Happy Birthday, Grace! Part Two

 Grace's fifth birthday happened to fall on the Saturday after Easter this year. In what can only be construed as mom guilt, I felt it was necessary to have an all out party since my child had no friends to celebrate with on or around her actual birthday (due to the move.)

At her first birthday party, in Florida, I had talked her out of a hodge podge princess/dirt cake situation, and instead took the dirt cake inspiration and threw her a garden tea party. It all came together rather quickly. I sent Ian and Grace out to the store in the morning to pick up fresh flowers and balloons and had my parents set up a small table out in their back yard. I'm pretty sure it's just a folding table resting on some crates, but either way it was a great set up. We had colorful paper plates, mugs for hot cocoa (it was a cold and very windy day!) napkin bunnies that my mom folded, and some of Grace's favorite treats.

 Doesn't every little girl ask to have dates at her birthday party?

 Beautiful flowers and cute little bunny ears peeking out of the cups!

 We had towels to sit on and warm, fuzzy blankets to wrap around us to keep cozy.

 We chowed down. Luke LOVED the fruit and made a mess of himself with all of that melon.

 After we ate we played a couple of rounds of an egg/spoon race.

 Around the tree and back!

 Grace and Sophia were pretty excited,

 But their little personalities quickly showed themselves. Sophia followed the rules exactly....

 While Grace found a way to make it happen quickly and to her advantage!

 Afterwards Grace opened a few small presents, including her first Adventures in Odyssey! That makes this momma's heart proud (and to feel really old!)

 We all just love our Gracie girl so much!

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Happy Birthday, Grace! Part Two

Happy Birthday, Grace! Part One

Grace turned FIVE YEARS old this April.

Five.

I know I should be reveling in the fact that she's so much bigger and older but all I seem to be able to feel is how old that makes me!

I really can't believe five years have gone by since that tiny little peanut of a girl was placed  in our arms. Sleepless nights and all the excitement of the first baby turned quickly into routine and we have loved seeing our girl grow and develop over the years.

As we got ready to move back to the US I had one reoccurring nightmare:
Grace, on her birthday, blowing out a candle on a cake.
In an empty room.
With tears streaming down her face.
She looks up at me and asks "Where are all of my friends?"

And I would wake up in tears.

I knew this scenario, though a bit dramatic, was entirely possible.

I tried my best to brace Grace for the worst. And build up her birthday in whatever way I could!

"YOU get to spend your birthday in America!"
"YOU get to go to Disney for your birthday!"

And there was shameless present bribing.

Grace seemed unfazed until a few days before her actual birthday, when she realized the reality of not being able to invite any friends to her party- Just her boring old family.

Those conversations were heartbreaking, for sure, but we pulled off not one, but two birthday parties with our different sides of the family, and I think she felt loved, cherished, and special, so hopefully that makes up for the lack of playmates.

Her first party ended up being a bit of a mish mash of Sofia the First and Frozen. Her requests for a family dinner included Mimi's chicken, asparagus (her favorite!) sweet potatoes, and cake.

The cake had very specific directions: Pink frosting (vanilla,) Chocolate cake, with gummi worms and dirt cake somehow infused. I finally convinced her to save the worms and dirt cake for her other birthday party and salvaged our princess party cake a bit.

No one says she isn't unique!

Ian's mom helped put together this party and even made us a pin the nose on Olaf game. I can't find a picture anywhere but it was so cute!

Grace got Paw Patrol vehicles and characters, Candy Land, a Sofia the first costume, and some new clothes! The plan was to replace her bike that we sold in Abu Dhabi but we will wait until we know where we are going next to purchase that- one less thing to move!

Grace is such a big personality! She loves people- talking to them, interacting with them, playing with them. She could be with other people 24/7. She loves making jokes and has dubbed herself as "hilarious." Grace is surprisingly athletic. She's a fast runner and picks ups on technique for just about any sport- recently throwing and catching a frisbee and hitting a baseball on a tee!

Grace is so smart. She loves to learn about anything and finds the patterns in everything. She's reading at a second to third grade level and is eager to be able to do more! I'm amazed at her comprehension and retelling skills.

Grace is hurting the most over our move. she wants friends and playdates and stability and her toys and space. She is very excited about the prospect of kindergarten in the fall but gets frustrated that we can't show her where she will be going yet.

Grace is an awesome big sister, especially to Luke. She helps him, soothes him, and cuddles with him. She leads Sophia in imaginative play and helps them create a world to play in. Grace can find friends anywhere and makes it her mission at a park or playground to find someone who will play with her.

I can't wait to see what happens in her five year old life this year. Grace, I pray that the Lord will call you to Him and you will choose to follow Him. I pray that we can point you in the right direction and show you His love, mercy, grace, patience, and teach you of what it means to face consequences for our choices, and the beauty in the fact that we can not bear the full weight of our sins ourselves.

I pray that this year you will have a compassionate heart. You've been so sheltered and lived in a place with much wealth and diversity. I pray that as you settle into this American life that you will still embrace all around you, no matter the capabilities, skin color, or financial status. I pray that you will LOVE deeply all in your class and that you will be an advocate for those that need a friend. And I pray that I can show these to you in my own life.

Grace, I love you sweet girl. I am so thankful for the five years we have had together and what you have already taught me. I love you with all of my heart. Ugga Mugga, baby girl. Here's a hushum from me to you.

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Happy Birthday, Grace! Part One

Sophia's Third Birthday- Ice Cream Party Edition

As Sophia's birthday approached I started asking her what kind of party she wanted. She'd mirror back whatever answer Grace had most recently mention (rainbow, Frozen, Tinkerbell,) or another character (Daniel Tiger,) and I would keep steering her away. I've done two character parties and they are just so difficult to pull off here with no craft stores and limited party and color options.

So when she came up with a theme of her own I actually paused for a minute, until I thought it through....

Fire.

Yep. My sweet little (then) two year old daughter had asked for a FIRE birthday party.

Not a firefighter party.

Not a fireworks party.

Not even a campfire and s'mores type of party.

No. Girlfriend requested a fire party, with "lots of fire everywhere!!"

And, seeing as I didn't want "pyromaniac," to be settled on her permanent record all because of a birthday party theme I looked for an escape route.

Cue the backpeddling and trying to convince her that a Rainbow-Daniel Tiger- Tinkerbell combo party was a better idea than FIRE.

But, as you all know, two year olds aren't the most logical of the human species. She was not having it. All she wanted was fire.

I even went onto Pinterest to prove that a fire theme could not be easily pulled of, but, as luck would have it, there are many a flame top cake options out there.

So instead I chose a theme all by myself and proved it to her via the world wide web. Ice Cream. Just about the exact opposite of fire (well, it would be ICE, right? and Ice would be too close to Frozen, so I went with cute, whimsical ice cream.)

I thank all of the bloggers out there now who have ice cream parties pinned on Pinterest because their beautiful creations saved my hiney.

Sophia was hooked. Ice Cream party it was.

I didn't quite have it all together (as in, I never made an invitation, just sent out some text messages,) but we had a cute ice cream party for Sophia today that was laid back, simple, and so exciting for her!

Party Planning and executing is not my forte, like, at all. But as simple as this one was, and budget friendly, I'm happy with the results.

We had two garlands of ice cream cones that I had printed, cut up, and strung, along with some Sofia the First baloons because I could not find any plain colored balloons. #expatproblems

On the dining room table we had all of the ice cream fixings, including cupcake liners filled with crushed Oreos, M&M's, gummy candies, and waffle cone pieces. We also had sprinkles, caramel and chocolate topping, and maraschino cherries (of course.)

We had a centerpiece of super cute ice cream cones topped with cotton candy. They were suppossed to be our party favors and I made them ahead of time and sealed them in baggies but the few days made the cotton candy shrink and compress into hard scoops, so I just made it decor.

We had a few little snacks, juice boxes, and water, but since it was at snack time I was fairly confident the ice cream cone cupcakes and ice cream would be enough before people left to find their own dinner.

The kids had two activities: one was a craft where they could color and glue down circles (ice cream scoops,) onto a paper plate, then glue down colored paper bits (sprinkles.) The other activity was Pin the Ice Cream Scoop on the cone! It was fun and enough for the kiddos, besides the legos and Disney people we had set up to play with. Any more would have been too much with that crowd (14 kids! plus many of their parents.)

We almost didn't open up presents, but in the end we did. It's pretty split. Obviously our American culture thinks it is very normal to open the presents at the party, but European cultures think it's extremely rude. And seeing as we had Americans, Peruvian, British, Swedish, and Emirati cultures being represented, I didn't know what to do. But Sophia (and all of the kids,) kept asking to open presents so I caved. 

Sophia handed out Marshmallow Sticks as party favors (you're welcome, parents, for sugaring up your children and then sending them home.)

 Sophia was pretty afraid of the candle smoke (oh the irony,) after her birthday candle incident last week, but she humored me and let me light the candle when we sang to her, but insisted I blow out the candle and keep the scary smoke away from her! Poor Soey!

 Happy birthday, sweet girl! It was fun to celebrate you!

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Sophia's Third Birthday- Ice Cream Party Edition

{Grace} 4th Birthday- Cinderella Style

Alright ya'll. I have a confession to make.

Two confessions actually.

One: When Grace was still TWO years old and we were in the US, I picked up some Cinderella party supplies for her third birthday party. That party never really happened. So, despite her not really being a fan of Cinderella at nearly FOUR years old, she had a Cinderella party.

Momma's on a budget!

Two: I'm really bad at throwing parties. Or at least making them look nice! Sure, people have a great time and everyone walks away full and happy, but the pictures of the decor and setup? It's not bad photography, it is just my skills are that bad.

Plus, Momma's on a budget! (in a land devoid of crafts supplies stores and dollar spots.)

Alas, the show must go on.

Grace had her friends from church over, many came dressed in princess/prince attire. They made crafts, played games, and opened presents.

Cupcakes and cake were had, birthday songs were sung, and we as parents remarked at how this was the calmest party ever! The kids are just so used to one another that they just payed perfectly and us grown ups got to sit around and chat!

Grace and one of her BFFs, Maya, born also on the same day as Grace!

Happy Birthday, Gracie Girl! We are so excited to see what FOUR brings your way!

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{Grace} 4th Birthday- Cinderella Style

Sophia's First Birthday...Take Two!

I'm almost completely caught up on the major events of our time in the States, and it's a good thing too, since we only have three days left! It is currently a blur of packed and yet to be packed suitcases and as much family time as possible.

Back in October Ian's parents threw a family birthday party for Sophia. Pinata and all! Grace was pretty intrigued by the pinata and downright gleeful about the goodies that was stashed inside

Sophia was pretty much happy chewing on a stuffed animal. But that is a one year old for you!

Presents for Sophia mainly consisted of new clothes and a Minnie Mouse doll that sang

We then moved onto cake time. Sophia was a pro by round two and pretty much stuck to the icing before calling it quits.

We loved being able to celebrate Sophia's first birthday with both sides of our family and this party was special because Kim, Ian's mom, was able to be there for Sophia's delivery and then again to celebrate her first birthday!

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Sophia's First Birthday...Take Two!