We had the pleasure of witnessing a beautiful rainbow this afternoon in between storms.

Gabriel was invited to a birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese today. Now that Isabel is 8 years old, she felt that was a little too babyish for her. She stayed behind while Gabriel and I went for a mind numbing 2 hours of over stimulation. My best friend treated Isabel to a 3-D movie and a trip to the toy store for some of her new favorite toys, little animal Japanese erasers. Needless to say, the kids had a great Saturday afternoon!

Isabel's grandmother and aunt came over last night for a special rib dinner celebration. It was a lot of fun and the kids stayed up late enjoying the family party.

After a delicious dinner (I'm so glad Isabel requested ribs!) we had yet more birthday cake!

Isabel enlisted her brother's help to blow out all the candle sparklers.

It's family tradition for Alan to play Happy Birthday on his trumpet. This year Isabel got into it and tried to play a little herself.


Isabel and Gabriel were so tired after all the activity and fell asleep within minutes of getting into bed. Isabel still has party popper string confetti on her pajamas in this photo!

Isabel had a great 8th birthday celebration filled with family and friends. She received so many thoughtful cards and gifts from people in other states and even one from Germany! I was touched by how many people celebrated her good health and happiness.

Happy 8th Birthday, Isabel!

Isabel picked out the candles which threw off sparks when lit. She let them burn for awhile before blowing them out to get the full effect!



I told them to make the weirdest face they could.

Gabriel got his slice of cake served before his cousins. They watched him take his first bite. It was excellent cake.

Isabel will turn eight years old on Thursday! We let her rip into the birthday gifts that have been trickling in from family and friends.

She seems older to me, a clear difference between the ages 7 and 8. She sat on the top of her bunk bed last night, curled up reading Blubber by Judy Blume. She writes in her diary about her feelings, it's not just drawings anymore. She's very much alive and it's wonderful to watch her mature.

Isabel loves her new Madonna cd!

Isabel was invited to a sleepover after school on Friday. It was very exciting news! She was elated to pack her overnight bag and bring her sleeping bag to school the next morning.

Isabel was able to spend the night because she is no longer on chemotherapy and does not need to have a nightly drug administered via oral syringe each night. We exclaimed over that during dinner the night before and it made it sweeter for all of us. I am so, so relived her exam/blood counts went well and I was able to send her off in eager anticipation of a giggly girl sleepover.

Isabel had a fabulous time, her favorite parts being the night time flashlight tag and the karaoke dance party.



Gabriel gets to take care of his classroom stuffed animals, Owen and Mzee, for a week. His kindergarten class learned about the tortoise and hippo's friendship early in the school year and Gabriel had been waiting for his turn to take home the Owen and Mzee backpack (including books and a journal) ever since. We took them on our neighborhood walk and had a great time talking about their unique friendship and snapping photos of them enjoying our neighborhood.