5 years old!

Wow! The birthday we have been anticipating for months, finally arrived. We had been made aware of the impending celebration for a very long time... particularly as Mietta had been (verbally) inviting guests to her birthday party since mid-May! 
Mietta's birthday celebrations started with a birthday party two weeks ago, then a restaurant dinner the night before her birthday (venue chosen largely due to the family having a late afternoon swim at the gym)... then some 'treats' for Mietta's new classmates... then a birthday dinner at home, on the actual day, with requested Tacos, 'kid's wine' (sparkling cider) and a 'double chocolate fudge cake'. We were able to share Mietta's party with her grandparents (my parents) - via Skype!

I didn't get around to making a cake for Mietta's birthday as I was too busy trying to track down some type of 'treat' for her classmates. I was hard-pressed to come up with a treat as new school guidelines mandate that it CANNOT be homemade, cannot contain nuts, must avoid any known allergen, cannot be processed in a facility that also processes nuts, etc. I also had my own guidelines of no artificial colors or sweeteners and preferably sugar-free. I had to throw my healthy fruit kebab option out the window! I ended up buying some mini-meringues (one child had to avoid due to an egg allergy), that I skewered together with fresh raspberries using toothpicks I'd decorated with some big 5's and a birthday message. I had to present all items, in original packaging, to the school nurse for approval. Mietta helped hand the treats out to her class friends with some 'safe' lollipops. At least the pure joy emanating from her smile made the running around worth it :-) 

This fleeting childhood thing... sure is fleeting by rapidly.