Fantastic Birthday Celebration

 

 I LOVE the effect of these tissue paper pom pom flowers.  

Much better than the ordinary balloon and even better is the fact that I can use them over and over and over...okay you get the point!

 

No birthday party would be complete without the sweets!

 

Digging into her yummy cupcake...mmmmm!

 Claire definitely knew what to do with her birthday cake...and did she like it!!!!

 

As you can tell Claire had a very busy day...she looks a little tuckered out...Happy Birthday Sweet Pea!

Claire's One!!!

People have said this to me before we started a family "enjoy these moments as they go by so quickly".  And goodness...were they right.  Now I find myself saying this all.of.the.time!    I can recall taking this picture...by the way not even looking through the viewfinder of my DSLR...and when I reviewed it...I knew that I had captured such a beautiful moment between my two daughters.  The look of wonder in Laurens eyes is priceless. 

We have celebrated many surprises with Claire.  I think that the one that sticks out is how at a very young age she seemed like she was going to be the quiet one...but that quickly changed when she started making very loud pterodactyl noises to get our attention.  Now all she has to do is say those sweet little words of 'mamma or dadda' and we are there.  And she can definitely hold her own.  I think that she is going to be one tough little sweetie.

 

And those smiles. You melt us everytime you give us one.   There are so many different ones to choose from.  From the sweet innocent and shy ones to the bold and goofy old man grins.  What a little clown you are. 

 Your so petite.  Many people reference back to me when they see you.  So dainty.

 All of your nicknames include: wiggle worm, squirmy wormy, little peanut, and sweet pea.

 And now you are ONE!  Happy Birthday Claire:)

The Birthday Continues

Many people celebrate their birthday for the whole week that falls during "their" day. Lauren totally got special treatment during her week. She really does deserve that though. She is such a sweet little individual who makes everyday very interesting and full of new things and excitement. Her perspective of the world right now is so innocent and happy.
I had so much fun planning her party. When I asked her what she wanted for her birthday, she replied "streamers and balloonas" all while twirling her arms and the look of wonder in her eyes. I knew that when it came to decorating the house, I had to have something that Lauren would approve of.

My baby is 3!

Laurens birthday festivities started the day before her real birthday. We took her to see her first movie at a theater. We saw The Princess and the Frog. What a cute movie.
It was also a first for Randy and I as we went to see it at a theater which serves food and drink all while you enjoy a movie.
I also loved going to this theater because we didn't have to watch previews. I think they are a waste of time...as you can guess I get very impatient easily.
What a great idea for a family activity...note: next time we go we have to remember not to show up 30 min. before the movie starts!
On her actual birthday (which occurred on a Monday) Randy took off of work and we were able to have a family day.
So we had a special day where we all got to use our creativity. We all painted a piece of pottery. Lauren chose to paint a beautiful princess bank. Her style was more abstract.
Randy painted a platter that will fit in with our dinnerware.
And I painted a birthday plate which will be a special plate for the birthday girls. We were there for three hours and I could have spent the whole day creating wonderful things for our home. I want to make a return trip to make things for birthdays. Now we all have to be patient for a few days while our treasures are fired.

Happy Birthday B

how fast does a year go? in the eyes of parents~very quickly! it is my little god daughter's first bday. brooklyn is such a little sweetie...who by the way is walking ... i mean running all over. she has a great little personality and is full of so much joy! happy birthday 1st brooklyn!

Happy Birthday Randy!

Gettting ready for the weekend.

So now Randy is finally the same age as me! Yeah...no more jokes I hope. So we made it up to Sturgeon Bay for the weekend and we had a great time as usual. Friday night we got up by my parents and pretty much had dinner and went to bed.

Saturday was Randy's Birthday and we woke up to celebrate. He recieved some great presents thanks to Lauren. A classic baseball and mit. Now once she is old enough they can play catch in the backyard. And to everyones surprise my husband is very easy to please when it comes to buying presents--the simpler the better. The following is an example: He absolutely ADORES his $10- antenna (now he can watch So You Think You Can Dance without a fat Cat Dealy like we got from non-HD Fox) from Carson and Allison and his Tazo Refresh Tea...See guys I told you so!!!! Then it was off to visit a dwarf and miniture horse at Carson's Aunt Kathy's house. I knew Lauren would have a great time as she loves horses. We arrived and fed the horses our carrots and then took them for a walk to an open field when they spend the day. Lauren had a great time because she was almost the same size as the horses....and she got to sniff some more flowers (she really cannot get enough of that!)

Angela the birthday girl and Lauren

A family who got bit by the pond bug...can we get one please?!?!

Ker Plunk

I'm gonna get you!

After frowlicking with the horses it was time for a nap to get ready for the real party. My Nana and Papa were hosting a party for my Papa's brother Freddie and his wife Toni. They came up from New Orleans for the weekend. All of my aunts, uncles, and cousins were there. So nice to catch up with all of them since we rarely get to see them all together. And we also had to celebrate some birthdays too! My cousin Angela turned 21 too! Randy and her share the same birthday so I baked a cake that was absolutely delicious and which weighed about 10 lbs because of the 2 1/2 lbs of butter, 4 cups of chocolate chips, and 4 cups of flour! ...mmm I am having a craving just thinking about it. It seemed that people could not get enough of it...although the three layers was alot of cake! So there was alot of slivers being sliced. We also got a chance to take advantage of the beautiful pond for some pictures! Lauren could have played all day making stones go ker-plunk, watching the frogs jump, as well as seeing the big fish swim. Maybe we could get a way smaller version for our backyard some day.