{pretty, happy, funny, real}
Notice anything that doesn’t belong?
I was focused on the birthday girl, not that mischievous little 2 year old of ours.
Happy Birthday To You! {A Dr. Seuss Thing 2 Birthday Party}
My sister-in-law managed to escape my camera, but I did get a picture of my brother Thing Dad. Apparently he decorated his own shirt for the party. I was impressed! Good job Brian!!
My sister-in-law had the cutest decorations for the party. Everything was so pretty… and delish!
One Fish, Two Fish… How about some GOLD FISH?
On the Menu:
Sneetches Peaches (Peach Tea)
I especially loved the pasta and fruit salad in the covered glass jars, to keep the bugs out. I already purchased a couple to use in the future!
The Red Velvet Cake was amazingly delicious. Yes, I had a small piece – along with some more dairy on Easter – and paid for it with a cranky baby for a few days. (He does seem to be getting a little better though!) Actually it was the first time I’d ever had Red Velvet Cake! I’m sure that since our Costco makes this cake, it won’t be the last…
And our silly little Snuggles figured if he couldn’t see anyone, they couldn’t see him either!
Oh, and the the birthday girl is a pro at pinatas! She picked the correct ribbon on the very first try!
We all had such a wonderful time. My kids are so happy that they have one cousin that lives close enough to visit. It’s been years since they have seen (or even met!) their nine other cousins.
Today you are You, that is truer than true.
There is no one alive who is Youer than You.
― Dr. Seuss, Happy Birthday to You!
Wordless Wednesday
An Early American Pioneer Birthday
This past Friday our little Chiquita turned 7 years old! The day didn’t start out as I had hoped, and we ended up spending the first half of the day at doctor’s offices, then ran a few errands while we were in town, but we arrived home after lunch and thoroughly enjoyed the rest of the beautiful sunny day!
Chiquita had asked for a Kirsten themed Pioneer Birthday, inspired by their Early American History Lap Books and Unit Studies this year! I didn’t get to all the ideas/plans I had come up with for our little family party (I’ll save the others for another time, especially since Twinkle Toes is hoping for a “Little House on the Prairie Party), but despite my lack of organization everything fell into place.
I just love how my children do their best to dress up for some of our various themed parties! The girls found their longest prairie skirts, bonnets, and had me braid their hair (just like Kirsten’s for the birthday girl), and the boys put on long sleeved shirts, with vests, and their Daddy’s old Rodeo hats!
I wanted to try and find a way to tie in the quilt that Kirsten and her friends made in the book Happy Birthday, Kirsten! As much as I would love to be able to sew a real quilt, I am not at all talented when it comes to sewing. Someday I would love to take some more classes… maybe when my girls are a little older we can do so together.
Instead, I made some square sugar cookies and frosted them white. I had each of the children decorate their own square with decorator icing and candies. We placed them together on a tray to form a friendship quilt!
The kids enjoyed this so much, they just kept asking to decorate “just one more!” I removed the quick “sample” Happy Birthday Square I decorated to make room for Captain’s 2nd cookie…
… but the “Quilt Squares” just kept coming so I started making a second quilt. It looks like I forgot to take a picture of that second quilt completed, but I did get one of the finished cookies on the cookie rack:
We choose a few fun, old-fashioned, game ideas from The American Girl’s Party Book. Puss in the Corner was definitely the favorite.
I purchased this Pinata for a couple dollars after Easter a few years ago… We filled it with some old-fashioned candies and peppermints.
After a yummy dinner of Roasted Chicken, Baked Beans, Potato Salad, Garden Salad, and Lemonade, it was time for cake!
I am pretty sure that this was the easiest birthday cake I have ever made, and it still tied in perfectly with our theme! It was inspired by Kirsten’s party treats and the picture of her birthday cake, in Happy Birthday, Kirsten!
Chiquita choose a Gluten-Free Applesauce Cake Recipe, and I baked it in a 12″ Heart Shaped Cake Pan. After it had cooled we just surrounded it with Strawberries and served it with some Fresh Cream! For Ice Cream she choose Old Fashioned Vanilla and Rocky (Prairie) Road.
Despite Kirsten being discontinued a couple years ago, I was so excited to win an auction (at a fair price) for a new doll on ebay. Her other gifts included the darling Kirsten Prairie Dress, a gray cat (purchased at Costco), and Sari (Kirsten’s doll, also from ebay).
The birthday girl also used the gift from her grandparents/godparents to purchase her first and very own scooter, and received a doll sized Bonnet from her big sister!
St. George and the Dragon :: A Sugar Cookie Story Quilt
“A story quilt is an ideal whole-class extension project that works at all grade levels. Quilt squares feature chapters, characters, or significant scenes from the literature circle book. They can include a border with a repeated design or symbol that represents a key idea. Quilt squares can incorporate visual as well as written components (e.g., an important quote or brief summary). Effective adaptations are possible for all grade levels.” ~ Source
The Good Shepherd’s Garden Party :: Week Two
when all God’s people live in peace, like sheep within one fold.
As perfume, by its scent, spreads fragrance all around,
so life itself will sweeter be where unity is found.
This afternoon we had our 2nd Good Shepherd’s Garden Party for this Easter season! I didn’t put much any planning into this week’s party since my mind had been focused on an extra cranky baby and a certain seven year old’s birthday, and by yesterday I was pretty much wiped out from another crazy week. Thankfully I knew that this would be a pretty easy week to pull together, with a few modifications to the menu. When we got home from Mass I took a look in the fridge and decided that this week would be the perfect opportunity to finally dye some Easter Eggs and try and make Italian Easter Bread!
After nothing but rain for weeks, the past few days have been GORGEOUS!! I just couldn’t bring myself to set the dining room table for our party. Instead I had the boys pull down the cushions and set up our “table and chairs” on the front porch. We were going to finally eat outside!
Sometimes the simplest parties, without too much planning, turn out the best… Don’t you think?
(I’ll have the link-up posted by tomorrow morning.)
Somebody’s Seven
* Our birthday celebration started a little late this afternoon, since we ended up spending yet another morning at doctor’s offices – both our pediatrician’s, followed by a trip to see an ophthalmologist… Our little Bud managed to poke himself in the eye, with his sharp little fingernail, last night. Thankfully a week of antibiotic eye drops, three times a day, should be all he will need. My poor baby! I’ll be back to post more pictures of our birthday girl, but right now I’m headed back to the party!
{pretty, happy, funny, real} :: 4 months old!
Almost Finished
Here is how it looks at the moment. (Please excuse the steam mop… I think I am going to be cleaning up dust for quite some time! And I also have some touch up painting from the mantel being moved higher.) So, what do you think? Honestly? I actually like it even more than I thought I would – the stone color was Hubby’s choice, not mine. It did turn out pretty, and really looks better in person than it does in the pictures. I’m just not sure how well it matches the wall color.
Originally we planned to paint the three walls that stick out, surrounding the fireplace, a color (perhaps a reddish burgundy, sage, etc) of some sort. But, at the time, we were so overwhelmed by all the other decisions we were making that we ended up just using some of the leftover Wilmington Tan paint from the new dining/living room areas in the back. All the other walls in our entry are the same Philadelphia Cream (light yellow) that is in the kitchen, and the ceilings and hallway are all Stowe White. (We also plan to replace the white ceiling fan with a dark brown fan, closer to the ceiling, finish painting the trim, and are still looking for light fixtures/wall sconces to replace the old track light that was above the fireplace.)
The ceilings in the original part of our home are all wood (and are now the only remaining part of the original house which hasn’t been remodeled/replaced in the 12 years we have lived here!) which makes it a little more challenging to choose a paint color to coordinate. Now we are thinking that maybe just the Philadelphia Cream from the kitchen, or perhaps even the Stowe White, might be the best option for these three walls. I’d love to hear any thoughts and suggestions you might have for us!
Finishing the Fireplace
We have been waiting a long time to “someday” finish our fireplace. We had our cabinet maker create a new mantel which he installed in December of 2010, after we had to pull down the old brick nearly two years ago. We had hoped to finish the project with our 2011 tax refund, but other things came up and it was postponed again. We were blessed to be able to set aside some of this year’s tax refund to finally complete the fireplace!!!
This is what you would see when you walk into our home. I tried covering up the ugliness last summer with some brown paper, but it had to come down when we started using the stove again for the winter. I’m not the most patient person and apparently God wanted me to work on this virtue!
I tried to have this project completed while Hubby was out of town, in time for Easter and as a birthday surprise for him, but it ended up being a bigger project than I anticipated and three weeks wasn’t enough time. I first met and hired a Mason. Then I needed to have the stove removed. Then I found out that the mantle was originally installed too close to the stove and it needed to be moved 6 inches higher. Then I called the cabinet maker, who was too busy to come out right away. And then the stone we had chosen needed to be ordered. Needless to say there wasn’t anyway it could be finished by Easter. This week it is finally all coming together, and that “someday” is finally here!
It’s been a busy morning. The contractors arrived at 7:45, the cabinet maker at 8:00, and everything is falling into place. They think they might have it all finished today, but then we’ll still need to have the stove insert hooked back up. I am so excited… and the kids are learning all about masonry! 🙂
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