Alex's Fairy Forest

We celebrated Alex's 3rd birthday yesterday with a Fairy Forest Party on her actual birthday! I started off my morning at 6am with a quick shower and a trip to the donut shop for her breakfast tradition! A chocolate sprinkle donut. This year we included chocolate milk! She gave both 2 thumbs up! She ended up eating about 3 bites of her donut before Cooper swiped it and had 2 sips of her chocolate milk before she decided she was over it!

With Alex's help, we came up with the theme for her party in January! I am all about a lengthy planning time so I can take my time to find exactly what I want for the party instead of rushing around at the last minute! Alex received a beautiful fairy pop up book from my best friends mom and I immediately knew I wanted to go the traditional fairy route instead of Tinkerbell.

I found the perfect invites on Etsy.

We wrapped up fairy wings and tutus and delivered them to each girl attending the party. Alex selected the colors. She chose purple for her friends and pink for herself.

My sweet little fairy on her birthday!

My biggest task was creating the fairy forest. I knew in my mind exactly what I wanted it to look like, but creating it was the hard part. I spent the months prior to the party cutting out all of the paper good (cupcake wrappers, cupcake toppers, Happy Birthday Alex pendants, Alex's Fairy Forest pendant and the animals around the forest). The week before the party I created the forest. My parents came in town Thursday night and my mom helped with all of the finishing touches. Josh suggested we use some astro turf we had in the attic for the forest floor. I LOVED the way it finished the look. We had so much fun working on every last detail!

We had a kid height table and kids chairs for the girls. Each place was set with a craft to start with. The table centerpiece was edible. We made marshmallow kabobs and fairy wands that were pink chocolate dipped pretzels.

Each girl had bracelets, rings and a wand set out for them as well.

I made the little cone shaped tree to match the topiaries on the food table.

The food table, before the food was set out. I re purposed the topiaries from Alex's baby shower to match the theme and color. The book on the left was our inspiration for the party.

The only picture I have with the food on the table is actually cropped in from a different picture so it isn't the best! The kids food included Magical Fairy Wands (fruit kabobs), Fairy Garden Veggies (carrots, celery and tomatoes with ranch), Snail Sandwiches (ham and cheese roll ups and pb&J roll ups), Chocolate Kissed Fairy Berries (chocolate covered strawberries), Fruity Fairy Flowers (tarts filled with yogurt, blueberries and raspberries) and Fairy Fizz (sparkling cherry limeade and strawberry lemonade).

Each item had it's own little sign I created.

The inspiration along with a close up of a topiary.

As each girl arrived, they picked a seat and started working on decorating a fairy house. I painted them pink and added a pink and green ribbon. Each girl received a little bucket of jewels to glue on to the house.

When they were finished decorating them, I placed them on a bag with their name. They used the bag later to take home their fairy house, wand, bracelets and wings. While they were decorating their houses, the girls snacked on the fairy wands and marshmallow centerpieces.

One by one, the girls were taken to the face painter while the others worked on their houses. Every girl ended up having her face painted and a few went back for painted bracelets!

Alex loves to have her face painted anytime she can so we wanted to make sure to incorporate it into her birthday party!

Alex had so much fun opening her presents.

Since we celebrate Alex's birthday 3 different times, we try to change up the cake/dessert each time. We ordered cupcakes and I made wrappers and toppers to personalize them.

When the girls we done with cupcakes and ice cream they all played around. Alex gave Chandler a ride on her new tricycle.

Before the fairies left, we tried for a group picture!

(left to right: Ina, Alex, Abby, Chandler, Helen and Carson)

Her birthday party was soo much work, but soo worth it! I loved seeing Alex's face light up every time she saw a new detail of the party coming together. My mom was the biggest help setting everything up and making all the beautiful bows that were tied to anything that stood still! Josh was a champ cleaning the house and doing yard work while we worked on the food. My sweet Dad did pretty much anything we asked from putting together gifts to running to the store for stuff we forgot! Terri and Ray were key in keeping Alex and Cooper occupied the morning of the party!

Elefun Party

Alex got an Elefun game for her birthday over the 4th of July weekend from Nomi and Popi. We put it away for a little while, mainly because I kept forgetting to pick up batteries for it! Last night after dinner, we took it out. Alex LOVED it! She can't quite catch the little butterflies yet, but she loves waiting for them to flutter out! This game was a HUGE hit!

**excuse the mess in her room...I was doing her laundry and changing her sheets before bed time!**

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2nd Birthday Party!

We celebrated Alex's 2nd birthday Saturday afternoon. My parents and Josh's parents were here all day Saturday to help us prepare. Our theme was Ice Cream Bar. The colors were orange, hot pink and aqua. Alex was OBSESSED with the balloons on the mail box. She actually saw them before her nap when my dad was bringing them up the driveway. I ran out and asked him to take them around back so we could hide them in our closet. The party started at 3 so we had to wake Alex up from her nap. As soon as she got up, she went to the front door and said balloon over and over again. We kept trying to redirect her attention to no avail.

We finally brought in a few balloons. By the end of the party, all dozen that were on the mail box had made their way inside!
Alex had a blast opening her presents and throwing tissue paper around. We are so lucky to have wonderful friends who love our little girl.
After presents, we started the ice cream bar. We gave everyone a selection of 3 flavors then had toppings (nuts, mini M&M's and sprinkles) along with caramel, hot fudge, whipped cream and cherries! Instead of cake, I made mini cupcakes so there wouldn't be too much of a sugar over load! We had so much fun! I realized after hosting a shower and a birthday party within 3 weekends of each other is hard work...we may be having her birthday party somewhere else next year!

Our sweet little family!

Birthday!

On Friday, I got up early and picked up donuts so I could be here as soon as Alex woke up on her birthday. Josh and I put together her kitchen the night before, so I wanted to see her sweet little face when she saw it for the first time! She absolutely loved it! So much that she didn't even want any donuts because she wanted to keep playing. We finally talked her into sitting at her kitchen counter to eat a little.

Alex hates getting her hands dirty when she eats sweet stuff for some reason, so she ate the top off part of her donut and decided that was all she wanted.
After breakfast, we had a Lady Gaga dance party. Alex loves her some Lady Gaga! She showed off her jumping skills!

We all got ready and went to see Toy Story 3. We weren't sure how she'd do, but she was great!!! She sat in her little booster seat and munched on pretzels and goldfish. About 20 minutes before the movie was over she started getting antsy and went back and forth between Josh and me. After the movies we went out to lunch. Alex's favorite...Pizza!

Nomi and Popi got to our house around 7:30 so we went to dinner. We went to Chili's so Alex could have some chips and "sauce." She loves salsa, which she calls sauce.

I love that Josh took off the entire day so we could spend Alex's birthday together doing her favorite things! Seeing my sweet girl so happy just makes my heart smile. Josh and I had so much fun on her birthday, especially because we could tell she loved her special day!

Happy 2nd Birthday

Happy Second Birthday

Alexandra Rae!

Dear Alexandra,

I can't believe you are two years old. It seems like just a few months ago to me...

From the day I told your mommy that if we had a daughter I wanted her name to be Alexandra, I knew that I would love you. I cried the day we found out your mommy was pregnant and I cried the day you were born. You were beautiful to me then and you are even more beautiful to me now.

Each and every day of your life, you have made mine more special. Without your hugs in the morning, my days are empty. Without your laugh, my days are sad. Without your smile, I am missing a part of myself. Without you, there is no me.

Your mommy and you have made me complete. You have both changed my life for the better in every way possible; I know what is important now. I wake up every day and look forward to what the day holds for you. Your excitement is contagious; your love is infectious.

I watch you grow up every day with a blend of happiness and sadness. I will always treasure each day because they are fleeting. You're becoming a little girl now, but you'll forever be my baby. I just hope that as each year goes by, you still let your daddy hold you...even if it's only for a few seconds. I love you Alexandra Rae and I always will.

Forever your daddy.

Alexandra Rae,

I can not believe 2 short years ago you were a tiny little 5 pound 12 ounce baby who decided to surprise everyone by making an early appearance. The first time I held you in my arms, I knew my life was complete. Every day since, my love has grown even more that I ever thought possible. You went from a sweet little baby to a beautiful toddler in the blink of an eye.

You make me smile and laugh a million times a day. You melt me when you snuggle up to me and plant big kisses on my mouth. You are the sweetest little thing. I love experiencing life through your eyes. I am so lucky to be your Mommy.

There are so many things I want for you, but more than anything I want you to know every single day how much I love you. You bring so much joy to my life!

Happy 2nd Birthday my sweet baby!

Love you today, tomorrow and always,

Mommy

July 4th and Parties!

4th of July is always a big holiday for us. The Stafin side is HUGE on fireworks so we always get together at the lake house to hang out and shoot off massive amounts of fireworks!

Since Alex's birthday is right around July 4th we have 2 mini parties for her since the whole family is together. The first one was Saturday afternoon. Alex LOVED blowing the candle out!

Alex got tons of cute clothes and a Tag Jr. she LOVES! I totally recommend it. We programmed it so it says her name every time she turns it on and turns it off. I already found her a few more books on clearance!

After her nap, we played outside. Alex really enjoys playing with her cousins. Jordan and Sabrina took her on a little walk!

Before it started getting dark, the boys hauled all the fireworks to the point. They take great pride in setting everything up so it's ready to go once it gets dark!

I wasn't too sure what Alex would think about the fireworks. She slept through them last year! This year, she LOVED them! She went back and forth between her chair and the swing with Grandma. After each round of fireworks, she would cheer and clap, then say "more Daddy!!!"

Sunday morning we went to my parents. My grandparents were there too! We hung out for a little while, then after Alex went down for a nap, Mom and I ran to the store to get a few things for her 2nd pre-party! We had a small cookout and cupcakes, then watched some more fireworks.

Alex got the cutest bowl and spoon that she carried around most of the day. She pretended to feed everyone and even held on tight while she was swinging.

Baby girl was getting sleepy before the fireworks. As soon as we got settled on our blanket, she asked for milk so we hiked back up to the house to get some milk. She flopped down and had milk while we watched some fireworks.

We have the best families! Alex was showered with tons of cute clothes and some great toys! We are so lucky to have such wonderful parents who love our little girl as much as we do! We are so grateful they are still making the 3 hour drive for Alex's birthday party next weekend, even though we already celebrated with them!

One More Week

I have one more week to savor every moment with my one year old. Next Friday, she will be 2!

We have a busy weekend visiting both sets of grandparents, having 2 mini birthday parties and watching tons of fireworks! So that means, tons of pictures to come!

Party Planning

I mentioned we hosted a baby shower Saturday. Everything went perfect! We had just enough food, delicious ice cream cupcakes and a house full of people! Now that it's over I can start setting my sights on a very special day. My baby girl turns 2 next Friday! Josh and I have a very special day planned for her on her actual birthday. I'll share a recap of our day along with pictures on her birthday. Saturday is the big party! I've been buying stuff for it (and the baby shower) for the last month or so. I happened to get soo lucky because my parents had a huge party a few weeks ago and used the same colors I was planning on using for Alex's party, so I am borrowing all of their stuff which works out great! I know the next 2 weeks are going to be filled with last minute details and errands, but I am sooo excited about it! I changed our blog pic to her birthday invite...kind of. I took out all the info and just added The Stafins. But you can see, our colors are orange, hot pink and aqua! I can't wait until it all starts coming together!

Baby Grand

Last week the birthday present we ordered for Alex finally came in! We had the hardest time figuring out what to get her, then I came a cross an adorable little pink baby grand piano and knew it was perfect! She adores playing with our big piano so we thought a little Alex sized one would be better for her. I showed it to Josh and he loved it. While I was giving Alex a bath and getting her ready for bed, he put it together. She was so excited when she saw it! She started banging away. She has been playing with it non-stop. One of her favorite things to do is play hers, then reach up and play the big one to hear the difference!

Alex's hair is getting so long, but it's a weird long. It's long on top and over her ears, but it's not as long around the sides. I've been playing with her hair on a daily basis and Josh just laughs at me! Here are 2 new hair do's we tried...I decided we'd wait a little longer to try pig tails again!