide what to serve, and set the table herself. She provided necklaces and such for each girl so they could all be "fancy" at tea. After tea and treats, they all headed outside--a gaggle of barefoot little girls playing outdoors on a beautiful day. What a fabulous way to celebrate a birthday.
