Tag: Birthday

Adventures

Five!

A HOUSE WITH CHARACTER

The baby of the family turned five Sunday and we celebrated with pandas, gymnastics, and donuts. Snowy weather prevented my parents from bringing the most adorable panda cake pops made by my mother so we settled for donuts. The kids had a blast running off energy.

One of the most fun parts of being a mother is watching as our little one’s personalities develop and grow. I am forever surprised and amused by how different two sisters can be. They are both so very lovable in their own ways.

The girl is excited to start kindergarten in August. She loves ballet, Calico Critters, her heart blanket, and, of course, pandas. She is sweet, funny, and sometimes a bit stubborn.

She ended a wonderful birthday with some big sister snuggles. Soon we will be taking a family vacation to Washington, D.C. to see real pandas. Anyone who knows our girl knows what a big deal that is! Happy birthday to the little one who makes our family complete.

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Adventures

Seven!

A HOUSE WITH CHARACTER

We celebrated our oldest daughter’s seventh birthday last weekend with an ice-cream-themed party at a park in our little town.

My mom has made all seven of my daughter’s birthday cakes and continues to do an awesome job.

Our girl is a kind and sweet soul. She is determined, enthusiastic, and funny.

She is blessed with a great group of friends who came to celebrate the day with her.

We gave away ice cream dishes and frozen treat-themed erasers.

The weather was great and the kids had a blast.

Happy birthday to our dear seven-year-old. I hope the next year is filled with fun adventures for you!

Adventures

Four!

A HOUSE WITH CHARACTER

We welcomed our youngest daughter’s fourth birthday with not one, but two celebrations. It felt like the right thing to do given all the cancelled plans, sadness, and disappointment 2020 brought for so many of us. So while we were celebrating our spunky four-year-old, we were also celebrating the fact that we were celebrating something. Does that make sense?

First we had a small party with a few friends and family members at my parents’ house. Of course the theme was pandas, and my mother did not disappoint with the super adorable panda cake. My daughter insisted on eating a piece of cake entirely covered in black frosting, and I wasn’t even about to say no.

Then we were off to Washington, D.C. for some history lessons, a chance to see real pandas, and, of course the American Girl Store. I have been an American Girl fan since the 1980s and having never been to one of the actual stores, I was in heaven. The panda viewing didn’t pan (pun intended) out due to the National Zoo still being closed until mid-May, but we still had a great trip.

If there was ever any doubt that I married the most patient guy in the world, my husband endured almost three hours in the ever-so-pink two-level store and bistro without so much as batting an eye. It was over-the-top girly gloriousness. That’s the only way to describe it.

We ate lunch followed by a dessert of pink and white birthday cake. The girls’ dolls had their hair styled and nails painted. Then we shopped. If you think American Girl dolls don’t have cat litter box complete with fake kitty litter, a scooper, and plastic cat poop, you’re wrong. Of course that’s one of the items the birthday girl chose.

Happy birthday to this sweet, stubborn, funny, panda-loving girl. She makes our family complete. We can’t wait to see what the next year brings.

Adventures

Six!

A HOUSE WITH CHARACTER

Last weekend we celebrated my oldest daughter’s sixth birthday with a My Little Pony celebration at Storybook Island. My mother made the adorable cake, and we had a nice, albeit scorching hot, afternoon with family and friends. It felt good to experience that joy.

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In a year that has had so many downs, my girl has been a light in our lives. She exudes joy and energy. Despite the changes to our school year, she completed kindergarten like a champ, and is excited to dive into first grade.

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Our girl is kind, social, and enthusiastic. She loves her friends, her sister, and science. She finds joy in the little things in life. I hope she never loses that excitement for life.

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Adventures

Three!

A HOUSE WITH CHARACTER

My youngest daughter turned three a few months ago. What was supposed to be an art class party with friends became a small gathering of family at my parents’ house. It was still a good day celebrating my dear baby, but I held off posting about the day for the reasons I wrote about here.

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Now, as we prepare to celebrate my oldest daughter’s sixth birthday this weekend, I have been reflecting on these important festivities. After a lot of thought, not posting about my youngest’s third birthday seemed wrong. So here are some (very belated) photos and thoughts.

I have posted about each and every one of my daughters’ birthdays. The posts serve as a reminder of how special parenthood is, and how (cliché-alert) quickly those little ones grow. Not only are their birthdays fun for them, but they mark two of the most important days in my life.

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Despite the change in plans, our girl rang in age three in her true purple-loving style. My mom made the adorable Minnie Mouse cake and we dined on pigs in a blanket and fruit salad. We love the baby of our family. She loves purple, watermelon, her blanket, her sister, Minnie Mouse, and Daniel Tiger. She is often serious, sometimes silly, and always set in her ways. Happy belated birthday, dear girl.

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(Photo by Green Owl Media)

 

 

Adventures

Five!

A HOUSE WITH CHARACTER

My oldest turned five last week and we celebrated this past weekend with a ballerina-themed party at Storybook Island in Rapid City.

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Ages three and four were so much fun with this girl. These milestones are flying by at warp-speed, and I try to remind myself to slow down and soak in everything.

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The park has been our go-to place for all five of her birthday parties because it’s just a great venue for summer parties. My mom made the ballerina-themed cake in light blue, my daughter’s favorite color.

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I cannot believe she will start kindergarten in a few short weeks. She is kind, inquisitive, and social. She values her friendships and has a caring heart. She’s the best big sister, too. We love you, sweet girl, and we can’t wait to see what the next year has in store for you.

 

Adventures

Two!

A HOUSE WITH CHARACTER

The baby of the family turned two in late April and we celebrated this past weekend with a barnyard-themed party at a nearby petting zoo.

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It was a chilly day, but that didn’t stop a lot of friends and family members from joining us to celebrate the girl.

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My mom made the most adorable farm animal cupcakes.

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The kids all had a blast feeding sheep, goats, and calves and running around to their hearts’ content.

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I took a moment to enjoy a pig cupcake. The other white meat?

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Now that she’s two, our youngest is really developing her own personality and talking much more. She tends to be quite serious at times, and likes a little alone time once in a while, especially when she’s tired. She is definitely more timid than her sister, but is a natural caretaker. When she lets her silly side show, we all roar with laughter.

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My two-year-old is getting pretty good at her numbers and colors. She loves Minnie Mouse, books, puppies, and anything purple.

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I absolutely love having two daughters and watching their bond as sisters grow.

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The baby chicks and ducks got a big smile from the girl.

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Happy birthday to our dear baby girl. We love celebrating you. E-I-E-I-O.

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Adventures

Four!

A HOUSE WITH CHARACTER

I feel like it is nearly impossible for a parent to talk about his or her child’s birthdays without also commenting on how quickly time flies. It really feels like just yesterday we were celebrating my oldest daughter’s first, second, and third birthday parties, all at the beloved children’ park Storybook Island.

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We returned to that perfect venue this past weekend to celebrate her fourth birthday, this time renting the birthday house, which provided a great spot for cake and presents with tons of fun playground equipment right outside the door.

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This year’s theme was unicorns. My girl and her grandma planned the cake months ago. It was a tie-dyed unicorn filled with candy.

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Sugar overload ensued, but, hey, she only turns four once, right?

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She’s a big girl now, but I love that she is still little enough to fall fast asleep in the car on the drive home from her party.

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Happy birthday to our sweet, sociable, fun-loving girl. We are excited to see what the next year brings!

 

Adventures

One!

A HOUSE WITH CHARACTER

It always sounds so cliché, but it’s so true: The first year of a baby’s life goes so quickly! Our youngest turns one tomorrow. We celebrated with a donut-themed brunch over the weekend.

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The bear cake, made by my mother, is a family tradition. I had it for my first birthday, as did my oldest daughter, my cousin (who is also my youngest daughter’s godmother), and my niece. The girl was really quite dainty about eating her cake. She didn’t even get frosting on her shirt!

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We had donuts, cake, and cupcakes. I felt a tiny bit embarrassed because our family dentist who is also a good friend was in attendance with his wife and adorable daughter. I apologized for the sugar overload (while stuffing my face with a sprinkle-covered donut.)

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Happy birthday to our sweet baby girl. You are a cuddly, entertaining, delightful soul. You are a terrific walker and say “mama” and “dada.” You love animals, your sister, and making us laugh. We love you!

 

 

Adventures

Three!

A HOUSE WITH CHARACTER

It really does feel like it was just a few weeks ago that we were celebrating my oldest daughter’s first birthday and second birthday. How can it be that this past weekend we celebrated her turning three?

Amelia is three cake

Her pals from daycare, cousins, and some other friends showed up to celebrate, and my mom made these adorable Elsa and Anna cakes.

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I might say this about every age, but three is my favorite so far.

Amelia is three

She has her “threenager” moments of course, but overall she is a kind, sweet, inquisitive little girl. She continues to amaze us and make us laugh every day.

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