By 8:00 AM everyone was up and ready to open presents. All the girls sat in a circle so they could open up presents at the same time. They were EXCITED!
Gwyneth volunteered to help unwrap Christmas presents! She also volunteered to play with all the leftover wrapping paper and boxes!
Later on that evening, we went down to the Fayetteville square to look at all the lights--a breathtaking sight! It was a perfect end to a special day!
For the first time in birthday history, Aliya's pictures were not actually taken ON her birthday. Instead, they were taken today--four days late. Originally we had Aliya's birthday pictures scheduled in the morning on her birthday, but both Aliya and Kiahna woke up with flu-like symptoms. Having pictures taken would have been torturous for them. I decided that I would be an obsessive, insane mom if I dragged our kids out in the cold weather while they were feeling under the weather just to take some traditional pictures. Instead, I rescheduled the pictures for today.
We love you, Aliya! You're beautiful!
Today is Aliya's 5 year birthday. We went to Cracker Barrel for Aliya's birthday dinner. Our present to Aliya this year was a small fish tank so that she could bring Peter home (see The Story of Peter for details).
After dinner we rushed over to Petsmart to find Peter. We only had about 20 minutes to look before the store would be closing. I helped Aliya search for Peter. I went through the top two shelves without finding him. About halfway through the third shelf, I held up an orange Beta fish and asked Aliya if this was Peter. SHE SAID, "YES"! I showed her a few more fish just to make sure she was sure... and she was. This orange Beta fish was Peter!
We took Peter to the cash register, and Aliya paid for it with her birthday fish gift card. She had a smile from ear to ear. When we were walking to the car, she held Peter underneath her coat so that he wouldn't get cold.
When we got home, Niah helped Aliya get her new tank set up. They washed everything and then decorated the tank. Finally it was time to put Peter in his new home. I poured him into the tank, and we all watched him for several minutes just swimming around in his new home. I think that Peter is going to be very happy--I know that Aliya is!!!
Happy Birthday, Aliya! We love you very much!
--Daddy, Mommy, Niah, and Kiahna
