An "American" Birthday

Yesterday we celebrated Elizabeth's 11th birthday at the American Girl store in Chicago. We haven't been there since her seventh birthday when Madelyn was about 3 weeks old and actually looked like one of the dolls! Last time we went the boys played at a park while we shopped so we didn't get to spend as much time as we wanted. This time it was just the girls (Mom, Elizabeth, her friend Anna, and Madelyn) and we made a day of it. Elizabeth and Anna were so excited to go that they were both up half the night on Friday. Elizabeth said she woke up about every hour, hoping it was time to get up!
We had brunch at the American Girl cafe and Elizabeth got a special birthday treat. The cafe was about as girly as you can get - lots of pink and flowers. Elizabeth and Anna got their doll's ears pierced and their hair fixed at the salon. We shopped around and had fun looking at all of the displays. Elizabeth loves all of their historical dolls and has loved learning about the different time periods they lived in from reading the books.

Madelyn just couldn't wait to see the Bitty Baby section of the store. She wanted everything, but was happy to pick out the ballerina outfit and doctor kit she has been wanting for her doll.
Madelyn crashed in the car on the way home. You can see that she did get her new ballerina outfit on her doll first. She was so cute. She insisted on carrying the shopping bag out to the car even though it was as big as her. I kept asking if I could carry it and finally she told me that I didn't buy anything so I couldn't carry it. I'm glad she is footing the bill for this one!
I kept having the thought go through my mind that Elizabeth may not want to go to the store much longer for her birthday. She is eleven now and is going to be in the teenage years soon. As much as she is a girly girl I think she will always love all of the cutsie stuff they have and I hope she will continue to enjoy it with her sisters as they get a little older. I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful daughter. I get notes from her teachers at school frequently who tell me what a good student she is and how nice she is to others. She is very thoughtful of others and chooses good friends who share her values. We love you, Elizabeth!