Today our Shelby Girl turned 6! Can you believe it? She has been counting down the days. Over the weekend the girls and I were out of town. On Saturday morning Shelby and I woke up in the same bed. This was our conversation: Shelby says, "Today is May 1st". I said, "Yes it is." Shelby says, "Tomorrow is May 2nd, Monday is May 3rd." I said, "The calendar I bought this year does not have a May 4th". Shelby says, "You will just have to write that one in". Can't fool her. Too bad every day wasn't as exciting as a birthday. Today was one of the few days I didn't have to drag her out of bed! She was even up early to put her birthday book down on the kitchen table and then went back to bed. I convinced her to wait until after school to open her gifts so we wouldn't be so rushed. Considering she agreed to that showed me a little bit of maturity. And not only did she wait until after school but until Daddy got home from work as well. So we started the big day off as usual: pancake breakfast with a candle.
I think she had a fun day at school. She received several phone calls throughout the day and several asked what she took to school for a birthday treat. In her class they are asked not to bring a treat since it usual tends to be some kind of junk food. They are trying to promote healthy eating. So instead the birthday girl is given a book that she can take home. After coming home from school the flower delivery from Nonny Moe soon arrived. You can't tell from the picture, but there was a lot of crying after the pretty balloon took off in the wind about 2 minutes after I told her she better hang on tight to that balloon! Since I was talking to Nonny on the phone at the time she instructed us to go to the flower shop to get a new one.
Here she is patiently waiting to open gifts. But don't be fooled. The little sneak looked in each of the gift bags when I left her downstairs by herself!
I think she was pleased with all of her gifts. Here are a few of her favorites: Scooby Doo Leapster Game
A soccer ball to start practicing for fall and next spring
How exactly do you wrap an umbrella? Considering Morgan got one for her birthday she new what was under the tissue paper. Here she is putting up her dukes to fight if the umbrella wasn't the color she wanted. Morgan liked the color Shelby got and Shelby wanted the color Morgan had so I told them to switch. Whatever it takes!
If she had to pick a favorite gift I think she'd say her new 2 wheeled scooter. The neighbor boys got them for Christmas and she had already tried theirs out. She was cruising around the kitchen. She can't wait to get outside with it tomorrow after school.
Once we were settled into a waiting room in Same Day Services, she was given some hospital pj's. As you can see, these she was not too fond of as they were too big.
Here we waited and watched TV while we listened to a starving 18 month old scream across the curtain. I heard her mom say she is used to eating at 6:00. It was now 7:45. It was a relief when it was finally her turn for surgery. They start with the youngest in age and work their way up. The youngest that day was 9 months. Morgan was the oldest of the young ones scheduled. Thankfully she never complained about being hungry. Morgan's surgery time was scheduled for 8:30 so we needed to arrive at the hospital by 7. Daddy joined us around 8 after getting Shelby up and settled at the neighbors before school. Once they finally wheeled her off, Nate and I headed to the waiting area. I was a little anxious with the idea of her being put to sleep with all the unknowns of how she could react with her allergies and asthma. She did great and it wasn't long and the doctor came out to tell us how it all went. We waited a while longer and were finally allowed to be with her in recovery. When we got back to her room she was awake with about 4 nurses surrounding her bed. They were all oohing and aahing all over her! They all loved her and said they wished all their patients were like her. On our way out we stopped by the gift shop and she picked out a stuffed whale or a dolphin (we haven't decided yet what it is). She also grabbed a medium size snack bag of Doritos. When we got home the first thing she did was sit down at the table and eat the entire bag of chips. Then she had 1/2 of my soup, an ice cream cone and a Schwan's Bomb Pop! Making up for lost time I guess. She finally crashed and this is how I found her.
One foot on the floor and the rest of her body in the recliner. You can see her new stuffed friend in the corner of the chair. After her little nap she played outside and rode her bike. You would never know the girl had been through surgery that day!
Next on the list of fun was making homemade Play Doh. Papa Jay even got in on the fun and helped Morgan mix hers up.
On Saturday morning they had a great time creating their own version of the Farmer and the Dell, right down to the package of cheese. This really would have been great to have on video. The photo just doesn't quite convey the goofy story. I think Papa Jay is very glad we don't have it on video! He was a great sport though playing the part of Farmer.
Before heading out to Nate's dad's house, we stopped next door to his step-brother's to see the batch of new puppies. Pretty cute but not cute enough to convince me that we need one.
The girls could have stayed there all day playing on the trampoline and bugging Allison but we had to head out and see more family. Since Friday night's storm included strong winds, Nate's grandparents did not make the trip out to see us. So we made a quick stop at their house for a visit. We had a great time talking with Grandma Bud and I got my favorite pic of the weekend.
Next stop was Papa Russell's and Nonny Martha's. More playing outside riding bikes and visiting with great-grandparents. Shelby loves to cut flowers and help Nonny arrange them for centerpieces on the table. Morgan got in on the fun this time.
On Sunday we headed home. We stopped in Springfield to watch Nate's ball game. Papa Russell & Nonny Martha joined us as well as Nonny Mary who brought one of Nate's high school friends and his family as a surprise. After the game the girls were excited to join daddy's team for supper at the Pizza Machine. This is a pizza place that makes a 60 inch pizza. We had 2 45 inch pizzas that they lower on a crane from the upper floor ovens. One of Nate's new favorite TV stations is the Food Network which did an episode that highlighted this place. Good pizza but even pizza's that size don't go far with 20 some college boys! 
After opening gifts we went to Carl's Ice Cream for the birthday supper. When we got home we celebrated with the cake. Morgan was the only one who felt like eating a piece tonight.
I think #6 was a good day for our Shelby girl. Both girls are looking forward to their big family party later this month. Happy Birthday big girl!
