Birthdays!

As if December weren't busy enough with Christmas celebrations, we also have Claire and Maddie's birthdays! Claire turned 6 on the 19th and Maddie turned 3 on the 20th. Since their birthdays were on Friday and Saturday, we were able to celebrate on their actual birthdays and have a little family party. 

This was the first year I had to send Claire away on her birthday. It kind of made me sad, and I wanted to do something to make it extra special, especially since Claire just really wanted to stay home on her birthday instead. Per her request, I made her eggnog pancakes with sprinkles. They were actually super good and since it was a busy school morning, I just used a pancake mix and added eggnog instead of water. Yum! I also stole and idea from a facebook friend and wrapped Claire's lunch. She asked for a lunchable for her birthday so it was pretty easy to wrap. I also packed a wrapped cookie too. I hope it helped her feel extra special on her birthday! I offered to take cupcakes in to school to celebrate with her class, but I was shocked that she didn't want that. Crazy kid.

All ready for lunch!

That day, we picked up Claire from school and headed straight to Chuck E Cheese. We didn't really want it to be super crowded and didn't really want to eat their expensive sub par pizza, so we went as early as we could. We invited some friends to join us as well and  just let the kids play the games and ride the rides. We had a great time! Her friends even gave them gifts which was thoughtful. After Chuck E Cheese, we headed to Red Lobster for a real dinner. This was the third time Claire chose Red Lobster for her birthday meal and probably would have done it in Korea too if there was one there. 

After having a great meal, we headed home to meet Chris's brother, Jamie and his two kids. He came down from PA to celebrate the girls' birthdays that weekend. We were thrilled to have someone from our extended family celebrate with us. The kids also had a great time with their cousins. Since it was Claire's actual birthday, she wanted to open a present or two instead of waiting until the next day. We couldn't let Claire open presents and not Maddie though, so they both opened a couple of presents - one from us, and one from Aunt Cay and Uncle John. We got them both some clothing, so I thought they could wear it the next day if I gave it to them Friday night. :)

Claire has become quite the Steelers fan. When I found a reasonably priced shirt with Steelers stuff AND a puppy, I was thrilled!

Maddie got a kitty shirt and pants. She LOVES that shirt.

The next day, we had a simple party with lunch and just spending time together with family. It was a great day and we loved spending the time together. Both girls really wanted a Frozen cake, so we just got one cake with their names on it. I like to make them their cakes but it was going to cost more to get some frozen cake topper things than to just buy it already done. We picked up their cake at B.J.'s and they loved. it. 

Posing with their cake. Maddie tries to be just like Claire. 

 The cake was loved by all. Yum!

 Present time!

Opening a jewelry making kit from Aunt Kendra and Uncle Jamie

Opening her Minnie Mouse suitcase. She said this was her favorite present of all. It was at the top of her Christmas list.

Aunt Cay didn't want Amelia to feel left out of opening presents so sent this funny flying monkey present for her to open. :)

Claire with her presents - princess easy reader books, Steelers shirt, scooter, jewelry making kit, chapter books, and travel games book

Claire and Maddie with their matching pink scooters

Maddie with her presents - Minnie Mouse suitcase, scooter, outfit, felt activity board, book, and jewelry and crown

They were excited to check out their new scooters!

Amelia was pulling Ali around in the wagon. She's strong! (Sorry for the blurry cell phone shot.)

Claire loves to spend time with Eli.

Maddie with her Uncle Jamie. 

Maddie wanted pizza for her birthday dinner, and since we wanted to share a restaurant who served yummy Sicilian pizza with Jamie, it was the perfect choice. Yummy!

After Christmas, we went up to visit with family where we also celebrated their birthdays with grandparents. It's really sweet that everyone makes an effort to not look over their birthdays despite being so close to Christmas. This year, they got tablets from grammy and poppop that they were excited about!

My girls are growing up so fast!