Kathryn turned 11 this past week.  What a joy!  She is the first to celebrate a birthday since we left home two months ago, so we wanted to make sure it was special.  We knew it would be hard, being away from all of her friends and family.

But…we were not alone.  Our teachers from Spanish Joyfully joined us in our celebration.  They shared our festivities with a fruit-filled Piñata (thanks, Katya), homemade ice cream cake/tort (gracias, Isabel), and empanadas (stuffed, fried pastries, muchas gracias,  Annabella).

A Piñata for Kathryn’s Birthday

Katie was completely surprised!  She went first to try her hand at the Piñata.  Unbeknownst to her teachers, however, we have been including Piñatas in our birthday celebrations since Mikayla was an infant.  And yet…no success.

Ryan’s Turn. Yes, he was a little scary!

Danny and then Ryan went next.  Neither were able to break open the Piñata, although they both gave it their best shot.  Buen trabajo, niños!

No Peeking, Mikayla

Next was Mikayla, confident as ever.

Annabella and Isabel Cheering the Kids On

Our teachers cheered her on, but alas, she did not succeed.

Katya and Mikayla taking their jobs very seriously

But you can see here how seriously she took her attempts. Next it was Katie’s turn again and she was successful.  I’m sure it had nothing to do with Ryan previously inflicting a penetrating blow to the side of the Piñata.

Kathryn and our sweet teacher, Isabel

After this fun, we headed upstairs for some cake, ice cream, and empanadas.

Katya and Katie with the Tres Leches Birthday Cake

Here is Kathryn above with two of her three teachers.  Thanks to Katya, Isabel, and Annabella for joining us!  Feliz cumpleaños, Katerina!

Kathryn’s Surprise Salon Visit

And the surprises weren’t over.  We took Katie to Plazas Las America for her Dad/Mom daughter birthday date and stopped in at a Salon to get her hair cut.  We were a little worried about our ability to communicate our desires in Spanish.  What if they thought that “Please keep the length” meant “She wants it all cut off”?  But Kathryn was brave and willing to give it a shot.  Here is her “Before” photo (above) and below is her “After” shot.

The “After” Shot

Well done, Glamour Me.  And Feliz Cumpleaños to our favorite 11 year old!