The Birthday Celebration . . .

It seems that every year we celebrate Emory's birthday for about a week, and this year is no exception. We did the usual fun stuff on her real birthday; went to her favorite restaurant for lunch, opened presents, and generally gave her lots of attention. She wanted to open a present right after she woke up. (You'll see that wrapping paper in a new use later.) In Fairview we went to that awesome boutique, and they had Melissa and Doug puzzles on sale. Emory had her choice of zoo animals, cute children around the world, horses, etc. No, no, no . . . she chooses the Anatomy Puzzle. She is her father's daughter! She had no problem with it while we put it together, but would NOT lay next to it for a picture. Once this child gets something into her head, there's not a person on this earth who can talk her out of it. When we figured out she didn't want "Bone Man" looking at her, she laid on the other side just fine. She also got a new bike for her birthday (including a helmet, elbow and knee pads, riding gloves), new earrings, books, dolls, a pop-up train, clothes, side-walk chalk, and the piece d'resistance . . . an amazing assortment of dress-ups that my mom made. (My mom whipped these up in a day and didn't really use a pattern. I know . . . you can all be jealous she's mine!) This train from my Grandma was/is a big hit. It fits on top of a twin sized bed, so it's like she's sleeping in a tent!We also celebrated on the Saturday after with some of Cory's family. We went to dinner at Texas Roadhouse; it was muy busy but really good! Then we came back to our house for cake and ice cream with everyone. Emory is all about make-believe and princesses, so she wanted a Fairy Tale Castle. This in me trying my best and building a Fairy Tale Castle!
The tradition of new Naartjie outfits for her birthday continues.There are so many words to describe our Emory, I can't just choose one. Loving, bossy, thoughtful, possessive, obsessive, silly, beautiful, and too smart! She is such a reader, and it's driving me crazy. I can't read anything around her without her looking over my shoulder and reading ahead of me. She still wants us to read books to her, but now she catches my mistakes and isn't happy if I start paraphrasing. On top of her academic skills, she's a great little performer. She LIVES for singing time in Primary and sings most of the Princess Songs (I Know You, A Dream is a Wish, etc) by heart. She is a whizz on the computer, loves to cook, jump on the trampoline, swim, play the piano, and "go to the gym". She is a fantastic big sister, and although they have their quarrels, they are attached at the hip! Whenever these to are happy about something, their distinct "WOO-HOO" can be heard from throughout the house!
PS Tessa has always called Emory "Emmy". Lately, she's taken to calling her "Emeny" when she's angry or yelling at her. A little ironic that it's close to the the Dain Bramage of . . . Enemy? I think not!
Here's the wrapping paper!