Quinny's Birthday

"She's a wild one, with an angel's face. She's a woman-child in a state of grace. When she was three years old on her Daddy's knee he said you can be anything you want to be. 

She's a wild one, running free."

--Shania Twain--

Quinny turned three on Sunday, October 1st. It's hard for me to believe that she is only three years old because she is so tall and so smart and so strong and so verbal and it seems that we've been going rounds for much longer than three years--haha! But alas, she is just/only/finally three! That Shania song fits her like a glove, she's the cutest little wild thing this world has ever known. 

Something I admire about Quinn is that she she knows what she wants and come heck or high water she gets it. Sure she'll need many more lessons in tact and patience and compromise in the future but goodness, there is something we can all learn from Quinn's confidence. This was never more evident than the night before her birthday when instead of wearing the new princess jammies I had picked out for her (to amplify the cuteness of birthday morning pictures, obviously) she ended up dressed in her brother's Ninja Turtle hand-me-downs. "But Quinn," I kept saying. "These are really darling and it's your birthday tomorrow, let's wear something cute." And then she kept saying, "No. Da Ninja Tuwtles aw weally cute. I am weawing dose." And for those of you who have ever been at the negotiating table with Quinn, you know how this ended, and it was not even slightly in my favor. But you know what? As I went through that day and as I look back on these pictures I smile and keep thinking over and over again, "You be you, baby girl!" This little one knows what she likes, she knows who she is, she's confident in her own skin and clearly in her brother's pajamas. I love that about her and hope it never changes. 

Quinn's birthday celebrations were tangled up in General Conference this year so we mixed the two to make the "sweetest" celebration known to mankind, and I'm not kidding! Cinnamon rolls for breakfast, candy and treats through conference, nachos for dinner followed quickly by triple layer cake and ice cream. It was delicious and over-the-top and the whole family was in sugar heaven (and maybe just a little bit overdosed to be honest!) Chase, Meghan and Hunter joined us for the whole day and it was great to be together with family.

Of course I'd be lying if I said the day was perfect. I've mentioned before that we're having more sleeping issues with the girls and this has led to some seriously bad moods from our biggest gal. Unfortunately her birthday was not the greatest in terms of attitude and along with screaming and fighting with her brothers and me, she also threw a chair through our front window over not being able to turn off the TV after conference was over. I heard her and Everett screaming while I was in the kitchen putting the finishing touches on dinner and then came the crash, which I thought was a candle and ended up being the casement window. I tried to keep my cool (I mean, I had just watched eight hours of conference...had I learned anything?) but I was upset and she was unapologetic and the mood turned from grumpy to sour. Luckily we have a glass repairman on speed dial and the whole thing was fixed before we went to bed that evening but just in case anyone thought our life or her birthday was unicorns and rainbows, here's the story that'll change your perception! Never a dull moment with Quinn Isabel, that's for sure!

Anyway, happy birthday to our big three-year-old. When she turned two I naively thought that because I already knew she was a spicy little thing her twos wouldn't be all that bad. Well, you live and you learn and you almost die of strong-willed-toddler suffocation! This year, I'm starting out with prayers! Heaven help me as we go through the threes with our baby Cheetah.

Ninja turtle pajamas for her pink and purple party! You do you, girl!

The boys used their own money to buy Quinn a pair of Cheetah-rimmed glasses and a pair of princess sunglasses. She loves them SO much and the boys were so pleased with their good work. 

The twins were being soooo cute playing and hanging through Conference.

Quinn was putting "wipstick" on me all day long.

Coco loves the glasses almost as much as Quinny does.

Her birthday walk on her birthday carriage! She loves her Daddy and on his shoulders is her very favorite place to be. 

MePa got Quinny these Melissa and Doug paint-books and they almost kept the kids quiet for the second session of Sunday conference!

The window, dum dum dum.

After the window broke Quinn had meltdown after meltdown--and they were not small. There were so many tears and so much yelling and I didn't want her birthday to be like that, so I scooped her up, put her in her car and took her for a walk around the block. It didn't change everything for the rest of the day, but the fresh air definitely did us some good. Plus, how cute did she look in her Ariel crown?

Quinny really wanted a pink cake with purple frosting so with Pinterest's help her Mama delivered. It didn't taste quite as good as it looked but she was thrilled so that's ALL that matters. 

Happy third birthday Quisabel! We love you sooooo much.