The month long birthday celebrationAt long last, it came time to celebrate Ellie's birthday. Not satisfied with just a quick party, we have been celebrating for the whole month and more! Here is her first cake in action -- note the l
... [more]I realize it has been a long time between blogs. Sorry - we just get caught up in the daily routine, enjoy life in this new culture (well, new to us), and the time flies by. We are having a great time. We really like the “city” living - being able to walk to the stores, restaurants and park. It is a nice change from drive-everywhere suburbia. Of course, I think we would enjoy the change of pace of living in a more city-like environment in the U.S., but it wouldn’t be quite the same. Heredia is a great little city - big enough to have everything we need, but small enough and safe enough to feel comfortable.
Anyway, I’ll try to concentrate on speed without sacrificing what little quality there is and stay up to date on our adventures.
On March 15, Ellie started planning her birthday party… March 15, 2005, that is… For her birthday party in March of 2006. It was very cute. Every time she did something fun that was the kind of birthday party she wanted. She kicked a soccer ball around with Ari and me - she wanted a soccer party. She got
Lots of GoodiesTo kick off the birthday month, Dara brought the presents Grandma and Grandpa were going to bring. Nothing like make-up and purses to make a little girl happy!
a blanket with Barbie on it - she wanted a Barbie party. We went horseback riding - she wanted ponies at her party. You get the idea.
In addition, a four year old has a tough time understanding the concept of the calendar. When we told her that her birthday wasn’t until March that really didn’t mean anything to her. So instead of absolute dates, we talked relative dates. First is Halloween, then Mommy’s birthday, then Thanksgiving, and so on. After every milestone was passed (and plenty of times between), Ellie would recite the list - blah-blah, then blah-blah, then my birthday. The last landmark date before her birthday, and what was to have been the official kick-off to the birthday month celebration, was the visit from Grandma and Grandpa. Even though they, unfortunately, had to cancel their trip, Eliana was able to keep up the schedule.
After inspecting the piņatas at the local party store - and no birthday party is complete without a piņata - Ellie decided to disregard all of her careful party planning ideas, and go with a Sponge Bob party (of course Ari preferred this to Barbie). Maybe some other people could have
Warning... Party Crew At WorkDara and her party planning team went to town -- Sponge Bob's house, a welcome to Bikini Bottom sign, lots of jellyfish and bubbles and more!
a Sponge Bob piņata at a Barbie party, but not us. After the crucial piņata decision was made, Dara’s party planning service kicked into high gear: invitations were created and sent out, decorations were made, party games were arranged and the best home-made Sponge Bob cake was deftly crafted (almost from scratch). Since Ellie also had a party planned for her school, the guest list was limited. And as we were warned, the Costa Rican friends we invited never RSVP. So we got a lot of pizza and hoped for the best. As the pictures attest, it turned out to be a lot of fun.
On March 14 - her actual birthday, Eliana had her second birthday party - this time at her school. Parents are not allowed to attend, but from what we heard and the pictures we saw, a good time was had by all. School rule is that if you’re going to have your party at school, you have to invite everyone - even the little babies in the day care. So we made 50 cupcakes, snacks and party-favor bags and dropped them off at school with a very excited, newly five-years old little girl. At
What a fancy cakeDara and the kids crafted a Sponge Bob cake from scratch (more or less)! And it tasted as good as it looked (or better, depending on how big a Sponge Bob fan you are).
the end of the day we picked up a truckload of presents and a very excited, newly five-years old little girl.
Although many mornings are a struggle to get Ellie to school, once she is there, she really enjoys it. And when we pick her up, she is all smiles and says she had a great time. Her teacher, Alejandra is very nice and worked hard at the start of the term to make sure the other children included Ellie in their playing. It seems that her efforts paid off - Ellie is friends with all the kids in her class and they have a great time playing together. Although she doesn’t speak it at home, Alejandra says she is speaking lots of Spanish at school.
Next installment - the birthday month celebration continues with the visit from Nana and Pop-pop. Boy, if that doesn’t keep you coming back, I don’t know what will…
Party GamesTurn out for the party wasn't quite what we were hoping -- we were warned that the Costa Rican kids were not likely to RSVP, so we weren't sure what to expect. Anyway, the kids who were there had a g
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VampireOf course no party is complete without face paint. Here is our neighbor Mikey in his trademark vampire face. Unfortunately Mikey and his family just moved out -- bummer!
Freeze DancersOther party games included making a Sponge Bob craft, blowing bubbles (with home-made bubble solution and wands) and the ever-popular freeze dance, played to Sponge Bob music.
Looks like fun!The second official birthday party was at Ellie's school. Unfortunately, parents are not allowed to attend the parties at Ellie's school (I think this is Yendry's own interpretation of the Montessori
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Ellie and her TeachersFor the party, Ellie helped us make 50 cupcakes (school rule is all the kids are invited), 50 turkey and cheese sandwiches and 50 party favor bags. Here is the birthday girl with the teachers -- Ausi
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Naahh... no fun at allHere is Ellie with Iris (with braid) and Antonio. Although she doesn't speak Spanish at home, her teacher says she is speaking Spanish a lot at school and she is good friends with all the kids in her
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Do the MonkeyWhat's a party without lots of singing and dancing? They do a lot of these at Ellie's school -- The Wiggles are a favorite.
5 Comments -
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Send Private MessageWe enjoyed reading about your wonderful birthday celebration and seeing the happy pictures. What a great way to turn 5 years old. It's a birthday you'll never forget.
Finally found the time to enjoy your latest blog! Loved the photos! What a wonderful birthday celebration sounds like you guys had a lot of fun - after 2 fun-filled parties Eliana must feel very celebrated! Dara as creative as ever...loved the cake and the Bikini Bottom decor! You guys seem to have really adapted to life over there. Don't get too settled/attached we miss you over here...
Happy Birthday Ellie! Sorry we missed your birthday... Looks like both parties were a blast. Great job on the cake, Dara . Keep enjoying your adventure and having fun. We miss you. Fairfield is not the same without you. Thanks for the Blogs updates - we love reading them.
The Gellers.
Wow, Dara, if Cramer's or McCaffrey's can't make it, then my kids aren't going to have it! Now I know who to turn to for great-looking cakes! I'm glad that Ellie had such a special birthday. Miss you all...
I don't know the Bortman's and stumbled across the entries here but have followed their adventure with great interest as I've contemplated doing the same. Hope to learn more soon and that all is well. A cyber friend.
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