After the day of the birthday party, we had a family birthday dinner at Grandpatty and Grandpappy's house.
Grandpatty knows that fun candles and pretty frosting are important to girls...
Bekah...
Abby...
I love having family members love my kiddos. So fulfilling...
Paul taught them about making a wish and never telling it to anyone. Man, what excitement came when they got to make their wish! Abby still hasn't told me hers, but every now and then she'll say something like... "Mom! We got to have our favorite treat tonight! (with a sly grin...) But that wasn't my birthday wish... !!"
Blowing out candles...
And they know our family and share our obsessions...
Also from family members: cool crayons, markers, and paper! Tiny princess jewlry! Books! FUN!
This is the day they got to open their presents from us. Clothes, art supplies... and the thing that I talked Paul into... PAINT!! for their rooms. They got to pick the color, I got to pick the shade. And they were so, so, so excited to paint with mommy. (more to come on that...)
Orange for Bekah... (geesh!)
and purple for Abby...
During all the excitement, Ella decided to busy herself with her own project of changing the toy giraffe's diaper...
She was very serious and deliberate about the whole thing with the wet wipes and all.
Oh, Abby and Bekah... when did you get so old?? Certainly some days it seemed like this time would never come. That I would always be changing your diapers, nursing you, feeding you squishy food, or pushing that clunky double stroller everywhere. Now I am reminding you to flush the toilet, helping you clean the food you spill at each meal, perpetually restocking the markers and paper supply, reminding you to keep your seat belts on, and filling out your kindergarten registration forms. When did it all happen?? 5 just seems too old.
But you don't think so... 5 is just right!! You'd been anticipating birthday number five for months and months. In the fall, I would name all the holidays from Thanksgiving to Valentine's Day, telling you that after the New Year and just before Valentine's Day we would get to celebrate. The cake choices ranged from Sleeping Beauty, Kitties, 5-tiered tall cakes with lots of candles, butterflies, flowers... then finally a few days before the big day... a decision was made: Rainbows. A big rainbow cake for Abby, and lots of rainbow cupcakes for Bekah. Thanks for giving me a couple of days to pull together a rainbow themed day.
But be forewarned that I will try to talk you out of any cake that requires me to mix and make 8 colors of frosting. It just takes too long...
But I didn't mind the extra late night too much. You loved seeing the finished products. And that is always worth it.
(with a "cloud" missing due to Ella's careful fingers...)
You invited some of your funnest friends to celebrate with you. They were a lot of fun.
We played the game you requested to play: Duck, duck goose... but we changed it to orange, orange, purple... your favorite colors.
Grandpatty made delicious flower sugar cookies to decorate in rainbow colors.
Aunt Hannah bought a rainbow of nail polish choices to decorate your fingers and toes.
You requested a dance party and chose your favorite songs. "Halo", "You are my only" (Down), "Single Ladies", and "Broken Heart."
We sang Happy Birthday to you, and your candle blowing was a success!
We enjoyed a rainbow of snacks and opened fun presents.
Then we ended with your most anticipated and favorite activity... a Pinata!!! I hope it all went the way you daydreamed. The rainbow unicorn delighted you both when we found it, and Bekah declared "this is the best ever!" as we filled it with the treats and toys we picked out. You planned for it to be the crowning event at your party... and I think it was!
And if you don't want to watch a bunch of kids whacking away at a pinata, you simply must see what a fun daddy these girls have. After resisting and resenting, Paul finally resigned and in the end REJOICED and fully embraced the joys of the pinata.
Here is a video of pinata time. I'm so glad no one got hurt! Phew! If you don't want to wade through all the kids and their hits, you smiply must go to minute 2:40 to see how Paul finally embraced the spirit of the pinata. :)
No wonder you girls love your Daddy.
I loved seeing you both delight together as you shared your special day. You have become such good friends and special sisters. And while you know which buttons to push to send each other into a whirlwind of fury and emotional madness... you also know each other's favorites, save seats for each other, congratulate each other on the good things you do, and take turns being the princess or the mommy or the baby or the kitty.
As I watch the novelty of a twin sister relationship, I feel a little envious. Being raised as the oldest with 5 younger brothers, I always wanted a sister to pal around with and be friends with. You each declare the other as your best friend, and I always hope it stays this way. You deserve each other, and I hope you always look after each other and remain a blessing to each other.
You are definitely a blessing to me. You've taught me so much about myself. You've blessed me by showing me my weaknesses and giving me chances to make them stronger. You delight in girly things, and have opened up a world that was not fully discovered in a house full of boys... a world of embraced frills and fanciness and fun. We help each other to be emotionally honest, and deal with it all in a hopefully healthy way. I hope we always express and share in ways that help us become better.
Certainly the craziness of twin girls is still rampant in our home. I think I've become resigned to know that it always will be. But with the changing years, there is a change in which joys and challenges you bring. The last 5 years have been quite a ride... I can't wait to see where we're going next!
Oh, Ella. Ellie. Ella Bella. Bellzie. Ellie Belly. Bellzeezo.
My dear, calm, smiling, patient, lovable, and wonderfully sweet baby girl. Amidst the chaos and complexities of our move from California to Utah, you turned one. Instead of one birthday bash, we had several celebrations in honor of your birthday... a result of your daddy having to go back to California before your actual birthday, and your mother's inability to properly plan when life is not well-organized.
For your first birthday celebration (several days before your actual birthday), you spent much of the day with your Grandpatty, sisters, and brother while mom and dad spent their only free day together unpacking and setting up the house before daddy returned to California for 3 weeks. We wanted to celebrate your birthday with daddy before he left, so Grandpappy cooked a delicious cake, and Grandpatty helped your sisters frost it with beautiful pink frosting, and they joined us in our new house for family night to celebrate your first year in our family.
Even though you were tired, you were so sweet as your family poured attention and loves your way.
You knew just what to do with that pretty pink frosting... and even got a bit of cake with it, too!
On your actual birthday, you were lucky to have Grandma Risenmay here with you. One of the presents she got you was a pretty sparkly balloon, which you didn't even get to see before it was lost to the vaulted ceiling, maneuvered by the ceiling fan (while your mom tried to get it to come down), and promptly popped before it landed on the floor. No matter... a crinkly, sparkly, deflated balloon is just as fun!! We went to the animal farm at Thanksgiving Point, and had a great time!
Your official birthday dinner bash was that Sunday evening where you got to open presents and have your personal cake.
This time your attention was focused on the candle's flame, which wasn't as tasty as the frosting was...
but it was soon all better as you focused your attentions, again, on the frosting.
Mmmmm... you love, love frosting.
You got to open presents... your brother and sisters each picked out a special gift for you. They went to pick them out individually with Grandpatty, and I love how each gift is such a reflection of themselves and what they thought you would like. Michael, a rolly-polly ball that sings to you---because he knows you'll love to play ball like he does. Abby, a nursery rhyme book that sings to you--because she loves reading and saying nursery rhymes and singing. Bekah, a talking phone--because... well... she loves to talk.
And we love you. Thank you for being such a sweet influence in our family. You are such a delight to us all. We love to watch you play. We love to play with you. We love that you follow us around the house, jabbering your sweet jabberings along the way. We love how you point to everything and jabber like you are asking a question. We love how you suck your fingers and find so much comfort in a warm fuzzy blanket. We LOVE that you go to bed so well! We love how you blow kisses. We love your vowel-ladden language. You are always smiling and giving us your wide-mouthed expressions. You are adorable and adored.
Sometimes I wonder what kind of experience you are getting as the fourth child in our family. At times it seems that my attention is split so many different ways, and you get whatever extra time or attention I can find between it all. But then I realize that you have a brother who LOVES you (you are his Bellzeezo!) and watches over you so well. You have sisters who dote over you and give you so much to watch. Your daddy adores you and loves the way you climb all over him. So I guess, between all of us, we're doing just fine.
I remember on your blessing day, your daddy blessed you that you would be able to absorb the energy of your sisters... and you do that with stunning grace. You do it for me, too... as your influence calms the chaos of my days. I feel so loved in the way you squeeze my arm when I hold you, pat my chest, and give me wide-mouthed head-butts (I know you are just tying to kiss me!).
Abby and Bekah turned THREE... can you believe it?? My little girls. Getting so old.
Abby... concentrating hard on her new age.
This is how Bekah does her 3. Isn't it cute??
Here are a few pictures from their special day... it was a lot of fun to watch them feel the doting and special treatment that comes on a birthday.
Before their "birthday party day" there was much excitement in the air as I gathered things for their requested "princess birthday cakes." Anyone who asked them about their birthday got an earful about how the cake would have a princess, and that it would be pink. They had been talking about it for weeks, actually. It is funny how they just latched onto it. But anticipation is half of the greatness of these occasions, don't you think??
Paul and I stayed up together the night before making the cakes, wrapping, and decorating around the house. When we went in to check on them before turning in for the night, this is how we found them...
...which of course brought tears to my eyes as a flood of memories from 3 years before came into my mind about the first bed they shared...
It has been an eventful three years, and this is how we celebrated this year.
When they woke up, they got to open first presents... birthday dresses. Oh, how they love dresses. They reveled in the balloons and streamers that were just outside their bedroom door. Then they came downstairs to see their much-anticipated princess birthday cakes...
Close ups, complete with finger-digging prints!
Then they wandered the house to see all the little decorations Michael had put up for them...
(It was really cute... Michael went downstairs before any of the rest of us were awake and put streamers in many random places for them to find and giggle about.)
Then Paul "made" birthday breakfast by whisking them off to the store to pick out a special cereal. They both ended up with Lucky Charms. What a treat!
They got to open a few presents and play with them before their "birthday feast," for which we invited our good friends and neighbors the Rowleys to celebrate with us. For their feast they requested pizza and chicken nuggets. Yum.
Happy Birthday time!
I love this series of pictures...
Then we sang...
(I can't get this video to work right now... I'll try again later...)
And they opened more presents. Thanks so much to everyone who was so very thoughtful... they loved the singing princesses, big purses and hats, dress-up dolls, princess crowns and masks, books, and fancy-schmancy church dresses! What thoughtful family and friends we have!
I gave them a "pass" on naptime, and they played away the afternoon with the Rowley kiddos and their new birthday presents. Paul had to leave for work early in the evening, so I got to read them new books, play Hungry Hippos, and let them brush my hair with plastic princess brushes.
Happy Birthday to the sisters! I am so happy to have your unique, delightful personalities in our family. We are so blessed to have you! Here's to a great year!
Today is Abby's and Bekah's birthday. We probably won't be able to get away with this again... but we delayed all celebration until tomorrow when Paul is actually home during the day and Michael is home from school. Aaahhh... the luxury that young childhood oblivion gives to parents.
And although not much official celebrating has happened today, I've been very reminiscent about how that day in February 2006 changed our family forever.
Welcome to our family! Day one.
Just a few days old (Bekah left, Abby right)
5 months old (Abby top, Bekah bottom)
Tomorrow is their official birthday party, and I'm supposed to be making their princess birthday cakes. Instead, I have been going through pictures for the past hour... remembering so much and feeling so much for my sweet girls.
5 months old (Abby left, Bekah right)
9 months old (Abby left, Bekah right)
Abby, 1 year old
Bekah, 1 year old
In so many ways, Abby and Bekah have colored our lives for the past three years. They keep me busy... oh, so busy... and bring a range of emotion into my life that I never thought possible.
Summer 2007 (Bekah left, Abby right)
Fall 2007 (Bekah left, Abby right)
Christmas 2007 (Abby left, Bekah right)
I trust that Heavenly Father knew what he was doing when he entrusted them into my care... because there are so many times when I have no idea what to do. But I am learning and they are making me better. And as long as we are all better in the end, that is what matters.
2 1/2 (Bekah left, Abby right)
This summer (Abby left, Bekah right)
This Halloween (Abby left, Bekah right)
This winter (Abby left, Bekah right)
I am so glad to be their mother. Happy birthday, to the sisters! We'll party hearty tomorrow.
