Feather flying four

The Birthday Express mail-order catalogs that show up in our mailbox have birthday paraphernalia ranging from Disney princess themes to Super Mario Bros. A soon-to-be-four-year-old has a whole slew of options.

So, of the dozens and dozens of pages filled with options, which would Alivia pick? Hannah Montana? Hello Kitty? Madagascar?

Yeah, she'll pick none of the above and totally go out on a limb with a bird theme. Hummingbirds, peacocks, peahens and salmon-crested cockatoos.

Anyone thinking you hop on the internet and order up some peacock plates and a cockatoo banner has another thing coming. And cakes? Most bakeries don't do blue jay butter cream.

I'll hand it to her, she presented a challenge.

Although, this is the very reason why if I could be any of my children, I'd choose her. She's unconventional, introspective and not nearly as easy to sway as one might think. And if nothing else, the kid deserves some kudos for her ability to discuss grapefruit-eating cockatoos.

With her input, we pulled it off ... bird cake and all; and she was thrilled with the outcome. What's even better? She now has a huge supply of fake birds, bird photos and leftover bird bingo cards in her crafting arsenal to turn into one of a kind masterpieces.