On Sunday, our sweet boy celebrated his 6th Birthday! It's easy to forget just how old Liam is, because he's so tiny, and has a speech delay. But my boy, who was the baby of the family for 5 1/2 years, is now 6 years old and headed to first grade! It's so hard to believe!
We have to alter our usual birthday traditions a bit for Liam. He has celiac disease, which means we can't do the usual Happy Birthday Donut Breakfast, and we don't go out to eat since there isn't a good restaurant that he likes that meets his diet restrictions. Our plan for his big day was to hang out at home, invite some of his favorite people over, eat his favorite dinner, and play outside.
Last year, we spent Liam's birthday driving 12 hours to the beach. We'll definitely always remember that one, but sometimes celebrating simply can be just as good. Liam had a GREAT birthday, and was so excited about it!
Time is a bittersweet thing. It goes by way too quickly and just slips through my fingers! One event flows rapidly into the next until it's a steady stream of constant activity, and before I know it, months have gone by. I'm going to be completely honest with you. I can barely keep up and my days are a complete blur! That's my only explanation as to why I'm posting about Lily's 6th Birthday three months after the fact!
The sad part is, I didn't even realize it until I was clearing out my drafts folder. I *thought* I had posted about it already. Actually, I also found Liam's birthday post and the rest of our vacation posts in there, so I'm going to be interspersing those events with current posts over the next few weeks. Such is the life of a mom of four: Always playing catch up!
SO...it's hard to believe, but Lily is now 6 years old, and she has been for, oh, 3 1/2 months. But still...6 is so old! When I think about how big she is getting, it makes me both incredibly proud of the amazing person she is growing up to be, yet sad at the same time!
Lily had an awesome birthday this year! We work so hard to make birthdays special for our kids, and it always pays off. She was busy from the moment she woke up until the moment her head hit the pillow that night!
On the beautiful morning of August 3rd, Lily awoke to a bedroom filled with balloons, a brand new outfit hanging up, and a living room decorated just for her! She was still sleepy, but oh so excited!
DISCLOSURE: I received some of the party supplies shown in this post complimentary.
Lily and Liam's birthdays are just two weeks apart, so every year we throw them a big combined birthday party! This year, we only had one free Saturday in a 3 month span, so we had to scale things down a bit. On Saturday, we hosted two very small birthday parties to celebrate Liam's 4th Birthday and Lily's 6th Birthday!
A combined birthday party doesn't work for every family, but Lily is still agreeable, so we stick with it! I'm sure our family and friends appreciate the fact that they don't have to come to two birthday parties in August, too. We go big for actual birthdays, so both Lily and Liam still have their extra special days.
Usually, we have one big combined birthday party for Lily and Liam, but the timing was off this year. Thanks to school starting a week earlier than usual, which is the week we go to the beach, we had to adjust our schedule. We only had one available Saturday in July, August or September to celebrate Lily and Liam's birthdays with our family and friends.
Instead of the big party that we usually host, we only invited immediate family members to an afternoon party and our closest friends to an evening party. The party happened less than a week after we returned from vacation and two days after school started, so planning had to be minimal. Since there was a very limited guest list, we skipped the individual themes this year and just went with festive, gender neutral party decor!
Although the party was a lot different from what we usually host, Lily and Liam didn't even seem to notice the difference. They both had a great day with family and friends!
The first birthday party was in the afternoon. Our immediate family members joined us so we could all celebrate Liam and Lily's birthdays together!
We kicked off the party with presents! Lily and Liam took turns opening their awesome gifts, and they loved everything. Since we celebrated Liam's 4th Birthday at the beach, we could only give him small gifts that could travel easily with us. We saved his two big gifts for the party!
(Just look at those dirty little feet holding his present!)
The kids ran off to play while the adults talked, then we finished the party with the Happy Birthday Song and some cake and ice cream! It's always Liam's favorite part!
The first round of guests headed out just before dinner, so we had a few hours in between parties. I straightened up the house while the girls played with their cousin, who was spending the night, and Dylan hung out with a friend. Liam happily dug into his new gifts with his new best buddy!
Meanwhile, the older kids found an awesome friend outside!
Finally, it was time for round two! I really slacked with pictures this year, but for good reason. After two birthdays, three photoshoots, a family reunion, our beach vacation and the first day of school, I literally have a painful callus on my thumb from taking so many pictures! (Plus, I wanted to enjoy the party instead of documenting every second!
We did the usual presents and cake routine, but since our best friends were here, the kids spent more time playing, so I didn't chase them with the camera. I can assure you that they had lots of fun!
Our friends stayed very late, and the party concluded with a sleepover. A cousin and two friends spent the night, so the fun continued until the wee hours of the morning!
Even though the party was much smaller than usual, it turned out so well! I was so worried that the kids would miss their themes and all the guests, but the gender neutral decor was just fine and they had so much fun with the family and friends who were there.
The paper table runner, paper placemats and treat cups are from All In The Cards. Their affordable line of party supplies can be found at Target. (And you all know how much I love Target!) I loved the fun, festive colors and prints, and at the end of the party, I just rolled everything up and threw it away!
We kept the food simple, too. The parties fell before and after dinner, so we had snacks and appetizers. Lots of chips and dips, cut vegetables, and cheese and crackers. And no party would be complete without one of the kids favorite snacks: Teddy Graham Trail Mix! It's just Teddy Grahams, mini marshmallows and chocolate chips, and kids love it!
My mom usually makes each child a cake, but didn't have enough time this year. A small combined birthday cake (with Down syndrome awareness balloons) and mini cupcakes was plenty!
Saturday's simple combined birthday party proved that parties don't have to be big and fancy in order to be fun! Lily and Liam had so much fun celebrating their 6th and 4th birthdays with a few of the people they love most!
Lexie's year of gymnastics ended yesterday with a gymnastics show!
My mom and Dylan came along to watch her show off the skills she learned. Although I felt guilty about it, I decided to leave Lily at home with my dad, so I could focus on Lexie!
They started with a warm up, then rotated between trampoline, floor, beam, and bars. My pregnancy/mama hormones got the best of me, and I found myself choking back tears as I watched her.
At the end of the show, the coaches presented each gymnast with a medal!
She was so proud of that medal!
After the show, we showered my sweet girl with love and praise!
Lexie learned so much this year, but she has chosen to give up gymnastics and focus on dance in the Fall. Before leaving, she said goodbye to her coach, Mr. Bob.
I am so proud of my sweet, special, beautiful girl!
Congratulations on a great year in gymnastics, Lexie Bean!!! We love you so much!
When Lexie was born, I was overjoyed that I had a little girl!
She entered the world with a head full of golden fuzz...which quickly fell out! It took forever for that hair to grow back in. In fact, on her first birthday, I had to duct tape a bow to the wisps of hair on top of her head. But...she was the most beautiful "bald" baby!
By the time she was 2, she had enough hair for 2 little pigtails. And after that? Her hair grew and grew and grew. It grew so quickly that she needed a haircut every few months.
I adored her long, wavy hair. At the beginning of this school year, she begged for a short cut. I promised her that if she still wanted short hair at the end of the school year, she could get it cut. Sure enough, she reminded me of that promise last Wednesday.
So, I fulfilled my promise to her. I loaded the girls into the car, and drove Lexie to the salon. She was so excited, but I admit, I let out an audible gasp as the hair stylist pulled her hair into a ponytail and snipped the entire thing off!
The result was shocking, because it was so different, but she sure looked cute! Lexie absolutely loved it!
I loved that long hair so much, probably because I waited so long for her to grow some hair! But she is rocking her new short 'do!
1. FAVORITE COLOR? Pink
2. FAVORITE TOY? Baby Butterscotch (A toy horse)
3. FAVORITE CHARACTER? Spongebob
4.FAVORITE SUPERHERO? Catwoman
5. FAVORITE FRUIT? I don't like any fruit!
6. FAVORITE VEGETABLE? Corn
7. FAVORITE BREAKFAST? Waffles
8. FAVORITE CEREAL? Lucky Charms
9. FAVORITE LUNCH? Macaroni and Cheese
10. FAVORITE DINNER? Hamburger Helper
11. FAVORITE DRINK? Water!
12. FAVORITE SNACK? Cupcakes!
13. FAVORITE RESTAURANT? McDonald's
14. FAVORITE TV SHOW? Spongebob
15. FAVORITE MOVIE? Hotel Transylvania
16. FAVORITE ACTOR? Victorious!
17. FAVORITE SONG? Baby You Light Up My World by One Direction
18. FAVORITE SINGER/BAND? One Direction
19. FAVORITE BOOKS? Little Critter Books
20. FAVORITE BOOK SERIES? Rainbow Magic
21. FAVORITE OUTFIT? The blue romper that Tracy got me for my birthday
22. FAVORITE GAME? Barbie game on my DS
23. FAVORITE SPORT? Basketball
24. FAVORITE ANIMAL? Kittens
25. FAVORITE PLACE TO GO? Ocean City!!!
26. FAVORITE THINGS TO DO? Play with my hamster, and play with my little sister.
27. FAVORITE SUBJECT? Library
28. FAVORITE STUFFED ANIMAL? Bun Bun (and Blankie!)
29. FAVORITE DAY OF THE WEEK? Friday, because I get to go to my Nina and Papa's house.
30. FAVORITE MONTH? October
31. FAVORITE SEASON? SUMMER!!!
32. FAVORITE HOLIDAY? Christmas
33. WHO IS YOUR BEST FRIEND? Aubrey
34. WHO DO YOU LIKE TO PLAY WITH? Samantha and Tyler
35. WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY? When my mom plays with me
36. WHAT SCARES YOU? My dad when he dresses up in his Scarecrow costume!
37. WHAT MAKES YOU SAD? When my brother doesn't play with me.
38. WHAT DO YOU WISH FOR? For my Nina's cat, Rose, to come to our house.
39. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE MEMORY? When my mom had Lily.
40. WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP? An Artist!
41. DISLIKES? Fruit!
It is very hard to believe that she's 6 already! I say it every birthday, but only because it's true: Time FLIES!
I feel so blessed to call her my daughter. I thank God for putting her into my life every single day. I am so lucky to be her mom!!!
Lexie is the perfect blend of sweet and sassy. She can be the most loving, affectionate child, but she also has this incredibly strong spirit. I love my baby girl with all my heart.
Lexie woke up feeling very tired. I'm not quite sure she even noticed the 6 giant balloons in her room!
It didn't take her long to wake up and realize it was her special day!
It definitely helped that she had a birthday donut for breakfast and got to open a present!
I drove Lexie, Dylan, and their friend, Jack, to school, then ran home to bake a birthday cake! As soon as the cake came out of the oven, I had to run back to Lexie's school to take in her birthday snack!
Her class sang to her, then enjoyed some cookies. I wish I had snapped a few more pictures, because Lexie looked SO happy!
I left Lexie's school and ran to a doctor appointment, so my friend, Amber, picked her up from school. I met them at her house, and we went to Build-A-Bear so Lexie could make her first stuffed animal. It was a really great, thoughtful gift from Amber!
After Build-A-Bear, we stopped at Burger King so the kids could eat and play in the indoor playground. Our last stop was at a local bakery before heading home!
Once home, Lexie had a snack and watched a show.
She got to open another birthday present!
It wasn't long before this happened...
After a long nap, we left for Lexie's birthday dinner. Lexie chose McDonald's, so we met Grant there after he was done with work. The kids enjoyed their happy meals and milkshakes!
We headed back home so Lexie could open the rest of her presents.
We headed over to a friend's house so they could enjoy some birthday cake with us!
The kids played for a bit before we headed back home.
That evening, Lexie decided she was going to have a sleepover in our room. It doesn't happen often, so we allowed her!
My sweet baby girl had an awesome birthday! We are so proud of her and love her more than words can say. She may be 6 now, but she will always be our baby girl!!!
Hi! Welcome to Our Five Ring Circus! I'm Stefanie, co-ringleader with my husband, Grant. We live in Pittsburgh with our five kids - Dylan is 15, Alexandria is 13, Liliana is 8, Liam, who is rocking an extra chromosome, is 6, and Coen, our bonus baby, is 12 months old - plus an English Mastiff, two indoor rabbits, and a kitten! In addition to blogging for 12+ years, I'm a photographer, and I volunteer daily for The Down Syndrome Diagnosis Network. You'll also (occasionally) find me on Pittsburgh Mom's Blog! When I'm not too busy wrangling the chaos, you'll see posts about life with littles, what life with Down syndrome is REALLY like, big family living, fashion, recipes, lifestyle, and more! Thank you for stopping by. I look forward to getting to know you!
