Addy's 5th Birthday

We left Hobbiton and drove about an hour to Rotorua, a small town next to Lake Rotorau that is famous for its Moari history and geothermal activity. It was a great  place to stop for lunch, even if the  town did smell like rotton eggs from all sulfer in the air.  

There are sixteen lakes in the Rotorua region. This is Lake Tikitapu (Blue Lake) which is right next to another pretty lake called Rototokahahi (Green Lake).

Beautiful fern tree forest surrounding lake Tikitapu.

We drove until the road ended at lake Tarawera. Addy was very determined to find a beautiful place to stop for the night and have her birthday party. She thought this grassy spot on the bank of Lake Tarawera was beautiful enough, but unfortunately there were no camping signs so we turned around and continued our search.

We finally found the perfect place to stop next to the tiny lake Okaro. This is the green swampland next to the lake.

Adelaide requested a fairy birthday party. We looked on Amazon before our trip and ordered the fairy costume she liked best.  She thought this dress was the most beautiful because of the pink water lily flowers. She didn't mind that the dress arrived a couple sizes too big, and it ended up working out well because she could wear a turtleneck underneath it to keep warm.

After spending several hours of the day traveling, she was so happy to play outside. She was excited to wear her fairy costume and she ran around dancing and laughing. I loved seeing her so happy on her birthday. 

Time for presents! The fact that Addy's birthday was just a few days into our trip was perfect because the new toys kept the girls happy and entertained for the next several days. 

Addy wanted a Barbie with brown eyes to match her. 

Torah was so happy that she had a present to open too!

The pink frosting on Addy's birthday cake melted in the heat of the motor home. She didn't mind though because she doesn't like frosting and always takes it off her cakes or cupcakes anyway! Addy's most beloved toys are her collection of little fairies.  I was excited to find a water lily fairy that matched her dress. It was the easiest cake I've ever decorated and she loved it. 

Addy's favorite birthday gift of all was her kite!  She specifically requested a kite and had been talking about it nonstop during the month leading up to her birthday. 

Torah loved flying her kite too!  It was pretty cold outside but she refused to wear her jacket. We aren't sure if it was because she isn't used to wearing long sleeves due to the climate in the Philippines, or if it was because she thought a jacket would somehow interfere with her kite flying.

We finished flying kites after about 30 minutes because the girls looked so cold. Despite the cold they were both sad to finish kite flying and would have stayed out there until dusk if we let them. It's a good thing we had birthday cake to lure them back inside the nice warm moterhome. Before bed Adelaide said, "This was the best day ever!"