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| Allie's Cinderella Cake |
It is hard to believe that my little baby is already 5 years old! She started telling me she was "FIVE!" a couple months ago. Of course, I'd let her know that she was "going to be five"- she wasn't five yet. Oh, my.. the time flew past and now she is five! We celebrated in Allie-style with a very active birthday party at Pump It Up - a really cool place filled with inflatables that the kids and their parents can jump on, climb through, slide down and laugh through all of it. This year's birthday was even more special because the day before her party she had special visitors arrive in town - her Granny and Paw Paw and Aunt Maureen!!! I was so thrilled they could all be here for Allie's birthday and for Thanksgiving. Living far from family I really miss the opportunities for Allie to be around her Aunt and Grandparents. This week Allie seemed to mature a lot and I can't help but think it had something to do with all the family in town. Allie gets a lot of "Mommy and Daddy" time, so it was wonderful to get time with Granny, Paw Paw and Aunt Mo-Mo!!
Her birthday party was filled with many of her wonderful friends. Some we've known since her early days in the NICU and some from our first days at Hand in Hand. Others are newer friends, but still just as cherished. We are blessed to have so many wonderful friends in Allie's life and we are thankful so many could attend our big celebration. As the proud parents, we didn't miss the opportunity to notice that Allie was able to do the activities even better than ever before. She had a new confidence that allowed her to be able to climb the huge staircases up to the top of the slide. Her pace was slower than her friends, but they were all patient with her. We would go behind her and support her or help if needed, but we all noticed we weren't needed as much as before. She has gotten so much stronger and independent. She isn't "saying" "I do it", but we hear it loud and clear with her "Allie turn" or her confident push of our hand away from helping. She can do it and she will do it and she isn't afraid to tell us to back off a bit. I'm so proud of her! 
Allie was celebrated all week long. On Monday, her actual birthday, we took it rather easy and ended up watching the Chicago Bears game at a local Wings place and enjoying some more birthday cake for Allie. Tuesday we went and had pictures taken, enjoyed a casual lunch and then walked around Aldridge Gardens. It was so beautiful and we were able to get some wonderful pictures in. We then treated ourselves to GiGi's Cupcakes and finally decided we were done with the cake portion of the birthday.
Then, we began setting our sights on Thanksgiving. Paw Paw, Granny and Aunt Maureen were the primary cooks all adding a portion of the meal. I'm not known for my cooking, so I contributed Chocolate Chip Cookies with Maureen. It was a very nice meal and we all had a lot to be thankful for. The week ended too short with them all heading back to their respective homes on Friday and Saturday. I do miss having family nearby. I wish some of Allie's cousins as well as Aunts, Uncles and of course Grandparents could be in her life daily. I know all would benefit from it. We are fortunate that we have FaceTime and Webcams these days. It all makes it a little easier, but it still would be nice to have them local. 
We love you so much it is hard to put into words. Thank you for coming into our lives and bringing us so much love and happiness!
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