August Nine-Year-Old Birthdaying

I do have to say just how quickly it comes around, again, and how surprising it feels with this first child to be the mother of a nine year old already....


Favourite present: time turner.


Birthday morning, breakfast table set with rainbow candle and her favourite family photograph.


A party for a whole host of friends. This is the first time she has really specified a themed birthday party, and I got sort of carried away. Just a little bit. But it was amazing (and shockingly organised, for saying I don't usually work well with deadlines). ;)

(The awesome bunting is by Aisling Designs. The painting is the one that usually hangs there, a picture of Alice and her sister reading in the meadow, which Jenna made when she was five.)




Are you *sure* you don't want an olive? Quite sure? (Yes, they face painted each other. All the parents already knew me well enough to expect children to be returned home filthy with a combination of garden potion-making, glittery crafts, face paint, and cake... But still, particular apology must go to Kirsty, whose daughter attended wearing white...)






The penguins have become a tradition. I wasn't allowed to leave them off, even after complaining that they weren't very Alice in Wonderland.


Hand-decorated mad top hats were a (belatedly remembered) hit just before home-time. :)

This was the first birthday Martin has ever had to work in Jenna's life, so the first not spent together as a family. Strange to think that were our children not home educated Jenna would usually be the only one to not have school on her birthday. Anyway, to help with the disappointment of missing Daddy's presence at her celebrations, we carried birthdaying over into today and took her out to spend her birthday money, and all went swimming as a family.

To be entirely honest today was a little stressful, as the children were all extremely tired from partying (especially Talia, who had an incredible hour long screaming fit right in the middle of town, including attempting to strip all her clothes off, and two attempts to bite me). Well, Jenna had a wonderful two-day birthday, anyway, and that was the main aim. The rest of us might just want to sleep all day tomorrow!!