Happy Birthday Caily! 6 Years old!!

She has been desperately counting down the days and planning and planning and planning the party of the year and it finally came! This sweet little girl of ours turned six years old!

I have to share this story about her. Several weeks before her party we were discussing guest lists for the party, she had a very large large list that I wasn't sure we could accommodate and so I suggested we invite the girls from her Kindergarten class. She was excited and asked me if we could pretty please invite a first grader from the school, named M.  I didn't know her and was curious how Caily knew a first grader. I guessed... from the playground? From the Library? How do you know her Caily? She explained that this girl, would come in every day and help the attendance lady, sometimes she also comes in during Math because she is very good at counting.  Caily told me "Oh I just love her Mom, I hope she can come to my party, I think about her all the time, I think about her when she isn't there and wonder what she is doing."

 Wanting to be introduced to someone Caily so clearly loved, I asked her to show me her friend at drop off or pick up, days went by and we did not see her at school.  Then several days later out of the blue, Caily yelled "She's here mom!" She took off in a run and wrapped her sweet little arms around a girl in a wheel chair.  When I approached I heard her chatting away, telling her how happy she was to see her and how she liked her new shoes.  It turns out that the little girl M, is handicapped, and cannot speak much, she can lift her hand and nod her head and this way helps with attendance.  My heart was filled with joy when I realized that Caily loved this little girl with no reservation, she did not mind that the girl was different or couldn't do the same things she could, she didn't even mind that there was no conversation.  All that mattered was the love she felt for her.

In that moment I was so proud of the little girl that Caily is, the kindness and the love that so naturally abides in her heart. She is a loyal friend and she loves everyone she meets.  We tried desperately to get an invitation to her family but weren't able to contact them since the private care who brings her to school were quite private.  Since then I have realized that Caily loves all the handicapped students at her school, she always looks them in the eye and speaks to them with kind words.  I love that she see's that they are kids like her, who are valuable and precious.  She doesn't ignore them, but offers love.   It is so easy to be frightened or uncomfortable around people who are different than ourselves, but to be able to love unconditionally is a gift. and to be able to do so at such a tender age is touching.  And so, I must say that we love this girl with all our hearts, and we are proud of the girl she is growing into.

Because Caily loves to draw so dearly, (she can spent hours at the table each day) we decided that we would have a rainbow art party.  Her friends came and they made necklaces and painted frames, and played many many games, like twister and some fun balloon games.  I made her a layered rainbow cake (which was a huge huge hit).  I even got calls from little girls mothers asking me about the cake they had heard so much about.  It was so fun to meet parents and girls from Caily's class and get to know them better.  I love that we live in a community with so many wonderful families.

I made this Sunday Dress for Caily, out of my favorite dress.  Its zipper was no longer fixable but I have loved the dress for years, and so I made it into something just for her. She loved it!

We had a small family party the day after Thanksgiving, since we were lucky to have so many family members still in town.

The cupcakes were a hit

 We made preparations for a Birthday party with Kindergarden friends.  She invited all the girls in her class at school.

 Philip and Marissa helped me get the decorations just right, hanging this big centerpiece made out of table cloths was a tricky job, so I was grateful for the help! It was a huge hit with the kids, and the parents, and I have to admit really made the place seem festive.

 The girls (and Grayson) all decorated these cute little frames to take home with them.

I made Caily this cute little cake, it's six layers rainbow cake and took me an entire day to make! I even attempted the marshmellow fondant in a hand blender (which nearly destroyed it) Luckily, Philip and Marissa arrived and helped me salvage the mixer mess.  The cake was a huge huge hit with the girls, and days later, their parents were still messaging me about it. 

 We played some fun party games, like Twister.

 They were pretty cute.

 What a great Daddy!

 And we had a lot of fun!

 The girls made necklaces out of a thousand beads.

 These two boys weren't quite sure what to do with all the fun, and all the girls.

   

 We love this girl

We had a great time celebrating a wonderful girl. SO glad she's in our lives. Happy Birthday Caily!