Abby's Friend Birthday Beach Party

Abby and I had a lot of fun planning and prepping for this "Flip Flop" party.  She wanted to invite lots of friends, so we chose to have the party at our "at the time" (Grandma's) home.  Although birthday parties tend to stress my perfectionist self out (especially two days before Deak's surgery), I think everyone had fun and it turned out pretty cute.

We stressed about the rainy weather until miraculously, two minutes before the party started, the sun began to shine. 

Perfect weather for a pretty perfect kid.

She is Nine.

And, still she is going on 16.

It's hard for me to remember she is nine sometimes; I think it is hard for lots of people who know her well.  Abby has this wise old soul, is keenly perceptive to other's needs, extremely ambitious, and has been planning for her future since the age of 2.

But, this wise old soul can also be a wise-ass, surprising us with her wit and dry sense of humor. 

That's why we love her. 

In my attempt to be economically-minded (which, let's face it, rarely happens), I gave Abby a pedicure and manicure at home.  It turned out to be really fun, and worked perfectly with her new chair.

Later that evening, we celebrated with family at the Brick Oven (Pizza Restaurant) and then with cake at home. 

(Yes, that is a cake with a heart surrounding Justin Bieber's initials...it was insisted upon:).

About a month ago, Abby came into my bedroom, sincerely wondering what she could ask for in terms of "gifts" for her birthday.  She said, "I don't really need anything."  We discussed lots and lots of options throughout the day, and she thought about them.  

That same afternoon, she had made her decision; she wanted to ask our family members to donate to The Chromosome 18 Registry and Research Foundation in Deak's name, rather than receive gifts.

Honestly, I attempted to talk her out of it.  Most of her world revolves around Deak and his needs, and I really like her birthday to be about her, but she would hear nothing of it. That evening she hand-made invitations to family members, stating her request.

It was her choice. Completely.

Deak is one lucky dude to have a sister like her. 

And, I am one lucky mom to have her too.

Blair and I still got her a few gifts, which she enjoyed. 

But, she honestly really enjoyed counting and adding the donations up out loud, putting them inside her donation jar, and then showing Deak.

My heart has never been so swollen with pride.

Abby earned $109.00, which we are mailing off soon.  $109.00 is a heck of a lot of money for a nine year old, and she has had no problem parting with it. 

I am forever indebted to my Heavenly Father for giving me this opportunity to have Abby in my life.  She is a special one and is destined for great things.  She will be a lasting impact on the lives of many people throughout her lifetime, and I am honored to be her mother.

I mean really, not many nine year olds have planned and executed 2 fundraiser events within a year.

She is different, and that's the way we like her.

Happy Birthday, first baby girl.

Fourth of July Weekend.

We've tried our best to pack in it before Deak's big surgery next week. We've swam like crazy, gone to Lagoon a few times, played with lots of friends and gotten a little sunburned.

Perfect Summer Stuff.

The Fourth of July Weekend was no exception.  We were lucky enough to have family and friend in town from Colorado and Texas, and had a great time visiting with all of them.  

This cute little thing, Emmy, was blessed this weekend by her father, Daniel, Blair's cousin.  

Abby was in absolute Heaven.

We then traveled up to Solitude to meet our friends and realized that we have done a terrible job taking advantage of the beautiful state we live in.  Sometimes I just assume we can't do the mountain stuff (hiking is not fun carrying a 40 lb child), but that is my err.  There are lots of opportunities and I need to learn to be more creative when it comes to accessibility. 

 

We had such a wonderful time spending time together, chatting in person rather than through facebook, and throwing in a few jabs at the BYU fan base (which happened to be everyone that was there, other than us:).

We went to a couple parades, preferring the smaller, less marketable West Bountiful parade over the insanity that has become Kaysville's.  Deak wasn't so into the 25 firetrucks in a row blasting their sirens, and decided to sit on the blanket and zone out with the beloved Ipad. Abby, having stayed up until midnight or so a few times during the weekend, was not in prime form either.

Red Robin and Cars 2 became the cure.

We have not really ever taken Deak to a movie.  We tried when he was about 2 on Christmas, and it could best be described as HELL.  So, we haven't dared subject ourselves to the torture again...until now.  

I had my heart set on this experience.  We don't often get to enjoy "typical" family activities together the same way everyday families do, and sometimes I try a little too hard to force it rather than accept it for what it is. 

Blair was skeptical, but coerced into conversion after hearing me plan and discuss this activity for days; to put it mildly, we didn't have high expectations for Deak's attention span or tolerance for the noise/crowd or ability to sit in a seat without squirming to get out every 15 seconds. 

Maybe it was the less than ideal expectations, maybe it was the air conditioning and gargantuan diet coke, whatever the reason...we had a fantastic time.

Was Deak perfect?

No.

Is any preschooler perfect?

No.

He needed to roam around in the middle, when the movie got a little slow.  He often could be found engaging in a (LOUD) conversation with the characters in the movie, "YaYaYaYaYaYaYaYaYaYa...Hehehehehehehe."

But, he really liked it.

And we survived.

And it was enjoyable.

Something so normal and routine for millions of families is kind of like a miracle for us. 

Aren't we lucky?