Written by: Caroline Ludwig
Our baby is three! Where did the time go?
Over the last year, she has grown and learned so much that it’s hard to recognize our little girl. She’s well over three feet tall, can handle most of the playground equipment she plays on, and is very into doing things with her “friends” (anyone who will play near her for any length of time.) She’s a loving big sister, most of the time, likes to teach her little brother things, and is playing with him a lot.
We celebrated Lilly’s third birthday the weekend before Labor Day so our almost three-year-old could have a weekend of summer fun before starting preschool. I triple-checked the date for the cake this time, but Lilly wanted a Barney-themed party and where do you even get decorations for that these days? We looked and looked online and we couldn’t find anything. So we settled for green and purple decorations with some dinosaurs thrown in for fun. I was going to attempt to make some Barney decorations, but time got away from me.
The birthday girl was very excited about her party and we spent the morning going to Java Jackets to get some hot chocolate and breakfast before picking up some last-minute supplies at the store. Elliot and Lilly split a muffin while Joe and myself ate some maple cinnamon rolls and drank our coffee. On the way home I ran into the store to get some balloons. I was surprised to see two families with pink number three balloons attached to their carts. Clearly, Lilly wasn’t the only girl celebrating a birthday in our area that day.
After we got home we said some quick hellos to mom and Larry before dividing and conquering. Joe went to mow the backyard while the rest of us managed the inside of the house and the kids. Elliot and Lilly enjoyed some train videos with Larry while mom and myself cleaned serving ware and started setting out cups and snacks. Our house was starting to look very purple and green.
The water slide was on the way, as were lots of Lilly’s family and friends. Lilly has been very into saying “my friends” any time she sees kids about her age anywhere, but this time it was actually kids that she knew. As the first guests arrived I set up Lilly’s new swing so she could try it out Joe set up the water slide. The water slide was a huge hit, but unlike last year Lilly was able to get herself up to the top and she wasn’t afraid of the water jets. Elliot got to join in on the fun too but had to be lifted up to the top since he wasn’t quite tall enough to go up the footholds.
Eventually, we convinced the kids to take a break for cheese coneys with homemade Cincinnati-style chili. After lunch was over, it was time for cake. Lilly enjoyed sitting with most of her friends (a few had to leave before we cut the cake) as we sang happy birthday to her, Unfortunately, Elliot missed out on the cake because he went upstairs for his nap. Keeping up with your big sister is hard work.
While I’ve been used to mostly family-filled parties for the kids’ birthdays this was the first time where friends equaled or surpassed family. Lilly had tons of friends to run around with and for the most part I just watched her from afar while chatting with adults and getting party stuff organized. It was certainly a different vibe, but it was nice to see how independent our little girl is becoming. While I know preschool will have challenges for Lilly I know she’s ready to face them and I can’t wait to see the awesome things she accomplishes this year.
Thank you to everyone who came out to celebrate Lilly with us. She had a blast!
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