Casey's 9th Birthday

I won't even go into the hows and whys I haven't blogged in so long in this post.  I'm obviously overdue.  Dear Casey turned 9 on November the 18th and I need to post about that.  So on with it.

 9!!! Nine!!!!  Where have the last 9 years gone?  A question I ask myself at each of my girls' birthdays for sure, but the bigger the number, the harder it is to believe.  It's so funny to see birthdays through her eyes.  She talks about being 9 with a sense of pride.  Like, chest puffed out, feathers up, kind of proud.  Another year older is just big stuff.  I love it.  On the eve of her birthday, I mentioned that 9 is the last year she will ever be in single digits as her age.  And she teared up.  She's such a mini me about this kind of thing; nostalgic; dramatic.  Tom had it right, 9 years ago when he nicknamed her 'MiniMo.'  (His nickname for me is Mo.  I still have no idea why.)  She and I are dramatic, emotional, slightly nutty, smart-mouthed kindred spirits.  God help me.

Waking up to a birthday donut from Stan's

 At 9 pink is out.  It's been for a while, I think, but I've only just become truly aware of it.  She loves blue.  And purple, and green, and black.  I only note that because she has been a hard core pink fan since forever and it's a real, tangible landmark in her getting older.  8 going on 9 is when pink became babyish.  It's also the age where she says she really looks forward to wearing a bra.  It's a fascination, not on the radar, but Tom visibly blanches when she talks about this.  And that's all I'll say about that because this could wander far off into embarrassing territory that could forever scar her.  It's all just evidence of her getting older... *sniff*

Luckily for both of us, she still loves and requires many hugs from me.  Here at home and in public.  I love it.  I read something today that said something to the effect that if a child hugs you, you should never be the first to let go because you don't know how long they might need that hug for.  And with a 9 year old who will be 14 before I blink again, I am taking this advice to heart.  I'm hanging on to every hug for dear life.  Because I'm afraid hugs from mom will be out like the color pink waaay too soon.

This is the first year since the age of 4 that we vetoed a friend party.  And it was sooooo nice.  She said back in August she wanted to take one friend to SkyZone, a local trampoline place, and then go out for yogurt.  She laid out the plans had a blast, and that's all I wanted.  The fact that she kept it all so simple just made it perfectly easy for me :) 

We still had our family's in for a party, though!  Casey told Nana what she wanted on her cake, and was happy with the results.  And what's a birthday party without presents?!

(One of my favorite things I love about dear Casey is her genuine enthusiasm.  It bursts from her!  When she loves something, she loves it big.)

Party favors for her class were easy, too.  Rainbow Loom bands on a lollipop - done.

A surprise for her school lunch - I wrapped up all of her food in her lunchbox :)

No party to plan or prepare for here or at a rented place?  This birthday thing is getting easier every year!!  Parenting is going to get easier as she gets older, too, right?  Right?  No?  That's what I thought... Stay tuned to find out just how fine nine is this year.