Abby and Olivia have been best friends since they were a year old. They met at daycare and because of their birthdays (just one week apart) the two of them have always transitioned to new classes at the same time, remaining constants in each others lives. It's been amazing to watch these two girls grow and mature into beautiful, intelligent, sweet, caring, young ladies.
Staff at their daycare, specifically their teachers, call them two peas in a pod. Their likes and dislikes, mannerisms, and development seem to match identically. There are times we get together with their family and we can't tell Abby and Olivia apart if we don't see which child is speaking because they even sound alike!
For months now, these two have been into horses. And since this is the big Oh-Five and they have most of their friends in common, we decided to combine their parties (after getting their approvals, of course) and throw them something a little bit more special than a Chuck E. Cheese party.
We researched local equestrian centers to find out which ones hosted birthday parties. Olivia's mom found the Ken Caryl Ranch and, on a whim, called them up to see if they would be able to host a birthday party, despite them not advertising this service. They did, and after touring the facilities, it was decided that this was where we would host their 5th birthday party.
The party was on Saturday, June 23rd at 10:30 AM. Colorado was in the midst of a heat wave. On the day of the party, we would hit 103 degrees. Luckily, the party was set up in shade, but an hour and a half of horseback riding in the sun meant that the 140 bottles of water and juice were completely gone by the end of the party!
The girls were visibly nervous about getting on to a full-size horse, but they comforted each other and as soon as all the kids started mounting the horses they were able to relax and every kid had a wonderful time. Of the 20 guests, only Emory did not want to get on a horse. For the number of guests, they had 8 equestrian school horses available and 4 trainers guiding the rides. For 1.5 hours, each child got at least 2 or 3 rides. If the child was comfortable, the led the horses into trots and gallops, which delighted them.
After the rides, the kids got to help with unsaddling the horses, brushing, cleaning the horseshoes, and feeding the horses.
From the party invitations to the personalized Happy Birthday banner, gift bags, and cupcake toppers, most things were hand-crafted to add a special touch to the occasion.
The party was a great success and both birthday girls had huge grins on their faces by the end. This was certainly memorable for us parents and hopefully it will be memorable for the girls as well.
Additional photos have been uploaded to a Fotki album.
Saturday, July 07, 2012 |
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