Analise is 11

 Analise should be able to tell you that she had a good birthday. We celebrated her more than once.

We had a Sunday evening party with the family. She wanted smoked ribs for her birthday dinner; I included cheesy potatoes, corn, rolls, and grandma made chocolate covered strawberries.

Here she is with her yummy meal and money tree.

 

She sure loves her cousins!

 

She was excited to get book 2 of this series; she loved the first one.

She was really wanting a bulletin board for her room, and it was time she had one. The back of her door was covered in things. (I should take a picture of what she has on it now; I bet it's atypical of most 11 year old girls. Pictures of friends, Husker football tickets, volleyball medals, a puppy calendar and a target shooting page showing where her BB's hit the birds.)

Analise with her Grandma and Grandpa

Analise really wanted a French Silk pie for her birthday this year. She'd had one at a friend's party and loved it. I looked at recipes thinking I would make one, but in the end I decided to pay the money and get the one from Hy-vee that I knew she really wanted and would enjoy. I'll admit this was  hard for me to do. But in the end it was nice not making a cake since we'd been out of town, and she loved it.

She woke up happy and ready for go on Monday morning. Here she is with the traditional birthday bear that no longer sings; the girls were more disappointed than I was. 

That evening we ate as a family and then talked with Grandmom via Facetime while she opened gifts. 

And here she is with gifts she loved - Mario Kart sports, a puzzle and Legos.

Confession from this mom - I didn't have a thing for her to open until Monday afternoon. I knew in my heart wanted I wanted to do, but the cost was double what I expected. So I pulled together a few things that made her happy, and she never knew the difference. One thing I got her was her first book to read on her Kindle app. It was "Once Upon a Summer" by Jeanette Oke. This was the first Jeanette Oke book I read as a 5th grader. I thought this made it special. Better yet, she liked the book so much she's already reading book 2.

I got this saying to hang in her bedroom; it's a good reminder for all. 

I found the perfect puzzle for her; it has puppies and pies on it. Her love of puppies and sweets all in one. 

These two were also excited to get Legos from Grandmom and Pops.



A couple days before her birthday, school was dismissed at 1:15, so we had her two good friends come  over to hang out. It wasn't an official birthday party but rather a good excuse for a play date.

It was simple, easy and fun. These girls are a delight to have around.

They decorated cupcakes, did some looms, painted nails, played outside and played some Wii, I think. We had tacos for dinner, and then it was time to go home. 

We made these cute owl cupcakes.

Enjoying a few minutes at the park.

Analise, I sure hope you felt loved, because you are!