Happy birthday to Mallory!

So, it is officially official. I am the mom of a five year old. A soon-to-be kindergartener. A girl, not a little girl, she tells me all the time. A girl that can get dressed by herself, comb her own hair, have her own opinion about what she wants to wear, buckle herself with a seatbelt, have actual conversations, add numbers, spell a handful of words and is so excited to finally be five!

It's hard to believe it was five years ago when we saw this sweet face (which looks a lot like her little brother's face):

And now, we get to see this sweet face everyday:

Her choice for her birthday dinner? Subway. Yes, Subway. Of all the restaurants she could pick from, she chose Subway. Hilarious.

After dinner, we walked over to BJ's for a birthday pazookie (which is free on your birthday, fyi):

The day of her party, decorating some princess cupcakes:

Her first time to ride in her booster with a seat belt (a big deal for her and me!):

And, on to the big party! Last year, several friends and I were talking about parties. We tossed around the idea of doing a joint party together, and then a brilliant idea came to us...rent out Lions Junction! It was hands down, the easiest party ever! Mallory had a pretty fun party last year (Oreo the horse), but this one might have taken the title (don't you agree, Karen?). There were five of us that rented it out. We barely made a dent in the amount of people you can invite. We had the entire park to ourselves, complete with lifeguards. The only prep was making cupcakes and buying drinks. It was so, so easy. If any Temple friends want to join in next year, I think we'll do it again! Probably until they don't think it's cool anymore:)

She was SO excited (and I barely saw her all night!):

The birthday kids: Joshua (6), Mallory (5), Kate (5), Bella (5) and Maddie (3)

We had one big "Happy Birthday song" and then everyone dug into the cupcakes:

We had the park until 10 pm. I didn't think we'd last that long, especially with Max. But, we ended up closing down the park! About 5 till 10 I looked over and Mallory is by herself in the kid area, sliding over and over and over...with three lifeguards watching her (and so ready to go home)! She was a prune when she got out. To say that she had a blast is an understatement! In fact...the other night we were reading the girls' devotional book. It was talking about exciting days and what your most exciting day has been. Mallory said, "Mommy, my birthday party at the water park was my most exciting day EVER!" I loved hearing that, and knowing that it was true!

So now I will try to soak in the next two months. I'm afraid I'll be a mess when August comes. It's such a weird emotion. I'm so glad she's a big kid, but so sad to lose the littleness. Sigh.