Ivy's 11th birthday

Ivy turned 11 on Monday, January 19, 2026, which was also Martin Luther King Jr. Day...so a holiday made just for her! (She was born on MLK day as well.) My parents and Josie came up the day before for dinner and to give her presents. Dinner was my choice, but Ivy-approved: pork tenderloin, baked mashed potatoes, and my mom brought a salad.  Dessert was snickerdoodles. Ivy had been birthday shopping with grandma already and was excited for all the new clothes she picked out: a pair of jeans, a couple of sweaters, and a dress. They also gave her a make-it mini fridge for all the mini food she has made and some Wicked bookmarks and bracelets.

We found some old videos that the kids had made...Ghostbuster, Freaky Friday, The Fruit Snack, Shoulder Devil all are top favorites so we spent some time laughing over those. The kids were so creative in making them and Stockton is our best actor! Since the next day was a holiday, we stayed up and watched The Princess Bride (and did a puzzle).

Since we were all home and no one had to go to school or work on Monday morning, Ivy decided she wanted to go out for breakfast. Brynn had an early morning cheer practice (6 - 10 am) so we picked her up when practice ended and then went straight to Chick's cafe. It was a good time and super yummy! And doesn't Ivy look adorable and so grown-up in her new outfit? Love her.

She wanted to open her presents when we got home. She wanted a scavenger hunt. She got her three requested, favorite-at-the-time treats (twin snakes, freeze-dried skittles, bubble gum gum), a necklace with her first initial and birthstone, Murdle Jr. book, and an electric scooter. (We had a hand-me-down electric scooter that she was using to get to the bus stop and back each day...until one day, it was not there when she got off the bus and was never seen again. We knew since then we wanted to get her a new one. She also got a scooter lock to keep it more secure and prevent any theft.)

For lunch she wanted homemade mac and cheese and cucumbers. She used her new Christmas cookbook to make the mac and cheese all by herself. Most of us were too full from breakfast to have much lunch.

Gene, April, and Brett came up that afternoon. They gave her her gifts: a bracelet, her 11-year-old doll, and a yellow reading pillow for her room. Yay!

Ivy went to clogging and jazz that day then came home and decorated her cake. Pink and green...can you guess the theme? If you guessed Wicked, you are correct! One side had the initials "GU"...Glinda Upland...with a wand and the words "good witch". The other side had the initials "ET"...Elpheba Thropp...with a witch had and the words "wicked witch".  Good job, Ivy!

For dinner, Ivy requested yellow curry. We were all happy about that! We also had salad and homemade naan bread. We dusted off the Nintendo after dinner for a little while-we rarely get that out but are always reminded how fun it is to play those classic video games!

Then it was time for cake and ice cream! And dancing on the counter!Happy Birthday to our favorite 11-year-old!

The following Saturday, she had her birthday party. She had been planning this one for a while and knew that she wanted a Broadway themed party. She thought of her top 11 (!!) musicals, since she was turning 11 and then thought of an activity for each musical. Here is the list:

1. Wicked, Part 1

2. The Greatest Showman

3. The Sound of Music

4. Hamilton

5. Wicked For Good

6. Anastasia

7. Annie

8. Matilda the Musical 

9. High School Musical 

10. Newsies 

11. Hairspray 

For Wicked, Part 1 they did karaoke. The girls were timid at the beginning of the party so not too many of them were singing (they loosened up by the end of the party). Ivy had blown up pink and green balloons but we ended up putting them in her room and shutting the door because they were a big distraction and some girls were getting out of control!

Ivy wanted carnival games for The Greatest Showman so we did a ring toss in the loft. Glow sticks and Sprite bottles...then they got to keep the Sprite to have with their dinner.

 

Sound of Music - freeze dance

Hamilton was dinner: pizza, apples, and soda!  

Wicked for Good: bracelets, set up in Molly's room in the basement

Anastasia was an escape room. We found a Paris-themed printable escape room on Etsy, printed two, and divided the girls into two teams to puzzle out all the clues.

Joanna Quinn, Ivy, Alina Quinn, Gracen Nalette, Lydia Evans, Ali Robinson

We took a break to open presents. Ivy got spoiled! She got candy, bracelet stuff, baking stuff, a stuffed animal, Wicked stuff, body wash, an art kit, slime, jewelry, make-up bags, stickers, a hand mask, and hair bows.

Kaliyah Pili, London Mathis, Ali, Lydia, Paisley Naylor, Kallie Gehring, Ivy, Rocky Crane, Gracen, Alina, Joanna

Annie: cake - a donut tower.

We ran out of time to do all the activities Ivy had planned which is way better than not having enough to do. High School Musical was charades so we did that while girls were getting picked up. We never got to Matilda the Musical (an obstacle course), Newsies (make collages), or Hairspray (Corny Collins show auditions) but it was still a great party!

Ivy and Ali