Over the weekend we celebrated Caroline turning 2!
[she turns 2 on the 23rd but we had her party this weekend so we can spend her actual birthday together as a family]
Any-of-the-who, It was such a great day!
We had friends and family come from all over.
Caroline got to run around and play with her cousins and her friends.
She was so happy.
Nothing too elaborate- we kept it simple.
I didn't do the 'Pinterest party' -- & we didn't have a theme.
Although, I kind of decided that if another person asked me what the theme was going to be I was going to say bright & colorful because Caroline has brightened up our lives for the past 2 years.
Haha :)
I know, very clever.
Really though - we decorated with color everywhere.
We used streamers, balloons, birthday banners, confetti, candy and table cloths that all had a PoP of color in them.
We had a lot of food - probably too much for a 2pm party,
but I was so happy to see that almost everything was gone by the end of the party!
& I got quite a few compliments on the food too!
[which always makes me feel good]
maybe i'll blog some of the recipes another day if people keep asking :)
Menu:
- Ham & Swiss Hawaiian Sliders - Pigs in a Blanket - Layer Dip - Sweet & Sour Meatballs - Mixed Fruit Bowl - Veggie Tray - Popcorn -
^^Success!
We made it an inside/outside party.
We had the swing set for the kids to play on & even the adults had some fun on it too ;)
& we pulled out all of Caroline's cars & bikes for the kids to ride on.
They had a blast! There was so much laughter involved.
We gave all of the kids bubbles as their party favors - so they got to play with those during the party as well. Caroline is a bubble maniac. She absolutely LOVES them.
Inside we had a coloring station - we turned our entertainment center into a free for all coloring zone.
It was a hit.
& of course, we put Caroline's kitchen set in the living room for the kids to enjoy so obviously that was played with quite a bit!
There was plenty for the adults to do as well - besides chasing the kids around ;)
We left the tv on with 1 of the NFL playoff games playing
[I made a slideshow with the intention of having it on repeat the entire time.....but hey, what was I going to do when the boys told me that they needed to be able to watch the game]
There was a lot of socializing & playing with all the wee babies that were there!
[Caroline did some sweet loving on her little baby cousin Harper. Seriously- everyone melted at the sweetness!!]
The best part [for me, anyway] was watching how excited Caroline was when everyone was singing Happy Birthday to her.
She was glowing with a smile from ear to ear.
The face screamed "this is all for me!"
It was adorable and made my heart smile.
We ate cake [& cupcakes of course!] and opened presents.
Caroline actually requested to start opening presents, haha.
It's like she knew there was good things inside that she wanted to play with!
She was so funny opening her wrapped gifts.
& even more funny with the bagged gifts with tissue paper.
She became really fierce with the tissue paper - 2 hands digging in taking out one piece in each hand and throwing it forwards to get it out of the bag.
Too.Freaking.Funny. to watch!
I was really nervous about the party.
[I'll blame it on my pregnancy hormones]
I was stressed about decorations for a couple days, just wanting everything to look cute.
& I was stressed about the food - if it was too much or not enough.
If there was enough seating, if I had enough time to do everything,
etc. etc. etc.
& it was all for nothing.
The party was a huge success.
We received quite a few compliments on our home & the party!
& most importantly, Caroline loved it. She was incredibly happy just being surrounded by her favorite people! She smiled the whole time and was running around everywhere!
I'm not going to lie and try to take credit for all of it - I had a lot of help.
My brother & a few friends came over that morning and helped me quite a bit.
I don't know what I would've done without them.
They were a huge part of the cooking process.
& even my mom came a little early and helped with the entertaining of Caroline while we put on the final touches before guests arrived.
I'm so incredibly thankful for them.
But a huge thank you to my amazing husband for all of his help.
He had to deal with my crazy requests all throughout the week --- heck, the 2 weeks leading up to it.
I'm so grateful for him and all the decorating, cleaning and rearranging that he did for me.
He was such a trooper! <3
2nd birthday party --- check!
Extremely happy toddler --- check!
Exhausted mom --- triple check! but it's so worth it!
Due to the party Caroline missed her nap - no big deal.
We thought for sure that she would crash afterwards.
No.
She played her little heart out until 10:00.
& even at that time, we had to drag her away from her toys to get her in bed.
She just didn't want the day to end!
Now I'm looking forward to celebrating next weekend with a trip to the zoo on Caroline's actual birthday. The 3 of us [4 if you want to count the little babe in my belly] will be spending the day doing things Caroline loves: Seeing animals, playing on the playground, eating ice cream, and of course opening more presents! ;)
I can't believe my first baby is about to be 2!
Where did the time go!?!
