Hi Everyone,

Growing up in the Palamara house, there were lots of birthdays! We had a traditional Birthday Table Cloth that each us can still remember to this day.

When JohnPaul was 5 years old we had his first “real” birthday party. I wanted the party to be special with decorations, balloons, matching plates and napkins to start our family tradition. I remember buying the party supplies using the grocery money thinking to myself, I must be out of my mind…but splurged anyway! Sounds silly but back then there wasn’t extra money for the party and groceries.

We have a rectangular ceiling light over the island in the kitchen. I found a plastic birthday pennant banner that was long enough to wrap the four sides of the light. It is designed with balloons and streamers with Happy Birthday written on each pennant. I also purchased a cardboard Happy Birthday banner with each letter individually linked to the next. That sign hangs across the opening from the kitchen to the family room (now Corey’s bedroom).

It’s our tradition that the eve before the birthday, we hang the signs so when the kids would come down in the morning the house was magically decorated! The banners are still in tack after all these years!

Stacey, our night nurse, was laughing at me as I was climbing on chairs and balancing on the ½ wall in Corey’s room to decorate while she slept. I think she was nervous I would fall and she’d have to care for me!

Last year Ashley, her ICU nurse, decorated her little room the night before her birthday to celebrate her “Almost Birthday”. She had a banner and streamers draped from the center of the room to each of the four corners. As I decorated tonight, I smiled thinking about how surprised we were walking into her room seeing the party decorations. This year Corey will be able to wake up and see the decorations for her self. Let the Birthday Magic begin…xoxo