Jainie Belle's Birthday

My Bellerina is SIX years old!!! I can hardly believe it, but she is excited and has been counting down the days.  Her birthday was on Sunday, a fast Sunday, which was hard for all the kids since they wanted to eat.  But, I am getting ahead of myself.  Grandma Judy had given us a tea party at the Grand America in SLC and tickets to "A Christmas Carol" play on Saturday the 3rd.  I decided to make a trip out of it and so we went up on Friday night and slept in a hotel so we could go swimming.  Jared didn't go, he was supposed to go on a scout overnighter, long story.  Anyway, it was me and the kids - needless to say, it was a bit exhausting.  Luckily, Grandma, Ry, Sar, Linds and Laura were with us a lot of the time so that helped.

So, we woke up on Saturday morning and decided to go swimming first thing.  Jaxon, Jake, and Jainie had gone swimming the night before as well, but Josie and Josh were too tired.  We texted the fam to see if anyone else wanted to join us and luckily, they did!

It's always refreshing to have a nice warm pool to jump in while looking outside at the freezing cold snow - it was great.  Or so I'm told, I didn't swim - didn't want to look like a beached whale.  :)

Then, it was off to Grand America for our tea party.  Jaxon went with Will to eat at "Mo Betta," (a restaurant that Jaxon now loves) and then shooting at a shooting range - he had a blast and would love to go again.
When, we got to the hotel Sara and Grandma were waiting for us.

Those yummy things in glasses are strawberries with whipping cream - it was pretty tasty and pretty fancy - just perfect for Belle's birthday.

 I think these four, who shared a table,  had a little different experience thanks to the boys - they ate all their food faster and didn't fully appreciate the fanciness of the occasion.  :)

Linds got to sit at the girl table - Ry was here too but at a different table with some of his friends.  Our tables were great, right by a window and the fire.

I have to say Jake admired the fire the most - but we have discussed that he is a pyromaniac.

 So, I can't remember what this was called, but it was some kind of tea that you could drink if you wanted to - we didn't try it.  But it was fun to watch it unfold/grow.  It was a tight bulb that was placed in this steaming hot water and then unfolded to this exotic flower.

 So, we got a whole bowl of sugar cubes - brown and white.  You can see here the boys enjoyed them.  Their whole bowl was gone within a few minutes.  :)  But, the brown ones were left, they said they were gross.

 So, Josie ordered raspberry hot chocolate, there was also mint, regular, & almond.  They were YUMMY!  Really thick and rich - and it came with a cup of freshly whipped cream   MMMMM!

You can see how Jake drank his- pretty funny.  He got tired of using the cup I guess.  I think things at their table were very different.  :)

So, these scones were my FAVORITE - even out of the desserts.  These were so light and crumbly and had the best custards to go with them.  Just thinking about it makes me want to go back.  :)

And, then we got to sing some Christmas songs and Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus came and met with each of the children.  But, first Santa asked Josie to come and ring his bells while we sang, "Jingle Bells."  It was great!

(Uncanny how Santa and Mrs. Claus look exactly the same in each picture - makes you wonder if they're statues, right?)
This was the only time I could get Josh to sit on Santa's lap this year - he thinks he is getting too old.  At least he did this time.  Jaxon hasn't for a couple years now even though he promised me that this year he would.  Boys, they are so ridiculous!

After Santa saw all the kids he had them sit down and he read them a story.  It was wonderful, they all loved it.

Afterward, we went on a scavenger hunt of the hotel - it is a beautiful hotel.  We got to go on an adventure with Maurice the penguin, then we saw an amazing toy store inside and had to check it out.  Plus, for completing the game we each got a shortbread cookie from the delicious bakery there and I got to finally try a macaroon.  It is a fun place to go if you have a little extra time.

Don't worry about Josh - he isn't misshapen, he just chose to put his sticker over his mouth, attractive, right?  Oh, and only one mishap, Jake broke an ornament in the store.  Yep, that's what happens when we all want to touch everything.

After this, we headed to "A Christmas Carol," which was wonderful!  I loved every minute of it and hope we can go again sometime.  So, thanks Grandma for the wonderful birthday for Jainie - she, and the rest of us, had a WONDERFUL time!