Mairead's Birthday Bash!

There is nothing like a birthday party for a small child. The pure joy and excitement a party brings to a child is unforgettable. Mairead was so excited for all of her friends to come celebrate her birthday, and not to mention the pony that would be coming to her house. The weather forecast still looked grim, but we didn't care. Mairead was excited whether there was rain or shine. There would be a celebration regardless of the weather.

All of the children arrived around 2pm. It was a bit crazy. We had 16 kids ranging in age from 2-4 years old. With that many children, you would think it would be chaotic, but I think everyone did amazingly well! The pony arrived late, but that's okay! The kids had a blast playing together in the playroom. Once the ponies arrived, the excitement stepped up a notch. The lady brought two horses, a mini pony and a standard size pony. The mini one was for brushing, feeding, petting and learning, the bigger one was brought just in case the weather was good enough to ride! The kids had a blast! Then. The. Rain. Stopped! Yes! The kids all lined up waiting for their turn to ride "Winston". Mairead at first was apprehensive, and didn't want to ride. Once she saw her friends riding him, she was ready! She rode "Winston" twice, and loved every second of it! Lilah wasn't really interested in the horses, so she just watched. Quietly.

After the pony left, we all headed inside. I was thrilled the kids were able to ride the pony! We settled down to sing 'Happy Birthday' to my sweet angel. She was so excited to blow out the candles. All of her friends gathered around the table to join in! It was so cute! We sang happy birthday, and Mairead did a fabulous job blowing out the candles - of course, she didn't wait to grab the number 4 and lick the frosting off of it!

 

After cake & ice cream, it was gift time! The kids all gathered around (or on top of) Mairead, and excitedly watched her open their gifts. She got so many wonderful gifts. She is so lucky to have such wonderful friends. I know Mairead was really excited to have her new friends from school there, too.

We couldn't have asked for a better day. It went off without a hitch, really. All the children were so well behaved, and I think everyone really had a great time. The weather didn't bother anyone! It seems so surreal to be celebrating Mairead's 4th birthday...how can my baby possibly be turning FOUR???