party fit for a princess

It was a party fit for a princess. 

A princess turning 3.

We made royal crowns, played musical chairs, 

had a scavenger hunt and tore a part a castle piñata in an effort 

to fill bags with every little piece of candy 

we could find sprinkled in the grass.

We invited all of our cousins.

And our grandmas, grandpas, aunts and uncles.

We had almost more fun than one little newly three-year-old could handle.

But that's only a small fraction of what I want to remember from that day.

I want to remember how you desperately wanted 

a Spiderman party in the months leading up to your birthday.

I'm not even sure if you knew what that meant.

But you kept saying it.

And then you came across the movie Cinderella. And fell in love.

And so the rest is history.

So back to the party.

I want to remember these little feet.

And the way your eyes sparkled when you opened white princess gloves 

and a diamond crown. 

The awe, excitement and dream come true. 

Literal dream come true. 

Every morning, I ask what you dreamt about the night before and every morning, 

you answer, "Cinderella."

I want to remember how before the party you hammed it up for the camera, 

which is generally not your style, 

on the front porch for what seemed like forever. 

And then you waited, even longer than that, for your first guest to arrive. 

Just waited. 

Patiently and quietly.

I wondered if you were getting tired from the events of the day so far, 

which is perhaps why you sat so quietly, 

but then your first guest finally arrived and you jumped up with complete and utter 

excitement and yelled, "You're here! I wuv that you are here!"

Lots and lots of cousin love shared that day.

I hope I never forget how you responded to seeing the decorations for your party. 

A friend gave us this castle decal to put up on the wall. 

When you saw it for the first time, you gasped and tenderly whispered,
"Can I...can I go inside?"

I want to remember how everything you opened was your most favorite thing. 

Either everyone knew exactly what you wanted or 

you just loved, loved, loved everything, just because.

Everything you opened, I heard,

"I wuv it. It's my favorite. I wuv it berry, berry much."

I want to remember how you led our family in singing.

You might have sang the loudest. 

No one can out-do Josie when it comes to singing Happy Birthday.

You may not know all the words, 

but you definitely know all the hand motions and when to belt it out.

Also, the next day, on your actual birthday, you received your first big girl bicycle. 

You rode it like a champ. 

You're in another "Cinderella" dress. 

We've graduated from sleeping in this dress, aka, Emri's old flower girl dress, 

to wearing it just during the day. 

Anyway, watching you hike this dress up, 

revealing darling little panties and sweet little buns, 

as you climb onto the seat, is one of my favorite things.

It's the same process every time.

I love every little thing that makes up you, my favorite little three-year-old. 

The day was beautiful, warm and sunny, but the best part of the day was you.

Ready and excited for a new year with our little bear.