Our Five Ring Circus: Lily's Best Birthday Ever

Thursday, August 6, 2015

Lily's Best Birthday Ever

Our sweet baby girl is officially 4 years old! 

(Excuse me for a moment while I cry!!!) She had, and I quote, "the best birthday ever!"  She kept telling us that all day long!

It's easy for the third child in a family of four to get lost in the shuffle.  Especially when the youngest sibling has special needs and gets a lot of attention. Lily, at such a young age, handles it with so much grace.

Grant and I firmly believe that childhood birthdays should be extra special and that the birthday child should feel like the most important family member on their birthday. When we hear that it was the "best birthday ever" we consider that a parenting win!!!

Lily's birthday celebration technically began the day before her birthday.  All she ever asked for was a trampoline.  Grant and I didn't want to buy a full-size trampoline (can you imagine the ER visits with Dylan's track record?!?), so we compromised and bought an 8 foot trampoline for Lily and Liam's Birthdays.

Lily's birthday fell right after an extra busy week, so there wasn't any time to build it. Thankfully, our friend helped us build it in the dark on Saturday night!  Grant got a big promotion at work, and was starting his new position on Monday morning (Lily's Birthday), so he wouldn't be home until evening. Grant really wanted to give her the trampoline early, so he didn't miss the big moment.  As soon as she woke up on Sunday morning, we surprised her!  She was THRILLED!

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Lily got the first jump, then invited her siblings to join her!

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Liam, the other recipient of the trampoline, loved it, too!

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 It was very obvious that the trampoline was a big hit!

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Before we knew it, Lily's birthday eve arrived.  As a mom, it's always bittersweet to say goodbye to a year.  It just means your child is one step closer to adulthood, and it's both exciting and sad at the same time!

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We said goodnight to our sweet Lilybug, and I got everything prepared for her birthday!

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On the morning of her birthday, Grant wished her a happy birthday as he headed to work.  It was enough to wake her up, but she crawled into bed next to me, whispered something about her birthday, then fell back asleep until 11:30 AM!

We stuck with our regular birthday traditions.  Lily woke up to a new outfit, a room filled with balloons, streamers hanging in her doorway, and a decorated house!

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Lily immediately ran to her spot at the kitchen table to begin her birthday celebration!

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She had her traditional doughnut breakfast topped with her birthday candle, and she smiled as we sang "Happy Birthday" to her!

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After that, she got to open round one of the gifts from Dylan, Lexie, and Liam. Can you tell Lily loves My Little Pony?!?  I love how she was completely thrilled with items from the Target Dollar Spot!

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After breakfast, Lily got dressed, then got a second gift from each of her siblings.  Liam didn't want to give up his gift to her!

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Lily had some time to play with her new toys and jump on her trampoline before Grant's mom stopped by for a visit!

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Later that afternoon, Lily chose to go to the park for her birthday activity.  After we arrived, Lily spotted a hopscotch board on the basketball court. She immediately found the 4!

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Unfortunately, she didn't get to play very long.  A storm rolled in, so we had to leave.  Lily decided she wanted to wait out the storm at Chick-Fil-A!

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Finally it was time to head over to McDonald's to meet Grant for Lily's birthday dinner!  We told Lily to choose a restaurant, and that's what she chose! Thankfully, the torrential downpour stopped and the kids were able to play on the playground for a little while after we ate!

After dinner, we headed home for Lily's mini birthday party! My parents came over with cake (made by my mom!) and a gift, and we celebrated our sweet 4 year old!

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Lily did get the trampoline for her birthday, but since it was for Liam, too, Lily got 4 small gifts (and her special card, of course!) from us. She was SO excited about the My Little Pony doll (which was found on clearance for $4...shhh)!

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Lily's Papa took her on a birthday shopping date on Friday, where she got to pick out a few gifts, but they still gave her a card.  She was super excited about her "long monies!" Too bad those "long monies" will be saved!

Lily's Papa took her on a birthday shopping date today. She was so excited to pick out some things she really wanted and spend time alone with Papa! She's now the proud owner of a My Little Pony dress, My Little Pony backpack, 2 My Little Pony toys, and a
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My parents headed home, the kids jumped on the trampoline, and we, the incredibly exhausted parents, managed to grab a quick birthday snuggle with our most favorite 4 year old!  Time sure does fly.

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We let Lily watch Netflix on the iPad and curl up on our bed to end her birthday.  Once again, she declared it the "best birthday ever" and promptly fell asleep! 

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We had such a special day with our sweet baby girl! The best Lily ever deserved the best birthday ever!

Happy 4th Birthday to our ADORABLE Liliana Kathryn!

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19 comments:

  1. So sweet! Looks like the best birthday ever to me too! ;)

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  2. Sounds like a perfect birthday! She looks like such a big girl in her my little ponies outfit!

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  3. Happy birthday to your precious girl!

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  4. Looks like she had a great fourth birthday! My twins like my little pony too.

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  5. So sweet! She is adorable! Love all your birthday traditions! The new outfit idea is so great!

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    1. Thank you! That was a tradition we started just a few years ago, and they love it!

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  6. Awww she is so cute! I can see why she said it was the best birthday ever!

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  7. What a great birthday. She is just so cute too :). She and my Emily would make such good friends. I am DREADING Em turning 5....5 just feels so old.

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  8. This is so much fun! She is just adorable! XO

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  9. how are our babies 4!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It really does sound like the best birthday EVER ;) where did you all find that trampoline, we want to get one for Bre but I would rather get a smaller one than a big for now

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    1. I'm wondering the same thing!!!
      We got it on Amazon. It's the JumpKing Trampoline and Safety Net Enclosure Combo (8'). My kids love it, and all 4 of them can jump at once!

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  10. Oh - happy (belated) 4th birthday to your beautiful girl!!!! Time just moves way too fast to suit any of us!

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