Sasha is Six!

Sasha is six.  It's true.  February 18th was the big day and the lead up to the festivities was big.  I love thinking about birthdays with little girls this age.  They start thinking about their party and their guest list and their wish list months in advance.  Because we were having friends here for the weekend of her birthday, we decided to have the party with her friends one week prior.  

It was easy for Sasha to pick the theme of her party.  Pigs, baby.  What else?  Sasha has had a love and affection for pigs for many years.  When she was two, she traded in her soother for a stuffed pig.  Piggy has been through thick and thin with that girl and she loves him dearly.  Her love for Piggy has now transferred to anything "pig" she can get her hands on.  I knew there were lots of possibilities for a Piggy Party, so pigs, it was.

Here's Sasha getting the name cards for the table ready shortly before the guests arrived....

Her piggy cake.  Don't look too closely.  I'm not Buddy from Cake Boss.  I'm just a mom.  I slather the icing on with a butter knife.  It's not perfect, but to a six year old, it's pretty darn close.

Everything was looking pretty pink.

A Sharpie and some pink poster paper transformed regular balloons into flying pigs.

Piggy was the guest of honor at the party!

We made a piggy craft....

Six little piggies - all special friends from Sasha's kindergarten class.

Sophia gives the most exuberant hugs!

Playing "Pin the Snout on the Piggy"

Everyone got piggy ears and a twisty piggy tail to wear for the party.

Blowing out six candles is tough.

After cake, we played a rousing game of "Pig Pig Cow"....

... and a thrilling game of "Pig goes Pop".

After Sasha's birthday party she had to  six whole days for her real birthday to arrive.  She was extra excited because our neighbors from Winnipeg were going to here for her birthday to celebrate with her.  

For several months leading up to her birthday, Sasha had been hinting that she'd really really REALLY like a camera for her birthday.  Mike and I thought a six year old was a little young to get a real camera.  Mike also refuses to buy cheap crap that breaks and doesn't work properly, so he didn't want to buy a kid's camera.  I then had my Eureka moment.  I remembered our old digital camera packed away in a closet in Winnipeg.  I thought it would be perfect for her!  We'd get a new case, wrap it up, and voila!  One good quality, (HUGE) camera that she would love.  Ryan and Babby (who are renting our house) graciously searched and found it, and Adrian and Kathleen brought it with them on their weekend here.  It was challenging finding a camera case that would fit such a monstrosity of a camera, but I did.  Perhaps some could say Mike and I were being very "west coast" by reducing, re-using, and recycling our old camera.  Others might say we're cheap.  Either works.

Regardless of the size, she was thrilled with her gift.  She snapped that thing all day long on her birthday.  The next day she took it along on an excursion and it bit the dust.  Poor kid.  Her "new" camera kicks it one day after getting it.  Don't worry.  A replacement camera has already been purchased.  It's 1/4 of the size and works like a charm.  Lesson learned.

Sasha opened up some great gifts from her grandparents in Winnipeg and Winkler.

And soon it was time to blow out six candles once again.

Since turning six, Sasha has lost her first tooth.  She was so proud.  I was sad.

Sasha is my little companion.  We've been alone together while Ellie and Hannah are in school for a few years now - just the two of us.  She is the perfect side-kick.  She loves to snuggle and read books together.  She can spend hours coloring or writing in her journal.  She likes to help clean (weird kid, I know), chatters away while we're running errands and happily accompanies me while I volunteer for hot lunch days at school.  

I often joke with Sasha that I don't want her to get older - that if she could go backwards on her birthdays instead of forwards I'd be thrilled.     I love to bury my nose into the crook of her little neck and inhale the smell of her. I love to wrap her up in a big blanket and snuggle up on cold winter days.  I love to watch her eyes sparkle and dance when she is excitedly telling me a story from her morning at school.  I'd like to wrap up the little bit of baby left in her and set it aside so I can go and savour it as more teeth fall out and she grows older.

But I can't.

I can just enjoy her as she is.   She is my wonderful companion.  And now she is six.