Rory is a FIVE YEAR OLD!! How did that happen?!

I am in complete disbelief that my little baby girl turned five years old yesterday.

It seems like it was yesterday that I was making this blog post, about her turning 4! (lots of cute baby pics and flashbacks in there)

It seems like just yesterday, when I was holding her weebaby newbornness in my arms and kissing her sweet smelling head- while she screamed , and refused to sleep , and my body ached , and my mind was lost to lack of sleep. ..hmm. Maybe that delirium is part of the reason five years seems like so resent?

I just can't believe it. SO much so , I watched this old video of her last night and teared up:
She was maybe two in that video- why does she look soo tiny!?!- Wasn't that just recently, I could swear I just uploaded that .
My baby got sooo big over night!!!

In fact, the morning of her birthday I swear she grew overnight- she woke up and just looked bigger. I measured her and sure enough she had grown a bit, surely not overnight- but it feels that way.

I am going to go ahead and skip to telling you about her birthday party. The rest of our week was filled with stressful planning for it ;no one cares to read that-

We planned a tea party at Lissy's house. That is all she wanted. She even made a point to tell people she didn't neeeed presents (because I told her if she got a lot of new things we would need to get rid of other toys to make room) - she JUST wanted people to come to tea. Lissy took the tea party idea and ran with a whole Mad Hatter , Alice in wonderland style tea party.
Ri made stuffed mushrooms and Rory dressed up- we gave her one toy while she waited
The shopping cart she wanted...
Momo called and she told her all about it.

The local noisy Sandhill Cranes came to wish Rory a Happy Birthday, they even came in a group of five


Val came to follow us over.. she brought Damian and Seth all dressed up for tea !



We got a WAY later start than planned. I had planned on going over to help Lissy decorate for the party. I was soo stressed on the way over.
I realized the party was set for 4pm(tea time) and then got very worried the only people who were coming were there, or following us. (Val ,and hopefully Ri's mom )
Ri's sisters were blowing us off.

I would not be able to get anything ready. AND Lissy made it out like she wouldn't be able to move the table and decorate it before I got there...

I knew she had her hands full with Nico. I spent Friday there helping put it together ,but it was far from out and ready... I was sad to think we would be rushing to put things out as our only guest came.

Instead, I walked in to see this:
Lissy is so mean! or sweet! or something I almost cried!

The kids played for a bit with the exercise balls in the den, while I set out clues .and we all snacked a bit- Lissy and Mom made tea and cream .
Cake -


Lissy made the cake , I helped put icing on the mushroom- which was actually a cinnabun we found in just the right shape- and she - made a the Mad Hatter's hat cake, and icing- soo cute.


RI and I had scoured stores Thursday (while Lissy watched Rory) to find sugar cubes (PUBLIX- dude. we also found the food coloring and candles we needed there.)
, for what ever reason , sugar cubes made tea even cooler.
Ri's mom poured the tea for the kids -Damian and Seth played along like perfect gentlemen .

Though , Damian was not really in love with the tea. He did think the sugar cubes cool.


Seth loved the tea, he even thanked Lynn (Ri's mom ) for talking him in to adding cream. "It made it really good." - sweetest.thing.ever.

All the adults really seemed to love the tea, too.
The eatme cookies that I made from scratch were a pretty big hit ,too. I made a batch of molasses, and a batch of chocolate chip- I had leftovers even,and I was worried there wouldn't be enough.
even Nico stuffed his face with them
Mom made little tea sized sandwiches , and brought a veggie platter, and crackers and cheeses, and a bean dip- and the cheetos Rory wanted. Ri made yummy stuffed mushrooms and Parmesan crunchies. I even used the calligraphy set Ri's mom got me for xmas to make cute little eat me tags next to everything.

See the Cheshire Cat? If you can believe it Lissy drew that and painted it( I helped paint a little) Friday- We used it to play "pin the smile on the Cheshire cat". Rory got the closest - Damian was scared to be blindfolded.

I think Lissy is going to frame it and keep it.

Rory did NOT expect presents- she was overjoyed that she got some, she couldn't wait to open them.
Seth and Damian where soo sweet helping her open them.


1st a new porcelain doll from mom "Yay! a new medium sized doll!"

This vid is stuck loading but if it works it is the cutest thing. Tell me your heart doesn't melt when she kisses Damian on the cheek for helping her: ---
(um... no , it didn't work-- I will see what I can do and edit it in, curse you stupid wiped laptop)-------


The 'message' was a handmade card from Val-soo pretty!

Ri's mom got her the new littlest petshop car... her face says it all.




Seth & Damian where soo sweet , I cannot thank Val enough for coming and getting them all dressed up, and everything.

Rory had soo much fun. The kids looked for the doormouse we hid in a tea cup ,and put rhyming clues leading through the house and back to- Seth thought it was a bit too easy, but he read the clues and showed Rory and Damian where they would be.
Damian was more interested in blowing the colored bubbles than anything-
tho I do hope Jen(his mom) isn't pissed he got bubble colors all over his dress clothes.
I had to get a pic of Seth in his awesome hat.
and I have to get as many pics of Nico-na as possible.

Everyone started to leave , we stuck around a bit helping clean up.. while Rory said she just wanted to " watch a bit more tv"
Lissy has Cable.. and Nico thinks he is big watching it with Rory.
He also thinks Rory is big enough to hold him.

We waited around thinking Mel (ri's older sis) would show, and had cake
Rory said she was a bit sad Ben couldn't see her cake, she knows he loves the Mad Hatter.
The homemade icing has started to run- still cute though
I love my kid. I love that a simple tea with her Grammys and a few friends was JUST what she wanted.
. Rory wanted the cinnabun part not the cake lol.

Mel DID show up after we got home. Ri was pretty angry with her.
She got Rory a really cute my little pony playset. The kids sat and played with Rory and had some cake- SO Rory was pretty happy
Though, she didn't let Eli play with the girly toys at first.
He did end up playing the girliest game of dolls ,eventually

Rory has told everyone how awesome her party was. Even me, as we played tea party again today.

....and some pics from our park trip the other day- just because

It has been a long long stressful week leading up to Rory's birthday.


I am soo happy Rory had a great birthday.
Even though it means she is so big.

Ri is off work for the next two weeks- except maybe a few days at Cowboys.
Woo hoo!


PEACE AND TOFU CHICKEN GREASE,
BABYHELLFIRE