Happy 9th Precious Jewel!

My sweet sweet baby....

.....has just turned 9.

Nine is one year away from the tween years (which someone had to explain to me is that age between the single digits and the teens).

Not so sure I'm ready for that.

She has been begging for 3 years now for me to put a canopy on the bed Grandmama bought for her when she turned 6.
It apparently didn't come with a canopy.
I've priced them on-line and have refused to pay for what I've found.
Limited funds bring out the creativity but my creative juices have been a little on the low side as of late (that and our little town has no fabric store and I have to drive 45 minutes to buy what I'd need...with 5 little boys in tow. I'm just not ready for that insanity.)
This year I vowed to fulfill her wish of putting a canopy on her canopy bed.
Luke and I snuck into her room Thursday night late after she'd already been asleep a couple of hours.
A canopy-less canopy bed really is a sorry sight and I have no real excuse people for it taking me 3 years to put a canopy on that thing.
Yes, that's her all tucked in bed surrounded by her animals and dolls.

30 minutes later....
Tulle is AMAZING!!
Pink Parisian fluffiness waited for our fast-fading Princess to awake.
(I still have plans to rip down the flower boarder and black sharpie scroll-work instead.
It might happen before she turns 13).
I then want to get her a black and white zebra throw to complete her wish list.

She was up before dawn squealing and bouncing us awake "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" (we'd set the alarm for 5:30 to watch her reaction. Obviously you can't beat enthusiasm. It was bouncing us awake).

Since starting school, we have let each of the kids, on their birthdays, stay home.
They LOVE it.
My dad started a tradition of taking us out for breakfast on each of our birthdays.
Luke and I have carried that tradition on with our children.
While everyone else was eating their breakfast, she opened the gifts that we had bought her and the one my parents had mailed from Mexico.
For 4 months she has been eyeing a Disney World bag peeking over the side of my shelf way up high in my closet.
I've threatened her with "I will give it to your cousin if you climb up there and peek when I'm not looking" (I have memories of doing that as a child).
She has taken to asking when she gets her Disney World Present instead.
Hmmmm....."Do you think I should wait until next year?" sends her into near convulsions . ; )

Then she opened it Birthday morning and discovered her first charm necklace.
More shrieks followed. ; )
And, then it was off to breakfast with her daddy before he had to leave for work.

Later that night a sweet little friend from school came to spend the night.
I took the two of them on a Christmas Home Tour.
It's a highly anticipated time of year when 4 to 5 families in our community decorate their houses to the hilt for Christmas and then open them to the paying public.
People come from all over and last year I felt Precious Jewel was old enough to enjoy the 2 1/2 hour home tour without getting bored on me.
This year her previous school's Principle's home was on the tour.
Luke met us with the boys so Mr. Smiles could go and see her home as well.
We also ran into several of her classmates and they enjoyed "oooooohhhhing" and "aaaawwwwwwing" together and exclaiming over their Principle's home.

After coming home and tucking 5 tired and excited little kids into bed, I finished up her cake.

Last year's birthday was all about pink and girly things and while it was delightful and fun, I also wanted to cry at the same time.
She was growing up far too fast and right in front of our eyes.
This year, after seeing her 1-year-old cousin's birthday, she decided she to wanted owls!
Yes, I said 1-year-old cousin.
My daughter may have been turning nine and has begged for an i-phone, laptop, her own make-up (none of which she has received by the way) and she may have learned to roll her eyes and huff with the best of them, but she is still a little girl in many ways.
I was more than happy to come up with whatever owl things we could find.

The cupcakes and cake were from Pinterest.

Pinterest also provided the craft idea which I cut out and sewed together ahead of time.

They got to pick the owl and wing colors and we gave them them the eyes and beak.

This was something even the boys could be included in and with the help of my sister-in-law, Luke and Mother-in-law we helped the girls hot glue everything together.
(I'm all about the hot glue even though the on-line video said to sew it).
Pshshshs... who needs a sewing machine when you can just glue it all together?! ; )

Then we stuffed those babies!

The extra stuffing also became a giant nest on the table for all the completed owlets and the boys thought it also made great fake snow.

Look Whoooooooooo!!!!

Then it was off to presents and cake (of which I realized later I took NO pictures of her blowing out her candles or in front of her lit cake). : (
She is and always will be the daughter close to my heart.
We girls gotta stick together.