Now We Are Six

It's hard to believe that Bri is 6 years old already!  Today she will celebrate at home with her friends, but yesterday the family passed through Davis en route home from Yosemite, and stopped  by Atria so we could all visit and have a little birthday party.  My mother's apartment waws instantly transformed from the quiet place it usually is to a place full of laughter, conversation, and confusion.

I had been up late the night before making a cake for Bri so we had cake, balloon, presents (two--one from my mother and one from us) and party plates to bring.  I decided to make two trips and went over at 10:15 to drop off the presents.   I left the big box from us on the floor and gave my mother the bag of her gift on the kitchen counter.  "I'll sign the card in a minute," she said.   When I left I reminded her to sign the card and said "Do it now before you forget."  She got up and headed toward the bag as I went out the door.

When we returned half an hour later, dropped the cake stuff off in the dining room and went to the apartment.  The big box from us was gone and the bag was still sitting there with unsigned card.  When I asked her where the box had gone, she said she knew nothing about a box and if it was gone, someone must have come into the apartment and taken it.  Sigh.  Fortunately Ned found it sitting on her bed.   I asked her to sign the card and she only wrote "love GaGa" and I know it was because she couldn't remember Bri's name.

Tom and family arrived and I was pleased to see that this seemed to be a good day with Bri.  She talked with me and didn't seem to be as skittish with me as she sometimes is. We had a nice visit in the apartment and then went to the dining room for lunch.

When time came for cake, Laurel and I jumped up with cameras.

(this is one of my favorite Atria servers, Piyush

Ned helped blow out the candle.

Then we went back to GaGa's to open presents.  Brianna is so good about making sure she reads the card first.  Since she is learning to read, she really tries to read  the card and took a long time reading the card before opening the box.

Lacie, in the meantime, was just concentrating on charming everyone.

Most of the gifts were books.  I had found some Bobbsey Twins books that I had my mother give her, since those were books she read to me when I was a kid. Bri was very good about thanking GaGa and it was so cute watching them talking together.

Lacie LOVES books and she looked through all of them before Bri did.   Bri was busy looking at the non-book gifts.

One of the things I had picked up as an after thought when leaving Costco was a game called Pizza Math.  Since Bri likes to make pizza and is good at math, I thought it might be a fun game for her.  It was.  She and Lacie and Marta sat n the floor and played it for a long time.

 
But it was getting late and then were planning on getting home in time for dinner, so it was time to say goodbye.  Without being asked, Bri came and gave me a hug and thanked me for everything.  Our little girl is definitely growing up!