one full weekend in honor of four fabulous years

Over the weekend, we celebrated the fourth anniversary since the day I pushed my body to extremes to expel an 8 pound, 12 ounce human being with a fuzz cover of orange on her head, which perfectly matched her beginnings of eyelashes and eyebrows.  Four years since that early morning spent physically in rocking chairs but mentally in that place a woman can visit during labor that is clearly otherworldly and doesn't allow for any other inhabitants.  Four years since I earned another birthstone on the mother's ring that I will someday wear.

What's that?  Oh, am I not supposed to be at the center of that story?  Okay, okay, we celebrated Red's fourth birthday, are you happy?  Yes, she was the focus of much of the weekend, and what a weekend it was.  Beginning with a jaunt at the playground with some fabulous friends on Friday, the first of the birthday treats and songs were consumed and sung.  With all that was going to be happening over the course of the weekend, we opted not to have a big party for her this year, and quite honestly, I think it was for the best.  She is lucky to get to see her pals frequently for playground time and general hanging out, so I'm not feeling (too) guilty about not splurging for a big ol' shindig.

When my in-laws arrived in the afternoon, there was more happiness, especially as Red got to open a few presents and eat a piece of the deliciously wrecky cake that I made for her.  Let's just say that shaky hands, limited supplies on hand, and a complete lack of experience make for this comparison of what Red requested her cake look like and the reality of the final result.  Eh.  It tasted just fine, though, thanks to that darling Betty Crocker.

Saturday morning brought her actual birthday, as well as a flurry of activities.  Seizing on her current interest in soccer (in that she's signed up for a little class and likes to kick a ball around at home), it was a very soccerish birthday.  Donning her new shin guards and special soccer socks (all with the requisite pinkness), and with her new PINK soccer ball in tow, Red left her new goals to be set up at home later and we were off to her second-to-last soccer class/game. We had to split with Dad, JAM and Grandpa, since they were going to be down the road at JAM's baseball game that morning.

Now, I'm not really a fan of trying to juggle multiple activities for the kids, but for these past five Saturday mornings, we did change it up a bit and Red was enrolled in two different things at the same time.  So after soccer was over, we used the Community Center restroom to do a "costume change," which allowed her to enter the bathroom as Soccer Red, but emerge as Creative Movement Red.  Yup, her last dance class was held on her birthday, and even better- it was the Parent Observation Class!  We called it her 'dance show' since we were allowed in the room to watch and could even bring photographic equipment.  She rocked that class's socks off, truly.  Every time she made eye contact with me or Pudge or her grandmother, she did the most adorable wave, and I was proud to see that not only did she listen to the teacher's directions the whole time, she even did it with a smile on her face!  When they were called one at a time to do a hopping/galloping part, they were also allowed to choose a colorful lei to keep.  Well, guess who was called last (and not even because of wild behavior!), and who had to choose from the basket that was depleted of all its pink leis?  The remarkable part??  Guess who did not blink an eye or 'fuss a bit?'  (Okay, she lost her composure completely after the show was over and she was back in the care of her loving mother, and she did shed a tear or two or 77 over the fact that "everyone else took ALL THE PINK ONES and left me none!!!" But at least that wasn't in the middle of the show!)

After the soccer, dance, and baseball fun, we all headed home for lunch and a much needed nap.  (Well, 2/7 of our crew got to nap... maybe 3/7, if you count Grandpa's on-again-off-again snoozing in front of the TV.) I really, really wanted Red to nap well, because she and I were in for a fun experience that evening, and an over-tired, cranky little girl would not have made it very enjoyable for anyone.  A fantastic, wonderful, and generous friend gave Red the best present-- one that I got to take part in, as well!  The two tickets to The Kennedy Center's showing of Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Musical made both Red's and my day!  And when I saw on Mo's blog (yes, of course that would be Mo Willems- the children's author/illustrator who is much-blogged about in this little space) that he would also be attending the 5:00 pm performance, I about jumped out of my skin.  I prepared by getting a print made of the infamous photograph that captured Red's first experience meeting Mo, and with that and a black sharpie in my bag, I was optimistic that we would just happen to run into him at the show.  (A girl can hope.)  Either way, we were dressed up (as in, Mommy wore makeup and Red donned a dress), and we were excited to have a special birthday time together.

Thankfully, I wasn't disappointed, on any front.  The show was A-DOR-ABLE.  Really.  The cast sang and delivered their lines with wit and more than a few wink-winks toward the parents in the audience.  Stephanie D'Abruzzo, especially, owned her part.  That woman played the wide-eyed, tantrum-prone, wordless (and occasionally 'boneless') toddler part with sublime perfection!  The songs made me giggle, and in fact, at this very minute as I type away, both Red and Pudge are singing the short parts of the catchy tunes "Aggle Flaggle Klabble" and "Life is Tricky with Trixie"  that Red and I can remember (exact song titles only assumed).  Here's a taste, although Pudge is being a bit of a diva right now, and refuses to go on set:

Just before the show started, I spotted Mo and his lovely family in the audience and tried to discreetly point him out to Red, without attracting too much attention.  (I restrained from standing up and shouting to him like we're BFF's.  Thank god.)  So after the hour of fun, laughs and snuggling with my dear middle child, we slowly approached him, picture in hand.  (Red assures me she wasn't nervous.  That would have been just me, apparently.)  We weren't the only ones, of course, and because it seems that MotherReader and I are very much of the same opinion of Mo and his work, I wasn't terribly surprised to see her at opening night, as well!  Mo was very gracious to chat with the small crowd surrounding him (especially as it was 6 pm and I'm sure he had a fine meal to go enjoy somewhere).  I very dorkishly told him that Red was much better behaved than last time, and asked if he would mind signing her screaming toddler photograph.  He did, complete with a "WAAAAAAAAA!" speech bubble, a pigeon on JAM's shirt, and an update on his current facial hair acquirement.  He even went a step farther and marked my daughter's arm and hand with a big number 4, his name, and a Knuffle Bunny face that made her smile a mile wide.  (It would be wrong for me to draw over it every day to ensure it doesn't ever fade away, right?)

(I remembered, thankfully, that Mo is not so much a fan of flash photography, thus the dark and slightly blurry pics...)

With birthday purchases of both a stuffed Knuffle Bunny and a talking Pigeon to go along with the autograph and body art souvenirs, we exited the theater and Red took one good look at her screaming photograph with the "WAAAAAAAAA!" speech bubble, and told me very point blank, "He did not write my name correctly."  Too funny.  We met back up with our extended crew, enjoyed a delicious meal at an Irish Pub (hey, she's gotta know her peeps, right?), and eventually returned home after one full and fabulous birthday.

To my dear Red, I hope you enjoyed your very full, very FOUR birthday, my love.  You are quite a kid, and it can most definitely be "tricky" with you, and we love you immensely.  I hope being four is just fantastic for you.

With love and laughs,