The Eldest Is 9!!!!

Yep, we have a nine year old – a tween. 8-O   She has had a great past few days celebrating her birthday.

Friday:

Katrine woke up to a breakfast muffin complete with candle.

After a day of school and skating, she came home for some outdoor time with her Grammy and sister.  There is no one quite like a grandmother to watch you whip up “potions” in your “potion lab” (funny, in our day it was mud pies).  Grandmas, ooh and ahh more appreciately than moms.  After daddy got home it was time for dinner and pie.  Yep, not cake but pie. Lemon meringue to be precise.  Complete with candles!

Then it was time for some gifts.  You know that you have a tween when she gets excited about clothes and tickets to Cats.

Saturday:

A much calmer day.  The cookies for the loot bags arrived this morning.  They look delicious!  (About half the kids left the party eating the cookies so they must have tasted good too!  Iced shortbread which was “melt in your mouth good” according to Katrine.  The fact that they came on sticks simply made them that much cooler).

Then it was time to make up the cupcakes with Baba!  Because they were gluteny, poor guy had to stand outside in the cold wind to begin the mixing process so that no flour got over the kitchen.  What a devouted dad and husband.  Once baked, the cupcakes were cooled and iced which was of course the best part as the birthday girl got to eat the leftover candies.

Sunday aka Party Day:

I got a great deal on a zumba party so Katrine was able to have a large party this year.  It was a nice excuse to see some of her China sisters as well as school and skating friends.  The girls worked hard and made it through 40 minutes of solid cardio before really needing a break and snack.  The one really good thing about having a party outside of the house is that there is more time to stand back and take in the smiles and laughter. (Baba is not in these photos as he assumed younger sibling distraction for the majority of the party.)

Now my 9 year old is all curled up  in bed dreaming of all of the wonderful things which have happened over the course of her birthday celebrations.