Our kids' birthdays tend to be emotional times for me, and this one was no different. In fact, it was probably a bit more emotional than normal. I was struggling with how to share the day on this blog and decided it was probably best to just share it like it was, but maybe without all of the nitty-gritty details.
Anna woke up to a few family members singing Happy Birthday, in addition to finding "7s" hidden around the house, a fun tradition we stole from another family. She opened cards and gifts from family in the morning and played with Kate for awhile at the table after the rest of us had some breakfast.
I was on my own with the kids through lunch and the start of naps, which was hard on many different levels. Those people who have been in our home in the last few months can attest to the fact that mealtimes and therapy visits can be especially tricky times some days, so doing it on my own on Anna's birthday had some rougher moments, but we made it through.
The kids and I took a walk through the neighborhood in the morning, the first I have attempted with all three on my own since Anna has been home. It was slow, but relatively successful. We were home in plenty of time for Anna's occupational therapist to come for a later-than-normal visit. So the kids wanted to play the piano together for a bit.
Not very musical, but cute, nonetheless :)
The lateness of the visit meant that it coincided with Ethan and Kate's (and my) lunch time. So we did lunch in shifts, sort of, while the therapist played a few games with Anna.
Once she left, Anna went down for a nap, I put Ethan down for a nap, and I lay down to rest for a bit while Kate played.
Matt came home early from work and Kate followed him around while I got a bit of work done before the other two woke up. Then I managed to get a quick swim in the pool with Kate and Ethan before some friends came over to play in the afternoon.
Actually, the family who came is one with whom we often meet in McFarland; we have a few friend families in this category. (Mom = my friend; oldest daughter = Anna's friend; next child = son who is Kate's age ... There are a lot of boys in Kate's age group in McFarland.)
Then we had dinner as a family with Anna's favorite foods, even though we knew she wouldn't want to actually eat any of them, plus pumpkin cake for dessert.
She was very tired at the end of the day. When all was said and done, it wasn't a very different day from the other days we had earlier in the week, but Anna told me that it was a good birthday.
Anna enjoyed all of the birthday cards that she received throughout the week and she was SO proud of the money she raised through the fundraising website. A week ago at the hospital and again last Monday she would just beam as she described her plans for her birthday whenever anyone asked her. She can't wait to go again on Monday so she can bring along some of the cash she got to donate as well :)
Happy 7th Birthday to our strong, courageous, faithful, kind, amazing daughter. May God's light continue to shine through your life.
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