Birthday bash

Haley turned 7 last week. This was the off-year for a birthday party so we went to Lagoon as a family to celebrate. (My kids get a party every other year -- both to spare me the hassle and so they don't expect a horde of gifts every year. Who has the room for more stuff?) Grandma was surprisingly willing to come help me keep tabs on my kids as they ran from ride to ride. (That's not her kind of fun, normally, but she was game for it this time. Thanks, mom!) Lagoon was fairly easy in years past because everyone was little and we just stayed on the kiddie rides the whole time. Now Christian & Haley were begging to go on the big rides while I'm sitting at the tug-boats with Paige and Elle. Between Grandma's help and dad taking the little girls home early, I think we made everyone happy. Haley especially. She rode every big ride she could -- Collosus, Wicked, the Spider, the Roller Coast, the Bat.... the bigger the better for her.

As I rode the big rides with my kids this year, I realized how much motherhood has changed me in one way ... I'm now suddenly acutely away of the danger risks of each ride. Who, praytell, decided the Sky Ride doesn't need seatbelts? Try sitting with your kids, 50 feet up in the air with nothing but a bar in front of you and cement and metal below you and see if your stomach doesn't lurch every time one child shifts in their seats. Even the big swing ride gave me nightmares of us detaching from the ride and going flying out and crashing into something. I wasn't too worried about the little tugboats until a 1yr. old actually climbed out of the boat and went straight into the water while we were waiting in line. What are the odds, right? Elle thoroughly enjoyed herself, despite her psychotic mother, and the kids loved taking turns riding with her on different rides.

Haley said this was her "best birthday ever!" so mission accomplished for mom & dad. She has such a big personality -- you can hear her laugh from two rooms away and she'll definitely let you know when she's upset. The child wears her heart on her sleeve. I'm sure she'll do big things in life because she's fearless and determined, not to mention extremely competitive. She wants to do it better and faster than the next guy. (Totally gets that from her dad.) I'm excited to see what she'll do with her life. It'll definitely be a fun ride.