Ballet and Balloons

Ella's birthday was (to me, at least) everything you would imagine a little girl's birthday to be.  Pink and purple.  Tutus and tea.  Ballet and balloons.  Princesses and ponies.


While I know Ella had a great time, a lot of this is for the parent (i.e., me (yikes!)).  Four year olds would probably be happy with anything.  But how fun is it as a parent to get your little girl all dressed up and let her pretend to be her favorite princess.  These birthday parties are almost kind of a hobby for me.  A way to be slightly artistic and a break from my very by-the-book, serious, life as a lawyer.  So, yes, let's be honest here.  Much of this is for me -- I love picking a theme and running with it and thinking of fun new ideas.


This party was not in my house, so I had to give up creative control.  I thought I was at least in charge of goody bags and balloons, but when I found out they covered that too, I had to keep myself from requesting that they pick out balloons that matched the purple and yellow theme and only give out cute, handmade Rapunzel-themed-favors.  I have to admit it was SO nice not to have it in my home and the studio was wonderful -- they took care of everything!

I did get to take care of the cake, though!

One of the best parts of the party was watching Cooper in the middle of it all.  Fearless, enthusiastic, and ready to be part of the group.  He epitomizes "dance like no one's watching."  Which is refreshing, because with Ella and me it's more like "dance like everyone is watching...and this is the national competition...and if you mess up your life will be over."

The boys were such troopers!  They danced, they made crowns, they even painted their fingernails.  I originally was just going to invite the girls, but Brian insisted boys should be invited too.  I am so glad he did!

 Happy birthday to my sweet Ella.  I am sure I will say this with every birthday, but four seems SO OLD.  Your words, your expressions, all of it seems so grown up to me.  You are too old and mature for the silly humor that used to make you laugh and laugh.  But you still have that sparkle in your eye, the impish grin, and the drive and dedication that has been there since you were a baby.  You still amaze me EVERY DAY with you kindness, compassion, wit and your mega-watt smile.

More to come...