Happy 4th Birthday, Juliana!

Juliana woke up this morning, came to me and said, "Mommy, there's a beautiful dress in my room!" I went with her to check it out and sure enough there was a gorgeous pink Sleeping Beauty gown with a matching tiara. She asked if I'd gotten it for her, to which I replied that I had and I wished her a happy birthday. And thus began Princess Juliana's special day.

We picked GrandDad up from the airport, had lunch, ran a couple errands and returned home so I could finish Juliana's cake. She requested a castle cake while we were looking at pictures on the internet. I've spent the last couple weeks gathering supplies. Two nights ago, I prepared the towers and turrets. Yesterday, I baked 3 cakes, made frosting, assembled the castle and did a thin layer of frosting on the whole thing. Today, I borrowed shortening and powdered sugar from a neighbor, made more frosting and then finished decorating. I've gotta say, I do believe it's my crowning achievement of motherhood. I'm gonna hang it up now. There's no way I'll ever top this cake! :) I loved making it and Juliana was thrilled which made it all worthwhile. I got rave reviews from our guests; one wide-eyed 4 year old excitedly told me it was the most beautiful cake she'd ever seen. [Insert blushing face here.] Aw shucks...you're darn right it is! See for yourself:

Our guests arrived and after playing for a few minutes, sat down to decorate their tiaras. I hired our 11 year old neighbor, Emma, to help me with the party. She began painting little finger nails (with some help from her mom) and then we all helped decorate the freshly painted nails with tiny little decorative stickers. By the time they finished getting their nails done, the pizza was here and we had dinner. After dinner, Emma took everyone down to the basement to get their party gowns on and after they played for a while, they marched upstairs in a parade of princesses...with the slight exception of our first-born who was Spider-Man...and her friend, Julian, who was a Power Ranger:
We took a group picture, they played for a while longer and then it was time for cake. I hesitated for the slightest moment before disassembling the cake as I contemplated what I would do if none of the pictures came out. I got over it quickly and cutting it didn't bother me. That's what it was all about, after all! Juliana opened her presents, we distributed the favor bags and bid everyone good night. It was a great party fit for a true Princess.

Emma, Alexander, Anna, Juliana, Ava,
Erin, Abby, Julian, Alexandra and Kathryn