The Gayla Pink Apple : Celebrating my special guest ...

~~The Gayla Pink Apple~~

Yay, Blair is home visiting this week...

Fun place card holders for tonight's dinner

And, we celebrated her birthday tonight. I blog about celebrating birthdays with my friends, and I blog about lunches with long lost friends, so why wouldn't I blog about my most valued guest, my daughter!

It's a fun and playful birthday celebration!

Blair's birthday was only two days ago, so tonight's celebration is pretty good timing. I love dining with her to celebrate HER. Birthday cake and all the extras - yes indeed!!!

A few gifts are a must at any birthday celebration

**Gift overload...no! just one for each year that I've missed seeing her and one for good measure!

Pretty in Pink

Pretty Pink flowers wearing skirts

**Special flowers for our celebration - absolutely!

**Balloons too...yes!

**Strawberry cake...yes, indeed!

**Wine for the sommelier girl...of course!

**Champagne too? Yes, Cheers!

A fun fun dinner!

Steak and brussels sprouts because that's one of her favorites. Well, the brussels sprouts are a favorite, not steak. I think living in NYC she most likely doesn't eat steak very often. I want her to EAT while she is HOME! :) I was pretty sure Randy would pounce on grilling steaks for her birthday celebration. Easy menu for me and a perfect dinner for the three of us.

I'm not into outgrowing birthday dinners with my child. So, she very graciously accepted my need to somewhat make a fuss over her tonight. It has been quite a few years since she has been in LR on her birthday or close to her birthday. It has been a while since we had a birthday p a r t y with gifts, balloons, cake and ice cream! To have her here, at home, two days after her actual birthday - well, I couldn't let the opportunity to celebrate HER go unrecognized.

A fun birthday evening

Blair has given me more love, joy, and appreciation than words can express. She is the one person, in my life, that I truly love unconditionally, and I know she loves me back. She is the absolute joy to my world. She is the light to my life and brings a lot of joy to this home.

She is smart, sophicated, poised, kind, gracious, appreciative, sweet, loving, and a selfless young woman. And, not just to me - Blair is most of these things to most people. Yes, I'm a little biased, but if you know me well, I'm very transparent.

It's going to be a great week, for me...

Some of my Blair photos...

3 days old - She entered this world with a head full of hair!

And, to today's young Mothers - we had headbands 24 years ago, too!

18 months old

Her Daddy was a big athlete, back in his day - so the baseball was fitting!

2 years old -look at that hair :) more hair and longer than most 4 yrs olds!

She is searching for the "yellow brick road" on the Look and Find big framed print on the wall - a gift from sweet friends. I hung it low so she could see and reach it easily. Blair love love loved to sit in her little chair and search for the nursery rhymes. . . Jack and the Beanstalk; Hickory Dickory Dock; The Old Lady Who Lives in a Shoe, etc. We still have the print - maybe it will be passed on to future generations.

Westover Preschool - Dimples - age 3 yrs.

Tubby Time Fun

Top photo - no idea what she's doing or why she is on the counter. Middle photo - pretend shaving her leg with "her" razor with no blade. An excuse to play with my shaving cream :) and Bottom photo - that tubby time shower cap :) She was so funny.

As Dorothy with Toto for Halloween.

3rd grade with new puppy

Precious Casey (Shih Tzu) joins the household. The smile on Blair's face pretty much says it all.

4th Grader - she cut her hair shorter!

Fast forward several years...

American Heart Association Sweetheart - 10th grade

Senior at Episcopal Collegiate School

High School Graduation Party at home with friends and family.

Right before leaving for London - 2nd year college

(I doubt she has ever seen this pic - it was in my phone)

Home from London - 3rd yr. college

First apartment in Boston

and she can multitask - text and talk to me! :)

Moving to a studio apartment of her own - Sr. yr. college

Emerson College graduate

Boston, MA

Waiting for the trolley in San Francisco - June 2012

College Graduation mother/daughter trip/gift from me!

August 31, 2012 -- Her last task in Boston - turning in her keys to her studio apartment!

She was very sad that day. She loved her studio in Boston. This blog may be the first time she sees this picture. I snapped the picture thinking to myself --- she's all grown up and heading to NYC. Dear Lord, please take care of her and please give ME strength to sit on the sideline and let her blossom!!!

Goodbye Boston - Hello NYC...