It's the most wonderful time of the year...

Even though we do not celebrate Christmas, December is still my favorite time of the year. There's a sort of electricity and warmth in the air, dispite the cold, wet Mississippi winter. We awoke yesterday to the first frost of the season. Our front yard sparkled for about 20 minutes until the sun came out completely. Then it all melted, but for children raised in the tropics, 20 minutes of sparkly grass is still amazing. Just wait until they get a half hour of snow.

December is also the month that Bijou turns three and three day later, I turn 31. I feel like I should have reached some sort of milestone at thirty, but I didn't. Did I miss something? Maybe 31 will bring something different. But I digress....
I can hardly believe that my little Bijou will be three, although I can barely remember life before her. She has grown into a very, very smart and feisty little girl. Most days we all adore her, other days we attempt to find the receipt so that we can return her to the hospital and get a quieter model. All the same, we love her dearly and are excited to celebrate another year of life with her.

I have decided that I will do big parties for the girls for their 4th through 10th birthdays. Not that that means I will be doing less parties, because I have four children and someone is going to fall between the age of four and ten for the next ten years. Anyway, Bijou will be three years old on the 27th. We will do something small with maybe a friend or two. My plan is to make a mini cake for us to share (so that there aren't any leftovers for me to sneak and eat while kids are asleep) and let her choose what we make for breakfast(or dinner, I haven't decided). Knowing Bijou, she'll ask for biscuits because that's what she's asked for every morning since I started making them.
Along with breakfast and cake, she will be getting a hand sewn birthday crown. Over the years I have made a few birthday crowns for the kiddos. There's no rhyme or reason to when or for whom I make one, but this year, Bijou asked for a crown. Usually I am a procrastinator and will wait until the day before a birthday to start making the crown. This year, I went against the norm and made the crown early. I haven't let her see it yet, as I want it to be a surprise.