Happy Birthday to Me

Julianna turned 5 years old on January 27, 2008, exactly 348 days ago.

Which means she started talking about her SIXTH birthday exactly 347 days ago.

Truly, it was the day after her 5-year-old party at Clay Funk (one of those pottery-painting places), that she began dreaming about what her next big day would be like.

Here is a partial list of the party themes/locations Julianna has suggested during the last 11 months.

• tea party
• spa party
• ballet party
  
• princess party
• art party
• sleepover party
• roller-skating party
• ice-skating party
• bowling party
  
• Bedford playground party
  
• Webkinz party
• American Girl party
• Pump-it-Up party
• Little Gym party
• Museum of Natural Sciences Party
  
• Marbles Museum party
• Snip-its party

She ultimately decided on a beach bash at our house, including the limbo, a treasure dig, and a couple of themed crafts. Julianna has also requested that we take a group picture of her and her 15 girlfriends clad in their swimsuits. Never mind the fact our average January high temperature here in Raleigh is a steamy 50 degrees.

As Jack's 8-year-old birthday approached last fall, Julianna's plotting, planning and scheming reached a new level of excess.

To illustrate my point, here is the actual text of an e-mail I received from a school mom:

Subject: Julianna's Party
Date: 10/10/2008

Allaura keeps telling me she was invited to the party.........but she says she lost the invite. She also keeps telling me it is on a 2 and 7 day.........which I think is the 27th. Can you please let me know the who, what, where, when and how.........

The reason I am sharing the above e-mail is because of the date on which it was sent ... this was in OCTOBER!

Apparently, Julianna had told her friend all about a mythical birthday party and created an invitation to go along with it.

Now that we have actually entered January, Julianna's birthday fever has hit a new high. It is all she talks about (when she is not asking where God came from), and it has gotten to the point where I am concerned that the actual event cannot possibly live up to the hype.

When I went to pick her up from school on Monday of this week, I noticed a large whiteboard in the common area that said (in Julianna's handwriting):

Julianna's Birthday - January 27

I told her that while I knew she was anxious for the big day to arrive, it was still several weeks away and we had plenty of time to plan and let people know about it.

Her response?

"But, mom, this just has to be the best birthday ever!"

So, I did what every mom would do in my situation -- when my little girl was looking at me with those big blue eyes and just melting a hole right through my heart ...

I promised her I would make sure, without a doubt, that this would be the best birthday ever.

Until, of course, we plan her seventh birthday party.