Anna turns 11

We celebrated Anna's birthday with a family party on Friday night. I put her in charge of the decorations and was quite taken with her creative display of birthday decor. I especially loved the smiley face made of crepe paper on the ceiling. I don't quite know how she reached that high (considering I can't reach it without a stool) but it looks awesome. And the hanging bags....genius!

Seeing the cake. You will notice the cake is shaped like a shooting star. When Anna asked for a star cake I tried not to panic, I mean having a star shaped pan is one thing, but shaping a star yourself takes finesse. Luckily for me, I am married to a man with star shaping talent, and the desire to decorate cakes at 10:30 at night.

Making a wish. She was very deliberate about this. I guess that means she still believes in magic. I am glad about that.

The traditional 'blowing out the candles' shot. Why do we always take this? Lucky for Anna, she looks cute doing everything! Overall it was a really great birthday. Anna is such a great kid. It is so fun for me to be around her and to experience her little personality quirks. She is so smart and beautiful. She is turning out to be so responsible, helpful, and good. She is my right hand girl. I love her so much!