When we got home from the beach on the Monday before their birthday some of their friends (organized by Calli) had decorated the back yard with happy birthday signs and were there to sing to them! This cute group has been doing that for eachother and I’m all about how awesome, fun and quirky they are! It was such a surprise and Riley literally squealed (you should really see the video) and jumped up and down while Keagan beamed ear to ear! Then the day of their birthday some friends did even more to help us celebrate! Zeke and the Thayne family hung big banners in the front yard, the Young Women dropped off the birthday sign, Sarah Simmons brought over homemade cupcakes and Calli decorated Riley’s car seat and Keagan’s locker! Man these girls have great friends!
Their actual birthday was on a Wednesday. They went to school with birthday sashes on and matching shirts for college day. The difference was Keagan’s sash didn’t make it past first period and Riley added a tiara and pointed to hers all day! When they had PE together Keagan told the coaches it was Riley’s birthday because she knew Riley would love the attention! When the large and lively class sang to each girl individually Riley jumped up and down and giggled and Keagan smiled and blushed. Of course I had put up the same decorations I have every year for their birthday and made them their favorite dinner- cream cheese chicken, broccoli and nothing but bundt cakes! But the highlight of their birthday was definitely the big gifts! Keagan got her very first cell phone! She has been wanting and wanting one for years and the girl literally shed tears she was so excited! It came from her dad and Riley had that option too but she was extremely clear that she wanted make up instead of a phone! So she got a big ole folding out, tiered makeup case that she is thrilled with! That girl cracks me up! She prefers to do the makeup herself and looks stunning with it all over! They got a few other fun gifts like some clothes, comfy jammies, and as our tradition goes their Halloween costumes. Grandma Debbie sent the cutest vans, Sa sent darling personalized makeup bags with all kinds of goodies in there, Aunt Vicki sent adorable clothes, Aunt Kari gave the comfiest slippers and hair towels, Nana gave money, Gramas brought pumpkins and goodies and their friends all spoiled them absolutely rotten at their birthday party! Listing it like that makes me realize it’s kind of nuts!
On Friday some more long awaited big birthday dreams came true! Keagan and Riley got to attend their first ever BYU Football game! They were beyond pumped, Pakka would be so proud, and it totally lived up to the hype! BYU played the University of Houston here and Uncle Kirk bought us all tickets! Kirk, Kari and Campbell came down because 2.5 hours is nothing to drive to see the Cougars! We met them at one of their friends house for a pre-game party and then caravaned down. The stadium was open air, everyone was required to wear a mask and each group socially distanced from the others. Kirk finagled great seats near lots of the BYU fans that were there (and there were TONS) and the weather was just a little bit chilly and totally perfect! We screamed and cheered our hearts out during the entire game cause it was a great one! I am proud to say Keagan and I started a beautiful rendition of the fight song that spread to the crowd despite the absence of our band and cheerleaders there. In the 4th quarter our Cougars kicked it up and ended up killin em 43-26! It was incredibly fun! After the game the girls went down to the edge of the stands as every single BYU player walked the entire edge to give all the fans high fives. Keagan even got a selfie with one she labeled “the hot one!” We didn't get home until 2 am but we had the time of our lives with our family and the Cougs! PS you are about to see our first realization that Keagan’s new iPhone takes way better pictures then my old one!
Saturday was all about the big 12th birthday party! We tried to keep it simple like I like it and wild, loud, fun, crazy and friend filled like Keagan and Riley like it. Mrs Shea let us use DPAC so we had a big open space for the craziness. Each girl picked out an HEB cake of their choosing: Keagan fancy chocolate cake and Riley Anna and Elsa themed vanilla cake. We got simple supplies and a heck of a lot of balloons from Party City that the girls picked themselves. Plus Amy Hernandez made them a fun balloon garland! We spent the day gathering everything and casually setting it up with little stress. There were 16 darling party guests that definitely brought the fun! Plus Kellie and Justin and Mrs Heather who hung out with me. We played four fun and easy games including one word, the candy bar game, pop the balloon tied on everyone’s ankle, and everyone’s favorite- the rock/paper/scissors hoop game! That one got so lively and all of Riley’s dreams came true when Henry Hall-Brown picked her up several times and carried her so she could compete in the game! We sang and had cake and soda, (you know it’s always a good idea to load the 11/12/13 year olds up with sugar) and opened presents. Again the girls were spoiled rotten by their friends and when a few friends sadly forgot gifts for Riley, my heart sank but the amazing Keagan did not skip a beat! All on her own she divided up the contents of the gifts as she was opening them to show Riley what Riley had got. That girl just absolutely amazes me! Afterwards they all danced and sang karaoke all while running, screaming, teasing, laughing and being as loud as humanly possible! It was fabulous and a huge success!
We topped off all the celebrations with a fun piñata cake at our usual family dinner on Sunday night with Taryn, Reagan, Hudson who was in town, Kellie and Justin.
These two girls must feel seriously celebrated after all that! They better! I hope they felt loved as I hope they always do! They deserve it! Keagan and Riley have brought me the 12 best years of my life and fill it with joy, laughter, excitement, opportunities to grow and things to learn! They will both never stop amazing me, teaching me, making me laugh and spreading joy! I’m so blessed to be the mother of not one but the two most incredible 12 year olds I know!
These two girls must feel seriously celebrated after all that! They better! I hope they felt loved as I hope they always do! They deserve it! Keagan and Riley have brought me the 12 best years of my life and fill it with joy, laughter, excitement, opportunities to grow and things to learn! They will both never stop amazing me, teaching me, making me laugh and spreading joy! I’m so blessed to be the mother of not one but the two most incredible 12 year olds I know!
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