Kolo kolo mlynsky :::

Caroline turned two on Wednesday and Will and I threw her the smallest of parties – just C, Will and me. Tuesday night we wrapped presents, baked chocolate cupcakes and put together some furniture for her and then Wednesday Will came home early, we sang happy birthday many times, ate Caroline’s favorite foods (scrambled eggs, red peppers and tomatoes) and presented her a tray with cupcakes and candles all alight. She very carefully blew out each candle, and then plucked the candy animals from the top of her cupcake, saying bye bye froggy bye bye. Perhaps the frog tasted funny, or she was sad it was gone, for some reason she wouldn’t eat her cake, only twirled it around and around her high chair tray like a lonely bumper car until Will took pity on the frogless thing and ate it. Then time to open presents and we got to enjoy her still delight and surprise at discovering again that gifts meant she could tear into beautiful paper (encouraged even) and find something just for her! She gasped in surprise when she unwrapped a plastic tea set and then clapped when I finally figured out how to extract the children’s radio from its remarkable concoction of wires and cardboard. She wouldn’t remove herself from the bench we built, lining all her doll friends up to play tea party. That night she went to sleep babbling happy birthday happy birthday instead of her usual chant of A B C B A B C. Like always after a birthday party, I felt a little sad that it was all over, and a little sad to think that we hadn’t had any of her friends by (high holiday season). But then I realized how nice it was to have been able to pay attention to C all night, no worries about missing out on the moment she blew out her candles or opened up her first present, and noticed the chocolate free nature of our carpets, the dentless trashcans and the crumbless floors, and was glad.