A Dance: Then and Now

Sassy and I went shopping with our mind set on one thing:

finding just the right dress.

She tried on a few and we decided on one together.

The day of the dance arrived and I helped her fix her hair, get ready and attend to some last minute touch ups.

I pulled out the camera and started snapping away.

A Daddy - Daughter dance. 

She even issued an official invitation (check it out here)

She was so excited.

She loved fixing her hair, getting dressed up and applying a little lip gloss.

I loved watching her anticipation - joy - enthusiasm and touch of nervousness.

She had a blast  -  She danced with her Dad and her friends.

It was a great night!

Fast forward a few years

I had ordered a dress Sassy liked online because they did not carry it in the store. She received it in the mail, but wanted to go shopping to make sure she had the perfect dress for the occasion.  Sassy tried on many dresses, we took pictures of her in all of them.  She thought she had decided on a red one instead of the one we ordered, but wasn't quite ready to bite the bullet. 

Later that evening she tried on the ordered dress one more time. Her decision was made, it was definitely "the one", the red one was out!
Once that was decided it was time to shop for shoes and earrings.

Sassy knew she wanted her hair up, and thought I would be just the person to create the up-do she was imagining (I'm so glad she had the confidence in me that I was lacking!).  Thanks to online tutorials, I was able to create what she was hoping for.

She looked liked a fancied up version of her already beautiful self.

 She looked older and mature and I couldn't believe my little girl who just years ago was going through these similar motions for a dance with her Daddy, was going to this dance.

She's gone to other semi-formals with friends but this time was a bit different.
She was going with a young man for the first time.

She asked, and he said, "Yes"

(this was the girls ask guys dance)

Again, she was filled with that mix of feelings:

anticipation - joy - enthusiasm and a touch of nervousness

(I didn't want to post his picture without permission, so just imagine a handsome, polite young man)

She had a great time and created another evening to remember!

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Another Teenager in the House!

Action has been talking about this day for 2 1/2 years.

I don't know why, but when Sassy turned 13, back in 2014, I thought it would be fun to get her 13 presents ~ a couple bigger items and a bunch of little items: lotions, nail polish, fun socks, you know 13 year old girly stuff.  

What I didn't realize was, I was creating a new tradition.  One that Action couldn't wait for.  Thirteen presents on your 13th birthday! Oh, the anticipation!

Fast forward to Sunday January 22nd.  Oooh the air was abuzz with excitement.  Action came down from his bedroom in the morning after a good nights sleep to see that there were indeed 13 presents lined up in front of the fireplace just waiting for him.  However, upon further counting, he was bummed to see there were actually only 12.  I had to explain to him that the headphones he "needed" a few days earlier because his older ones had broken were actually part of the 13 (*wink *wink ~ more to come later!) gifts.

No worries, he was still excited!

Now he just had to wait until his Dad and Sassy got home from softball practice........

When they finally got home, present opening began:

He received:
A Book Light
Nerf Gun Darts
Body Spray
Body Wash
Deodorant
Twix Candy
A DVD
A Duvet
A Duvet Cover (time to redo his room ~ an update the decor he'd had since he was 2)
A Book
New Wall Art
And
Sneakly I wrapped presents 12 and 13 together in a one, so it looked like he was only getting 12 presents!  #12 was his first cell phone and #13 was a case for his phone.

Needless to say he was excited!

We went to Buffalo Wild Wings for lunch and when we got home it was time for CAKE!

True to form, he requested his favorite chocolate cake with chocolate frosting (RECIPE HERE ~ with update pictures!).

A week later Grandpa and Grandma were able to make the 4 1/2 hour drive to visit.  Sassy had a volleyball tournament, but we still found time to celebrate our newest 13 year old.  This time the requested dessert was cheesecake ~ yummy!

(I think 13yr old stayed up too late the night before ~ he looks a bit sleepy in this picture!)

But that wasn't all!  Just last weekend, Action had a couple of buddies over to celebrate as well!  They went to an indoor paintball facility for a few hours, came back to our house to have  ~ you guessed it ~ CAKE, chocolate cake (although in cupcake form), and spent the night.

I think this kid of mine had a good time celebrating his 13th birthday!