birthdays – Page 2 – Myriad & Sundry

Last Minute Party

January 21, 2015 No Comments

We weren’t going to have a big party for Jameson’s 4th birthday, but when we sent out invitation via email about a week and a half before the party, we got a surprising response. Most guests RSVPed yes, and the small party became a bit of a big one!

Meemaw and Grandpa came up to visit, and we FaceTimed with Aunt Holly while Jameson opened her gifts the day before his party.

Jameson loved his Ninja Turtles shirt from Aunt Holly and immediately wanted to put it on with the new swishy pants from Meemaw and Grandpa. They got him a soccer outfit and a net which we put up when it was relatively warm a couple weeks later. He was really loving kicking his new soccer ball into the net!

Coraline wanted to put on the swishy pants too.

Along with a lot of our friends, Brian’s cousin Griffin also came to the party. Every time Jameson sees him, he loves watching him play video games, following him around and playing with what he wants to play with. Jameson really seems to look up to him, and Griffin is so friendly and plays with him.

Jameson was not happy that Coraline was sitting on his gifts.

Jameson’s big gift was a pirate ship by Playmobil. It has lots of small parts, and we’ve already lost a few. Oops! He hasn’t really been into playing with it other than shooting the cannons, which seems typical boy.

He also got a Pete the Cat book and stuffed toy from Aunt Melissa, which Coraline immediately grabbed saying “my meow”. She’s since given it up but it was pretty hilarious.

The highlight of the party though was the gift from Uncle Mike, cousin Gabrielle and Griffin: the remote control car which flips every which way. The kids were fascinated with it! Even though Jameson is very into doing things himself, he was happy to let Griffin show him how to use it first.

For a cake, he said he wanted chocolate and vanilla (like I made for him when he was three, apparently he remembered), so I decided on a Neapolitan cake I made from scratch. The bottom was actually brownie, a classic vanilla cake, and then strawberry made with handpicked strawberries we froze from the summer on top. Then he wanted orange icing on it, and I decided to go crazy and we put candy eyeballs on it. It was pretty funny looking, but the kids loved the eyeballs and it tasted excellent so that’s all the matters, right?

It was a great party, and Jameson loved seeing all his friends. Even Nathan was able to come! We loved showing off our new basement (which they were working on right up until that morning!) and we invited people to bring dog toys, treats, food and cleaning supplies for the local shelter rather than gifts for Jameson.

We finally dropped all that off a couple weekends ago, and it was so nice to know we were helping the shelter. It was Jameson’s first experience giving to ~~people~~ animals in need. Luckily, there weren’t too many dogs to see in the cages, and it was tough answering Jameson’s question if people leave their dogs in the cages. (People leave dogs here for all kind of reasons, and then they stay here until they can find new homes)

On his actual birthday, Grandma and Poppa came over with his gifts to open, a cool construction set. Jameson is driving his little motorcycle over his gifts.

I can’t believe this little guy is 4 years old, and yet at the same time, I can believe it because he’s changed so much in the past year.

children

Final Summer Days

October 17, 2014 No Comments

Well into fall, and here I am wrapping up the end of August. I don’t really miss it though, other than the extra daylight. The colors this fall have been breathtaking, and I have a much more pleasant drive into work nowadays to see it since I’m not driving along the highway.

For Grandma’s birthday we had our usual cookout this time with pizza on the grill at her request.

When my friend Emma came to visit us, we took a walk and discovered a garage sale power wheels jeep for cheap, just missing the power cord. In the end, it was a bit more expensive because the battery was dead, so we had to buy both power cord and new battery which is pricey. Totally worth it though.

Coraline is already not following the rules with hands inside the car. Also, she can unbuckle herself, so we have to watch them. But she loves riding in it just as much as Jameson loves driving it.

Grandma and Poppa also brought over a new-to-us big boy bike (originally from cousin Griffin) with new training wheels and all. Jameson rode the bike and the jeep for the rest of the summer, insisting that’s all he wanted to do.

Labor day, we relaxed outside. We took the kids out still in pjs to play in the bouncer. We hung out “poolside” in the afternoon.

And suddenly Coraline enjoyed swinging. Weeee!

children, life with baby

Birthday and Baby

September 30, 2014 No Comments

The same weekend we celebrated our neighbor’s kiddos’ birthdays, we celebrated with Vivienne for her 3rd birthday, just a week before her little brother was born! I really loved these lights over their porch.

It was such a lovely day outside, and the kids played with bubbles, drawing, playhouse and of course, running outside.

Coraline is wearing her little party favor necklace here, which she actually kept on. The kiddos also got sheriff pins for the cowgirl theme’d party. I love Vivienne’s little boots, above.

Lisa had several flavors of cupcakes, which tasted like they were made by a pro. They were divine, and had little cowgirl pictures on toothpicks stuck into them. Vivienne seem to relish the attention and was excited to open gifts.

The big gift from mommy and daddy was her scooter, complete with knee and elbow pads, but her favorite was Woody’s friend Jessie.

After dinner, the boys Jonathan and Jameson ran races and made mischief.

And then just 15 days or so later, I was back taking photos of her baby brother, Finn. Vivienne was very serious about her little brother, but she did give him a kiss for the camera. Also, she got a balloon out of it! She looked so much older (as all big brothers and sisters seem to after a new baby), all 3 years of her.

children, life with baby

Clowning Around Party

September 23, 2014 No Comments

That past couple years, our neighbors have had one big birthday party for both their kids who were born in August. Last year, they hired a balloon man. This year, they one upped him by hiring a clown who was also a magician and balloon man!

Last year, Jameson hung back quietly. This year it did not take him long to get into the fun. He even volunteered himself! His squeals of delight were so fun to hear. Even Coraline sat still on my lap for nearly a half an hour watching him.

Jameson got to keep a hippo after the trick he volunteered for. He was so excited! All the kids got little stuffed animals then, which was super cute. After the magic show, he did balloons and Brian occupied some kiddos while they waited their turns with a handle held air pump.

Jameson requested an alien, and we were pretty fascinated with the balloon within a balloon.

So for their birthday, we decided to get a gift that was outdoors, since Kelly mentioned they have a lot of toys and clothes already. (Also, a bonus in that my kiddos would be able to play with it too). We got them a combined gift of the Classic Alligator Teeter Totter, and it came in this enormous box that I loved watching the kids speculate what it was. Big boxes are always exciting!

Oh, and we also had the water bouncer out! It was a kid’s dream party, I believe. Then time for cake! Coraline enjoyed eating her cake so much that she licked the plate, cracking us all up.

I think the birthday kiddos had a lot of fun; I know mine did too!

children, general life, life with baby

Brian’s Birthday

June 3, 2014 No Comments

Brian’s birthday seems to consistently have such perfect weather. It’s always right around Memorial Day, and so we tend to celebrate with cookouts with our family and friends!

This year, we went to grandma and poppa’s house, and were surprised to see that his cousin Gabrielle and her son Griffin as well as his Uncle Mike were all there to celebrate with us too!

Griffin gets along so well with younger kids, and played with Jameson almost non-stop while we were there. They played ball and catch and tackle and cars… “boy” things.

Coraline plays ball fine herself too, I should add!

After our rib dinner (so. good.), we went back outside to play. It was beautiful outside!

Aunt Melissa and Gabrielle tried to get Jameson to roll down the backyard hill with them, but he couldn’t be persuaded to let go. He did do a little fake roll for a second but that’s it!

I made Brian’s cake from scratch from the same recipe I made Coraline’s first birthday cake as well, but this time I made it with a peanut butter filling. It was very peanut-buttery, so that was perfect for Brian. It was good, but not my best effort! I had a difficult time getting the filling right (too much peanut butter) and the cake itself was a little… broken.

But, all’s well that tastes well!

For the record, Coraline tasted a bit more of this cake than her own. We’ll turn her into a cake eater yet!

children, life with baby

Birthday Train

June 2, 2014 No Comments

A couple weeks ago, we went to see Thomas the Train with friends this year. Last year, Coraline was still small, just over two months old. It was also cold, whereas it was quite hot this year by the time we finished our ride.

So much was different. I wouldn’t suggest this as an ongoing tradition since there will come time that they will be too old for Thomas, but there is something really special about going back to the same place again a year or more later and seeing how much things have changed.

Also, really, this was a lot more fun with friends!

As a bonus, it was Brian’s birthday, and he wanted to celebrate by taking the kiddos out for some fun. Who couldn’t love such an awesome husband?!

When we arrived, JP, Lisa, Jonathan and Joshua were already there waiting for us. We shared donuts with them while we waited for Bobby’s family to arrive. We had tickets for one of the earliest rides, which was also a better decision than last year (which had depended more on nap schedules).

Before our ride, we had some time to climb on the lawn mowers and get tattoos (Thomas, of course).

This light line allowed us time to get some photos with Thomas that we weren’t able to get last year, and it was still cooler out when we boarded so the train wasn’t too hot.

We squished together, 6 adults in 8 seats with 3 preschoolers and 3 babies. It was fun though, and we were all able to talk to one another! Jameson sat on my lap so nicely.

Coraline had a nice time, and tried to steal the socks off Jack, which is something Jameson also used to do. A baby stealing socks from younger babies is so cute and innocent and seems like a metaphor for something meaningful.

After our ride, Jameson and the boys jumped around in a couple of the bounce houses they had out.

We were pretty thrilled that we were able to convince Jameson quickly that a $3 straw with a picture of Thomas on it was a great souvenir! (As opposed to the $20+ kids shirts and trains)

That afternoon, we celebrated Brian’s birthday at his parent’s house. More fun to come!

children, life with baby

A One Year Comparison

May 8, 2014 No Comments

children, life with baby

Birthday Dinner

April 3, 2014 No Comments

Coraline’s big party was on Saturday after her birthday, a couple days following her actual big day. On her birthday, Brian’s mom and sister came over for family dinner (pizza) and cake, of course.

We opened some gifts first before dinner, and Coraline was very interested in the Mega Blocks from Grandma. Whereas Jameson used to tear things down at her age, Coraline likes to put things back together. She does her fair share of tearing down though, too.

After pizza, Coraline, with Jameson’s help, blew out her candle on her cake.

We tried getting Coraline to eat the cake again, since she didn’t like it during her cake smash session in the morning, but she still refused.

Afterwards, we opened more gifts from Aunt Melissa, and then a couple from mom and dad and Jameson.

She quickly got the hang of feeding her new baby doll!

And herself, haha.

A couple weeks prior, I took Jameson out for lunch and errands. He had a great time, and we went to the toy store to pick out a birthday gift for Coraline. Of course, he got a little something too (a little wooden train, Diesel #10). But he also picked out a great gift for Coraline, this little scooter bike.

It’s small enough that I think she’ll get some use out of it later this summer after she’s walking. I look forward to her trying to follow Jameson around as he rides his own bike!

The next day, Meemaw and Aunt Holly came up to visit before the party the following day. We opened some more gifts on Friday then too, and Jameson was excited to get a few things himself again, like this little zipper monster pouch for good zipping practice!

But in particular, both kids really enjoyed the airplane from Aunt Holly. The Little People were a hit, and Coraline received more Little People gifts at her party. Both Jameson and Coraline like to play with them!

Coraline had such a great birthday celebration from the day she turned one through her party. Now that it’s over, it’s hard to believe she’s one.

It means we need to make some changes over the new few months, like transitioning to whole milk and moving her from bottle to sippy (she never did like holding her own bottle, nor could she be trusted to eat enough if we weren’t holding it anyway, so that will be a big change!). I am thankful we won’t need to eliminate the pacifier this time though!

children, diy, life with baby

Pink Pinwheel Party

March 31, 2014 No Comments

Coraline had a pink pinwheel party for her first birthday. Sometimes pink can be elegant and playful without being overwhelmingly girly, and that’s what I was going for. We rented a little community center nearby for her party since there are so many more kids with friends and family now! It was well worth it to reduce chaos, and that we we didn’t need to figure out what to do with Sasha, who is confined to our first floor at home now that she is older.

We had two kids tables, one of ours and borrowed one from a neighbor, which was a great idea. We had a lot of 2 and 3 year olds in attendance!

The kids had a little craft to make their own pinless pinwheel they could do as well, and while I think the parents enjoyed it, I think it would be even more perfect for 4-5 year olds. I prepared all the paper for the pinwheels so no hole punching was needed, and gave directions for finishing off the pinwheel. All you need are some pipe-cleaners, pencils, stickers and crayons, plus scissors & stapler for parents to secure the pinwheel.

Each table had pinwheels for a playful centerpiece (a few of the arrangements were taken with them by guests, a sign of a great little centerpiece in my opinion!!). To make the pinwheels, I used a spray adhesive to make double-backed 12×12 scrapbook paper, then cut them down with a paper cutter in various sizes from 8×8 to 11×11 (most were around the 9×9 range).

I made the pinwheels without using pins, to keep it safe for all the kids attending the party so no one might be pricked. Instead I used pipe cleaners and buttons (I will allow that the buttons were small and a choking hazard themselves, but trusted they would keep secure to the sticks under parents’ watchful eyes, as they did).

The pinwheels are attached to candy sticks I purchased at Jo-Ann, or pre-painted dowel rods I purchased from Factory Direct Craft. The two types of clear glass bottles were a relatively cheap find at Factory Direct Craft (I cannot find them online anymore), and I put sand at the bottom.

I wanted to integrate photos into her party, just as I did with Jameson’s, since I take so many and love the conversation starters they provide to guests. Since the room had a chair rail along the walls, I avoided doing the giant “1” in photos that I did with Jameson’s because it would’ve looked awkward. Instead, we randomly put photos around the room with painters tape.

She also had her monthly photos banner above her high chair. I made small pinwheels, secured with brads and a glue gun to the clothespins, hung on twine. The pinwheels are top heavy, so it needed to be against a wall where they wouldn’t move around much.

For food, we kept it simple party fare: pulled pork, pasta salad, cheese & crackers tray, veggie tray, chips and an assortment of dips, fruit salad and of course, dessert. I made the same yellow cake recipe from her cake smash into cupcakes, and tried a chocolate cake from the same site as well.

I thought maybe Coraline would like a chocolate cake since she wasn’t fond of the vanilla, but no dice. She did taste it though, but putting her tongue right out onto the icing!

Daddy cut up the cupcake a bit and she tried the actual cake, but for the most part she was content (and sometimes concerned) just to look around at all the activity.

Coraline is big into trying to put things back, and she attempted to buckle herself up without success.

Meemaw and Aunt Holly came up for the occasion; unfortunately Uncle Tyler and Grandpa had to miss it.

We also had some baby friends join us, and Jameson’s friend Nathan came as well ready for St. Patrick’s Day!

When it was time to open gifts, Jameson wanted to jump right in and help. He certainly entertained, putting a bag over his head!

Coraline wanted to “try” her gifts before opening them. She got a lot of great toys and adorable clothes. She’s become partial to the Little People dolls, as well as putting together the Mega Blocks (Jameson was always into taking things apart when he was this age, so it’s fun to see Coraline putting things together instead).

We were so excited with all our friends and family who were able to come. We saw cousins and uncles who we hadn’t seen in a year and nearly all our friends invited were able to join us to celebrate Coraline’s birthday!

I love this one of Coraline, playing peekaboo with Grandma with her hands which is new!

I can’t believe that our little girl is one. From here out, our little baby will be growing up into an awesome little girl.

children, life with baby

Coraline’s Cake Smash

March 13, 2014 2 Comments

This year, I decided to try and do a “real” photo shoot for Coraline’s first cake. Spoiler alert: she liked it just as much as Jameson, which is to say, they were quite a bit concerned with what was on their fingers.

For Jameson, I went the healthy route and made a cake from baby food. It tasted just like carrot cake, except better (if I do say so myself). I made a relatively healthy cream cheese frosting to go with it, and he wasn’t super impressed and didn’t dig in the way I’ve seen some kids do so. One of the things I’ve seen since his first birthday is the cake smash session, where baby gets a photo shoot all to herself, so I decided to give that a shot.

This time, thinking I would get better results from said baby, I made a traditional yellow cake. I used this 3 egg yellow cake recipe, because I only had 3 eggs on hand. It actually turned out great and very moist but solid enough that I didn’t accidentally carve it up while icing, and I’d make it again in a heartbeat. For the frosting, I realized I needed to get more ingredients regardless, so I went all out with a frosting recipe calling for 3-1/2 pounds of powdered sugar that I actually found on a couple different sites. I’m saving the leftover frosting in the fridge for the cupcakes I’m making for her party on Saturday.

I didn’t know, but for decorating cakes, a “crusting” type of frosting is recommended. I didn’t add all the powdered sugar (I did about 3-1/4), so mine didn’t crust too much and actually stayed just right for what I wanted for Miss Coraline. This frosting is intensely sweet but such a wonderful consistency.

For decorating, I borrowed a friend’s decorating bags from Wilton and her decorating tips. After doing a “base coat” of frosting to help the roses stick, you want the larger star-shaped tip, and you’ll just go around in the circle to make the rose. I wasn’t too worried about making mistakes or leaving gaps, I just made little “daisy” flowers between. I’m no professional, but I think it looks great! Here’s a great tutorial for even more professional looking results.

I even cut a slice out (which I later ate) to show her the insides, and helped her taste the cake itself, but still no dice. She’ll have plenty of opportunities to try it again in the next couple days. This still made for some super cute photos, and I’m really glad I took the time to do it!

Oh, that super duper poofy tutu? I made that, no sewing involved. The hardest part was cutting!

I figured, no sense in paying a lot for something that’s going to get ruined with icing. The ribbon was more expensive than the tulle so if you already have ribbon to use it would’ve been about $2 to make. But, I will say that if you want it to go all the way around you need more than 2 yds of tulle! I wasn’t too worried about not having enough; it reached a little over half way around her waist and I tied the ribbon in the back. Total cost was about $4! If you want to try your hand, check out this tutorial I followed.

« Previous 1 2 3 4 … 6 Next »