Annual Photos
I say annual photos like its something I do
consistently. Well this is our second year, so it will be annual from now on, right? I do take snapshots throughout the year, but once in awhile I would like something I can really compare. I took Stella to a photo studio last year about the same time, why of course, you get the "Free 8x10 included in the Birthday Package". Ok, so they are "affordable". Last years were better, but part of that is because Stella has gorgeous hair that I still don't know how to style. My version of "styled" is no tangles. I try and step back as to not be a stage mom, until I realized this chick really did not care how they turned out. So I gave Stella a few minutes to acclimate. The kind girl gave her usual lines, "wow, you are so pretty you should be a model", Stella replies "Well, I used to model in Miami but I quit", with a smile. I am not sure why I found that strikingly amusing, I have since rephrased it to "Miami was just too far of a drive". Lesson? Careful wording.
THE birthday walk
So last I promised pics from Stellas birthday walk at her school. One more thing I love about her school...no cupcakes!!! Since Stella was very young we made the association of junk food and feeling "crazy". It has gotten better, but for awhile she was super sensitive about it. A bar of chocolate and you could look in her eyes and she was not there, she couldn't help herself, just bouncing off everything and everyone in her way.
TRM has a way to celebrate birthdays that I think is much more memorable than cake. It's a birthday walk. A birthday walk consists of leading the class in the usual circle routine, holding the flag, describing the weather, explaining the date, etc. But then, the special rug is rolled out. The seasons and the months are laid out and songs are sung as the birthday child walks around the "world" representing each year of their life and holding pictures to show how they have grown.
Then comes the big birthday candle, a wish is made as the candle is blown out and the lights flash as the kids yell "hip hip hooray" for every year they are old. Simple I know, but big. Almost five years, can you believe it?
