Beauty Turns FIVE

July 31st my firstborn turned five years old. I can hardly believe it. Claire is truly one of the most amazing people I have ever known. She is funny, has a vivid imagination, she is kind and loving, and so full of life. I love that she seems to be confident in the things that make her unique. She has strong opinions and sticks to what she sets her mind to (sometimes this quality causes a little friction as you can imagine, but it is a God given quality and I try to embrace it). She is stunning as you can see in the picture above, yet that doesn't seem to matter to her one little bit. She is a bright spot in my days and I am thankful she is mine.

We spread her birthday celebration over three days which was really fun. I mean how many times do you turn FIVE?

Day 1: Mima (aka Gig) and I took Claire out for a birthday mani/pedi. It is always so fun to do girly things like that. I guess it is becoming a tradition for the three of us, this is the third year in a row we have done this. Claire opted for rainbow fingers and pinkalicious toes with celebration flowers painted on her big toes in honor of her birthday party theme (more on that later). I love her creativity. Papa (aka Big Allan) had flown in that day so we all went out to dinner and Claire loved that there was a rose on her table. When we got home she opened a few of the Kavalich gifts. Her Mima and Papa gave her the Bitty Twins which she named Claire and Jacob since they look like her and her brother. She also got a horse book and the birthday Barbie from her Kavalich cousins. It was a good way to start the birthday celebration weekend.

Day 2: We had her party at our neighborhood pool. Claire chose the theme for her birthday party about six months ago and I was so happy that I could incorporate every last detail. Her theme was Swimalicious, Pinkalicious, Rainbow, Unicorn Birthday Party. It was so much fun. She said her favorite part was the rainbow pinata (which I sadly have no pictures of) and the amazing rainbow cake with the fancy unicorn on top that her daddy made (did I mention that my husband is amazing!!). The rest of that day was spent hanging with family at the house. It was laid back and just what we needed to recoup for the next days festivities.

Day 3 (The Actual Birthday): I told Claire that on her actual birthday she could do anything she wanted. She chose eating a pink sparkle star donut for breakfast, opening our family gifts, eating lunch and shopping at American Girl, cuddling and watching a movie with her mommy and daddy while Jacob napped and then eating a fun dinner at Magic Time Machine. She had also hoped for a carousel ride and swimming, but we ran out of time. It was such a great day. I loved spending time with Allan's parents and it was great to have the Powells join us for dinner as well. I think she was properly celebrated ;)

She says it was her best birthday ever and I would have to agree. I think we will mellow out on birthdays for the next couple of years, but I am not promising anything. It is hard not to super celebrate someone you love so stinkin' much. I cannot believe we have hit the five year mark, times seems to have flown by, but at the same time I can't remember life without my little princess.