Party it up–ballerina style!

 

 

When I asked Sophia what kind of party she wanted and she said a Ballerina party, I couldn’t have been more excited.  I got an idea in my head of what it would look like and it kind of snowballed from there.

Our homemade goodies:


Guest table for grown-ups

The girls played a game with this Flower Box, but I forgot to take a picture of the finished product.  They each had two flowers “planted” in the grass at the park that matched their tutus.  They had to find them and put them in the flower box, and for each flower they planted in the box, they got a sucker.  It was SO much fun!


A chair waiting for each ballerina to dress up with a tutu, necklaces and a bracelet.

The birthday ballerina, feeling a bit shy!


And it couldn’t have been a more beautiful day – we got so lucky!!


Our baby ballerina -  isn’t she gorgeous?!


Making necklaces to dress up even more – such a fun activity and even though I found the beads at Barnes and Noble, they were expensive, so I checked Amazon and they were a MUCH better price.  Same amount of fun for half the price!


Sophia showing off her pretty necklace


And how can you not be delighted when your friends are around and you’re all wearing tutus? 


Evelyn really wanted to eat the beads make a necklace.


The birthday cupcake – it got about as much love as the cupcake we gave her on her actual birthday.  A finger swipe of frosting and that was about it.  I guess I can’t complain about a kid who likes fruit more than cake, right?

Cute friends…

The big girl ballerinas – they had so much fun running around the park together!


Sophia was very lucky to get a few projects, some new books and a crown from her sweet friends.  What a lucky little girl!



Grandma and Grandpa gave her a ride home while we cleaned up, and she apparently declared, “That was FUN!”  Success!

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Sophia turns 3 – in style!

So, maybe I’m a few weeks behind in posting Sophia's birthday, but since I haven’t posted since who-knows-when, I’d say that’s not too bad.  I remembered that this blog is one of my favorite tools to remember the little things, so I need to get better at posting on a regular basis. :)  We’ll see!

 

Miss Soph couldn’t wait for her birthday!  While this waited for her downstairs – a joint gift from Grandma and Grandpa and Mommy and Daddy, we had breakfast in bed.

I adore birthdays and love making a crazy big deal out of them, so this year, we added a shower of balloons to her birthday morning wake-up.  Cuz why not?!


Since we’ve made this a tradition officially, I figured a yearly birthday plate was in order for breakfast for the birthday girl.  Although, with Evelyn’s coming up, I think on the first birthday, we’ll stick with the plastic plate and save the special plate for her 2nd birthday. 


Evelyn is going to love her birthday to pieces if it involves balloons in any way!


If this look conveys any of the joy we experienced, then the 5:30 wake-up to make the breakfast muffins was absolutely worth it!

 
Seriously – SO much happiness!!

Booster chair on the floor to contain our little crawler.


Time for PRESENTS!!




A happy big sister with a ballerina doll from her baby sister.


And the happy aftermath – dragging everything downstairs is kind of a pain, but breakfast in {each} bed only once a year isn’t such a chore.



And then there was the bike.  She was pretty excited about ti but a little hesitant.  Sophia decided that she was getting a bike for her birthday – I guess when she asked for one, and I told her to put it on her birthday list, she didn’t quite understand the concept.  She decided the birthday list was a guarantee for delivery.

Even by the end of the day, she was getting better.  She’s done a lot of practicing inside the house and we’re planning to let her hit the trail for real this weekend.

Stay tuned for more pictures and the birthday party – hopefully I can catch up from the summer soon!

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The battle rages on

And Sophia is winning.

Meet the latest addition to our family.  This guy used to live on the top shelf at Barnes and Noble.  As soon as we walk in the door, which is fairly often, Sophia bee-lines it over to him and begs to carry him around the store.  She always wants to leave with him, but we always leave him there. 

Yesterday, I found myself lost in the diaper aisle at Target.  I just couldn’t bear the idea of continuing to invest in diapers for Sophia.  She knows when she is going, hates having a full diapers, or even a diaper that is barely wet and can’t stand a really dirty diaper.  She’s ready…except that she isn’t ready.  IT’s making me CRAZY.

So we bought Cookie.  The only time she will ever get to hold him is on the potty.  I think we’re pretty smart.  We think it’s brilliant.  It’s obviously going to work.

Or is it?  Sophia also love the iPad but turns it down flat if the only way she can have it is to sit on the potty. 

(photo by Photography by Nealy)

My girl is cute, but stubborn.  I think this is going to be a very long battle.

Cross your fingers.

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Reality sets in…

Ever have a morning epiphany?  Where you look in the mirror and realize you look "mature" enough to be the age you are with the life you have?  Sometimes I seem to look and feel just the same as I did ten years ago (with varying weights and hair-styles, of course).

 

I haven’t done my bangs in almost a week – they’ve been pinned back. I’m wearing a new uniform of leggings and the best t-shirts ever from Gap (thanks to this girl for pointing them out on Saturday!). I’ve never been more comfortable and if you add a necklace or scarf and cute flats, no one knows the same kind of outfit is basically your pajamas. Love what’s in right now!

Yesterday,I looked in the mirror and realized I could fit my true profile and looked just frazzled enough to be 30 with two kids.  Lovely!  We celebrated with coffee and a walk to the park after E's first nap.

 

When I was a nanny, we walked all the time, some days we walked 3 miles or more, just to go to a fun park and get extra fresh air on the way.  Since Evelyn, we’ve not done that as much.  We live on a busy street without a sidewalk, so to go for a walk we have to get in the car and drive, which seems counteractive.  I’ve decided to be more intentional about it, so we parked at a busy intersection nearby, conveniently next to a Caribou, loaded the stroller and started walking.

By loading the stroller I mean that I spent 20 minutes applying sunscreen, dealing with tantrums, and generally convincing Sophia that her life is not nearly as dramatic as she makes it out to be.  Just wait until the teen years!

 

Once they were loaded, they were as cute as can be, and it was a mile each way, not too long or short.

We had a lot of fun swinging and playing.

 

And a fabulous picnic.



Baby’s first picnic – sweet potatoes and parsnips.  Obvious picnic food,right?! Dan said that in this picture, Evelyn looks like an old west gunslinger.



Evelyn had too much fun and couldn’t stay awake on the way home.  Funny, because there were loud trucks that caused her sister to scream loudly for most of the walk.  I wish I could sleep like that!



And how about a comparison??

They probably look alike, and they have similarities, but I think they look completely different.  Just a mom’s perspective though. :)

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Chopped

Before

During


After!  She’s so pretty I can’t stop staring at her!

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