This morning, the day after MK's birthday, Pryce asked, "So, can we celebrate Mason-Kate's Chinese birthday today?" Translation, "Can we please have cake for breakfast today and use Mason-Kate's Chinese birthday as an excuse?" We explained to him that even though she does have a Chinese name as well as her American name, she only has ONE birthday and it was more than perfectly celebrated yesterday!

Once Pryce realized there would be no cake for breakfast, he quickly began lobbying for a morning out. We used to go out to breakfast every Saturday morning but we have curved that habit quite a bit lately. However, today Ryan and I looked at each other upon hearing Pryce's request and thought, "Why not?" So off to our favorite local breakfast joint, Sunrise Grill. We were seated, the children were looking over their children's menus. Colin, not meaning to of course, stabbed me in the heart. He stated, "Hey mom, when I turn ten in two months, I will no longer have to order from the kids menu. I will have to order as an adult!" Hmmm....not exactly the thing that this mother needed to hear. Though I am so happy to watch them grow and experience new opportunities, etc., I do love their innocence of being young. Little things like the age limit on a child's menu can quickly remind me of the reality that we are living....they are all 3 growing up too fast!

Happy Birthday Sweet Girl!

Mason-Kate is THREE! To say that she enjoyed her day would be an understatement. She LOVED her day. Not long after she awoke, the celebrating began. First, the vanity was given. She dried hair, put on lipstick, polished her nails, etc. for what seemed to be forever. We couldn't even stop her long enough to eat breakfast. Instead, she insisted we place her plate on a chair beside the vanity so that she could eat and primp. We obliged because, after all, it is her birthday. Next came the guests for her special party. Her bestest of friends were able to attend and Mason-Kate loved having each and every one of them here. An added bonus was that her cousins, Jay and Emma, were here too, along with both sets of grandparents and her aunt. She was definitely surrounded by infinite amounts of love. For me, I loved seeing her open her gifts. She had so much expression and her comments were priceless....she would say, "Oh, I love this one!" or "Super!" or "That is what I really, really want!" or "Wow!"....she was precious. The cake was a hit as well. Everyone sang Happy Birthday and MK really took it in. Then, she sat. No blowing the candles out for her. Instead, she just stared. And stared. Finally, her brother helped and the cutting of the cake began. When most everyone had left, we gave MK her final gift of the day.....a Barbie Jeep. She couldn't speak, her smile said it all. She immediately jumped in and took off. MK took Jay for a few rides. Their discussion went something like this: "You ready, Jay?" asked MK. Jay smiled and said, "I ready!" And with that the pedal was pushed and off they jerked....I am sure some form of whip lash did occur. It was a great day! And the icing on the cake is knowing how far Miss Mason-Kate has come in yet another year of life. Three years ago today a child was born and her life was uncertain. Three years later, she thrives, she is loved, her life is full of possibilities and she makes us all smile.

Speaking of smiling, Pryce still has his loose tooth. His smile remains intact. My boys were both all smiles this week during their very first basketball practice of the season. They traveled the court as though they had never even left it. Mason-Kate also had her first ballet class. She did wonderful. She walked into the class as if she had been there for years! Towards the end of the class, the teacher stepped away just long enough for MK to make her move. With all of the other little girls properly lined up along the bar, MK proceeded to the middle of the classroom, put her hand on her hip, raised her little finger and said, "Now, dis is what we going to do..." and then she danced around in a circle only to be caught mid-twirl by the instructor.

Our family is all smiles to hear that MK WILL receive speech services through our local school district. YAY! This is a huge praise, something we have prayed for and something that we have been anxious about. We are so excited and can't wait to get started next week!

Colin. He is very literal. I went into his room to tuck him in for bed and I found him on the floor looking at a Boys Life Magazine. I looked down and he was staring at a one page advertisement for an organization called Smile Train. There were six children, all from different countries. We talked about Mason-Kate and how she had surgery to repair her cleft lip and palate. Concerned, he said, "You know this organization is great. Look, they do free repairs for children." I agreed and went onto explain to him that people just like us donate money for these surgeries. He said, "Well, I think we need to come up with a plan. It only takes $250 for a surgery. That isn't a lot!" The boys are at such great ages to understand giving and I truly love that Colin spent time pondering the children pictured and decided that he would like to help that organization. Most children would have just skimmed over that page with little interest. I love that it hit home for him. Time to start our plan to help out....school project maybe????