Gracie-Lou, Who is Twice as Much As Two

Because Gracie, on Dec. 27, has the single crappiest birthday of anyone in the entire family (I'm sorry for the bad timing, but, hey, in Dec. 2004, I weighed nearly 200 pounds, had gestational diabetes, toddled instead of walked, couldn't sleep laying down. Matt wanted the tax reduction. I regret nothing.), we have to extend the celebrations over a long period of time to get the full effect one would normally receive on one day of acknowledgement. It's not always a good thing.

Here, on her actual birthday, we joined the extended family at our favorite Mexican restaurant in Aurora: Senor Ric's, and the crowning glory of their menu is the fabulous fried ice cream, which for anyone else, on any other day, would be a tremendous treat. But if this blog is any indication, Gracie does not always derive joy from what might be reasonably expected. Hence, the above picture.
So we skip many days to find a Saturday free of all other conflicts, and we choose the 17th of Jan. to throw her a Barbie Diamond Castle ball: perfect! She's overjoyed, as you can clearly see, for at least the first two minutes of said celebration.
Daddy would like to think that her ensuing breakdown resulted from his absence (a launch that was delayed for days), but she was fine with that. It was, however, the cause of mommy's breakdown. We have no pictures of that.
Gracie, pre-breakdown. Looking almost chipper in her newly-decorated glitter crown.
Breakdown in process. Not enough to stamp feet and grunt; if mommy continues to ignore you, the best thing to do is strip and pout. From her perspective, a perfect power play. From ours: blackmail. Starting...now!

Post-breakdown, plotting her re-entry into a soiree that clearly has passed her by.

Grace always gets by with a little help from Evie; what would she do without her?

Sucking on a 4-shaped candle. Still illegal in 34 states, I believe.

Gracie and her favorite present: the Diamond Castle carriage.

In all truth, Gracie is just a delight. Everyone loves her. I shudder to think of our family without that precious laugh, that trusting look, the complete adoration she openly shares with everyone who lives in this house. She's funny, smart, tender, sweet, imaginative, independent, capable, talented. The crime is that once someone wields a camera in front of her, she retreats, but we want you to know that she's the complete joy of our lives.