Six

It has been a crazy busy week around here....all centred around Ayla's 6th Birthday.  First she stands just in time for it and then I've been running around like a crazy person all week trying to prepare for the biggest and best birthday EVER!  Leading up to her birthday I hadn't slept in 3 days.....mentally preparing everything and then for some reason dreaming of myself racing down slopes and gently winging my way back up mountains on chairlifts.....excited much?

But all the stress and sleepless nights were totally worth it.  In the words of Frankenstein...."I'm Alive!!"  :).....Let's start at the start.

Ayla's birthday didn't truly start until Daddy came home around 6 on Friday night.  Prior to that the only Birthday fun we had had was Mummy singing Happy Birthday (seemingly Marilyn Monroe style according to the video LOL). 

 Both Cuties...Ayla and the Birthday Beanie....by Mummy.

 
We spent the day baking and decorating a birthday cake and collecting 'stuff' for our snow trip.  And then finally Daddy came home!  The special birthday dinner was served up, presents were opened.....and then came CAKE!!  I would have to say that as far as Ayla was concerned this was my first Birthday Cake success.  We have had lots of great cakes but Ayla isn't really into the sweet things and it's always difficult to work out what she considers a treat.  This, apparently, was the cake she had been waiting for!!  She ate her serve, half of mine and then half of Steven's...and today she was most unimpressed when she was served lunch and not cake.

It's my version of Strawberry Shortcake.....Gluten free sponge cake, filled and smothered with a combination of sweet cheese filling, cream, strawberries (chopped, squished and 'sauced'), with crushed meringues all over.  The entire cake only (including filling) only had 1 cup of sugar....just perfect and I'm totally proud of myself.

But the real fun was to be had at the snow!  About a month ago I wrote a post about Disabled Wintersport Australia and how this group makes snow fun accessible for everyone.....and they didn't disappoint!  They have special equipment tailored to every ability and fabulously trained instructors for every child.  Ayla's instructor was Jordy and he was amazing with her.  Excited, playful, respectful and caring.  You could tell that he couldn't wait to get her up there.  I was a little concerned whether Ayla would enjoy it or not.  The last time we went to the snow it was blizzard like conditions and she didn't enjoy it.  She thought the best part of the day was lunch.  But this time, conditions were perfect and you could tell she was loving it by the way she was giggling and squealing.  Below is a short video and a selection of photos from the day.

Ayla's carer from school, Joan, also came with us yesterday so that we all had a bit of a break.  It meant that even Steven could go off for a little while and just hang out alone.  Having Joan there made everything so much easier.  Dressing a child in snow clothes isn't a simple thing but with 2 of us working on her it was a little more breezy.

To top the day off....I also had an amazingly fabulous time snowboarding.  There was a little worried person inside me that thought I was getting a bit old to get back on a snowboard after 7 years.  I honestly don't know what I was worried about!  It was almost like riding a bike...almost.  After a lesson, I picked it up much easier than I did the first time around and was soon going up and down the mountains fairly confidently....until I stacked it on a blue run :).  I think I'll stay within my abilities and stick with the green runs for a little while.  Yesterday I felt truly alive.  The past 8 weeks have been hard with Steven away and the last 2 weeks have had me feeling totally trapped.  School holidays have meant that I haven't been able to go to yoga or work during the week so I was starting to feel like a caged animal.  After Ayla's lesson had finished, I took some time to be totally selfish in order to refresh myself.  I hopped on that board and took off and apart from a couple of short 10 minute breaks to check in with Steven and Joan, I didn't come back until after 4pm....and you couldn't wipe the grin off my face!

I think I'll give Ayla's birthday 10/10 this year!