Big Bad Birthday post

Birthday Crocus

Little Miss Six had to be woken up for school the morning of her birthday! I thought for sure she'd be awake and ready to begin her special day. Not the case! Mike and I crafted a little surprise that she'd find when she tried to leave her room. It wasn't as complicated as last years but it was exciting for both Mack and Mase- not so much Gunner.

She was all smiles and used the phrase " When I was five" about five times before she left for school.

She had a lot of fun celebrating at school with her friends. We brought in bright pink cupcakes with princess rings on top. Even the boys were excited! Who doesn't love cupcakes?

While Mack was at school, Mason had a bunch of fun trying to catch these giant sized snowflakes on his tongue. Thankfully, those flakes had stopped and melted away before we left for dinner!

When she got home, she opened the rest of her presents. Her two favorite things ( from us) were the scooter and her tap shoes. She tried to combine the two things, which didn't go so well. She also received a new CD player with the Frozen soundtrack for her room, a " Grow and Go" pogo stick , something she's been drooling over for a while and a few books and little goodie.

Mack picked "Wholly Stromboli" for her birthday dinner. It's a favorite for all of us. She had her usual spaghetti and giant meatball with a special birthday sundae. The staff sang to her which left her feeling quite shy. Out side of the restaurant is this stamped concrete that dates back to Fort Luptons' early days. I found the perfect opportunity to snap a picture of Mason with it. After dinner, Mack wanted to go to our favorite farm store, Murdoch's. Rumor had it that they'd received their spring chicks. They did have a few of them but were still awaiting the biggest part of their shipment. It was still fun!

Checking the mail is extra exciting around birthday time! Thank you again to every one who sent gifts and cards. Mack said " Wow! A lot of people are excited that I'm six!"

We invited a few of our close friends and family to join us at one of Mackenzie's favorite places- The Butterfly Pavilion. Almost 30 people came to celebrate . It was fun for Mackenzie to see so many from different aspects of her life all in once place. While  few couldn't make it and our reservation required us to limit our numbers a bit, we all had a fun time.

Mike and Mack making tye dyed cupcakes for her birthday party

Pretty groovy, yes?

Mike worked even after Mack was in bed. He frosted them green, placed a gummy worm on top and covered it with " dirt" -  ground up Crunch bars.

While I got ready for her party, Mack decided to take a little snooze

Gram's made Mack a collection of hand crafted stuffed animals, including a group of owls, ranging in sizes.

A few party guests making butterflies. As they made them, a few brave souls snacked on real ( once) live bugs covered in chocolate. "Don't worry. They taste like chips" is what Mack told each guest.

Mason was in pretty good spirits but he was no in the mood to be contained to one room. Thank goodness for " Sazzy" . She kept him pretty entertained!

James came, too! He was so excited about the gift he picked for Mackenzie.

Macky finally had a butterfly land on her!

The butterflies were friendly this day

By the end, our toddler boys had reached their max. Cass and I could see a little humor in their dueling tantrums.

Sarah, one of the March Moms from my online group recently moved to Colorado! So that makes three of us with in driving distance ( a two more in Colorado Springs). Here are the Marchies ( Charlotte, Grace's little sister, is an honorary Marchie, born in March of 2010)  , the one second they were all together. We've had fun making the rounds at each other's birthday parties.

Dinner at Noodles and Company! It made us miss our Michigan peeps since we visited Noodles and Company so many times with Grammy and Aunt Meg. Artys Cass painted faces! Mack wore her butterfly to school the next day.  It was a great birthday for her and for us. She enjoyed the company of her friends at school and at her party. We missed those of you who are so far away. Auntie Nikki and the gang have kept Mack entertained with the sea monkey kit they sent.  Grammy's rainbow loom was a  big hit and Aunt Janet's books are always at Mack's bedside table.

Frosty mornings, warm afternoons

 We've had " the best of both worlds" as far as weather is concerned here. Highs in the mid 50's to low 60's give way to late afternoon clouds and over night snow which is melted by 9 or 10 am only to repeat the process. It makes for some very frosty mornings which make for photo ops!

These horses were looking for breakfast. I love their frosty whiskers.

This farmers' sprinkler could barely be seen through the early morning fog.

Signs of spring

I want to be like her

A discussion took place last night when sleeping should have been happening ( at least for the teary eyed five year old that beckoned me to her room ).  When I entered her room , I had no idea that I'd leave wishing I could be like my kindergartner.

It began a week or so ago. Mike and I found cute t-shirts that were made to look like scrub tops and had a stethoscope printed around the neckline-perfect for the children of an RN/Paramedic. We ordered a pink one for Mack and a white one for Mase. When the shirts arrived, Mack was excited to wear hers to school the next day and she did. At the end of the day, she reported that Erik had made her feel badly by continuously asking her why she was wearing a doctor's shirt. It didn't seem like a huge deal. We talked about telling Erik the next time that it really bothered her when he said these things and asking him to stop. Also, what to do if he didn't stop.

Back to last night- I ask a softly crying Mackenzie what's the matter. She tells me that it is still really bothering her that Erik had made her feel bad for wearing the shirt. When I asked her if she liked the shirt, she said she did like that shirt and it made her mad that Erik made her feel bad for wearing it. When I asked her if she wanted to wear the shirt again, she said " Yes. I want to wear that shirt tomorrow. And I want to tell Erik that it makes me feel bad when he says things about it. "  " Do you think you'll feel better after talking to him? " I asked. " Yes." she said, certainly. " Ok, Macky. I think you should talk to Erik tomorrow, then."

This was a tough moment for me. I was filled with pride at Mackenzie's way of handling the situation. It was beyond what I'd expect of most kids her age. Yet, I couldn't help not wanting her to wear it again. I wanted to spare her the hurt that could come from that but I also didn't want to rob her of this valuable experience and also, teach her to go against her intuition. We chatted a bit longer and the more I thought about the conversation, the more admiration I had for her. I went down stairs to find that said shirt was in the laundry, not yet washed, and the washer was being repaired by Mike ( that's another story for another time) . It wouldn't be possible for Mack to wear it.

Today, after school, I asked Mackenzie about Erik . She said " I told Erik how I felt sad when he said what he said and he just smiled at me and said 'I'm sorry.' " And that was that. The conversation moved onto something else.  But it got me thinking- how often do I make a bigger deal of things than they are simply because I want to guard my heart when , really, if I was more like Mackenzie,  I could spare myself a lot of worry. To be honest, it's more than it needs to be.

This little girl of ours is amazing. I don't know where life will take her , but whatever she does, I know with out a doubt that she will have a positive impact on those around her. Just like she does now.

Mackenzie's 6th birthday video

Well. Here it is. Another year passes. Mack is beyond excited to be six. She's one of the youngest kids in her class and when she's finally six, she'll be " as big as them".  While she's busy growing and chasing - wishing to be older, I meet this time of year with the same bitter sweet sentiments that I have every year before this.   And so it goes- a beautiful baby morphs into a sunshiney sweet girl in, what seems like,no time at all. I'm sure I'll feel this way next year and the year after. And yet, while I miss baby Mackenzie and toddler Mack and sassy preschooler Mack, I really am enjoying school age Mack. I  love hearing her thoughts and listening to her brain make sense of the world. I love having conversations with her and making plans with her. There are times , as always, when she struggles. Or when we struggle. But those times sift through and what's left are wonderful memories, more laughs than I could begin to count and a little girl with a heart of gold who makes Mike and me so proud . Here is a compilation of Mack's 6th year. in video form. Don't forget to turn on your volume !

Tooting his own horn

Being in music class at school has really sparked Mack's interest in learning more about music. After she chose to use her gift card from the dentist  to buy a ukelele , she asked Mike if he would bring out his saxophone, guitars and other miscellaneous instruments so she could try them.

Mack was so excited to see Mike's mini guitar used to take on back packing trips. She swiped that right up. Mason was interested in Mike's saxophone. That is, until he actually played it. Once Mike started playing the Michigan Fan Fare, both kids became shy and wouldn't look at him and Gunner began to bark incessantly until the noise stopped. I don't know what their issues were; I liked watching the cute Michigan marching band alum in his element.

More cellphone photography

Little Love Bug

Remember when Mack was a baby and she'd take every last book off her shelf, "reading " each one before tossing it to the side for another?  That's also Mason's favorite thing to do, too. In this photo, he's just getting started. After fifteen minutes, the place is covered in books. 

Gram's made this sweet little owl for Macky. Mack keeps it up and away from Mason with all her other treasures. The next visit, Grams had crafted another. Anticipating that this would continue, Mack has cleared a whole section for the owls she's awaiting.

A few days before Valentine's the kid and I went to Gram's and made chocolate covered strawberries. Yum!

Our neighbors have a new puppy and it's gathered the attention of these two.

Another pea dissector....This one doesn't eat the peas when he's done, although Ellie is happy to help.

Pondering.....

Mason can start, peel and separate his own clementines, now! That's a good thing because he loves them so much that he usually eats them faster than I can peel them. This way, I get a head start while he's working on the one in his hands.

This little lizard is Mack's new buddy. She takes him everywhere, even to her dreams.