Wednesday, August 5, 2009

2nd Birthday WEEKEND!!

Forget celebrating Kelsey's birthday for just one day, we extended it from Friday evening until Monday evening. Nothing like stretching it out so that they think everyday is their birthday :-) Friday evening we had my parents over (to take my dad out for his birthday) and we gave Kelsey her gift from Lou & I & my parents. We got her a play kitchen, which she absolutely LOVES. She got to play with it for about 20 minutes and then I had to take her, crying, to our friends Megan/Matt's (Jack's parents) so they could babysit her while we went out. She did not want to leave her kitchen. Saturday was her Party Day! From the moment she woke up, she was asking to go play with her kitchen. Normally she comes into our room to snuggle, drink her milk and watch a little Agent Oso (or Mickey Mouse Clubhouse depending on what time she wakes up). Instead, this morning we all went into the playroom so she could play with her kitchen while drinking her milk (so sad..no snuggles for mommy). We had to run a few quick (well they were supposed to be quick) errands. We'd been talking all week about everyone who was coming over for her party today and she was very excited(Gma/Gpa McD, Aunt Kellie, Aunt Cindy/Uncle Chris, Brian/Sean/Colin/Ian, Gma Roselli, Grandad, Aunt Michelle/Uncle Glenn, Ryan/Isabel/Colin, Aunt Christine/Uncle Gary, Aunt Jenny, Megan/Matt, Drew/Jack, Vince/Julie, Ava/Anthony.)We got her down around 1ish and I began quickly getting everything ready for the gumbo. It was an easy set up this year, some colorful pinwheels in the grounds and a few in pots of sand, a colorful tablecloth for outside, hang her Birthday sign, and put pictures in the frames as take home gifts. This year we decided to just invite family plus 2 friend which still had or numbers at 18 adults and 12 kids!Sometimes Kels takes a few minutes to warm up, but I got her up from nap as Lou's family arrived and she was pretty much good to go. She kept talking about wearing her party dress, I even got her to wear her princess crown for a while as well. The kids all had a great time playing and swimming. Kelsey actually went in her little pool while still in her party dress!! Gotta love it! I made whole wheat pizza for the kids and Gumbo for the adults. Gma Roselli made Kelsey's cake again this year and it was a hit. It was a Big Elmo face. No candle blowing b/c of the wind, but she did get a cupcake this year. She did not cry, but probably would've left it alone if Lou hadn't put some icing in her mouth..she was sold. She kept dipping her finger in the cupcake and putting it in her mouth. She really didn't eat much of the actual cupcake. She did get to open a few presents before everyone left and really enjoyed that. Overall she had a great party and we had fun too!
When I put her to bed I told her "tomorrow is your real birthday"! She was smiling from ear to ear. I snuck in her room a little before midnight and took her out of her crib and sat in the glider with her for about 20 minutes. I just wanted to snuggle with my one year old for a little longer. Somehow her monitor was turned down in the AM (ooops!) and Lou and I slept in till about 8:40. I awoke to hearing her crying from down the hall....not a nice way for her to start her real birthday. She was fine once I went in and got her and she asked me if she could have some cake. We played in the game room and then I made special birthday pancakes (banana nut oatmeal) and turkey sausage. After breakfast we let her open the rest of her gifts and then we played some more. For lunch she had spaghetti and meatballs. She made quite a mess eating with her hands and was so funny because she asked me for a napkin 1/4 way through her food. And then she cleaned her hands for a while and continued eating. After nap we packed up and went to my parents house for cake & dinner. My mom had bought her a mini cake from Publix. I sucked it up and let her have it knowing it would be the last for a while. Gpa McD and Aunt Kellie enjoyed feeding her some cake off of her fork as well as her dipping finger in again. For dinner she had shrimp and quinoa, peas/carrots and pineapple. It was a very low key birthday, but I think she really enjoyed herself.
Monday was Kelsey's cupcake party with her friends at the park. It was supposed to be simply a way for her friends to sing "Happy Birthday" to her and enjoy some sugary sweets, but my friends are too much and they all got Kelsey gifts as well. (Have I ever told you that I belong to the most amazing group of local SAHM/WAHM...Don't know what I'd do without them) Before we could venture to the park, we had to go to Dr. Chiong's for Kelsey's 2 year well-check. It went... Well. No shots until 4 (I think) She's right on track for everything and doing great. We did get a referral for a dermatologist for her eczema though. Then Kelsey and I headed out for the park to meet her friends. I made some warm, fresh cranberry-orange scones for the adults and brought the extra cake from her party and a few cupcakes for the kids. I hung up her birthday sign and put down her fun daisy tablecloth. The kids played for a while, then I gathered them all up so we could sing "Happy Birthday" and eat cake. The candle actually stayed lit (after a few tries of trying to light it) and Kelsey got to blow it out..with the help of her buddy Jack! I am not used to cutting cake for kids and started cutting the slices for the kids way too big. I scaled back..moms were happy, kids were not. LOL I decided Kelsey had enough cake so she got to eat a scone instead, she was perfectly content. Whoooo!! My friends helped me load up all of the gifts and stuff an we headed home. I told K she had to wait until after nap when daddy got home to open her gifts from her friends. She was so good after nap and kept wanting to go in the front room to open them, but didn't do it. Finally daddy came home and we got to sit down and watch her open gifts. She had such a fun time. I had to slow her down a little so I could at least write down what was from who. It was a whirlwind of a weekend...she is still singing happy birthday to herself when I get her up from naps and always asks to go upstairs to play with her kitchen (it was a big hit)! I can only imagine what the next year has in store for us. These past two years have just flown by in the blink of an eye. My baby is not such a baby anymore. She's talking in full sentences and even occasionally calls me "mom". She's very independent and likes to do things herself. She's a great helper and likes to clean up. She loves her books and puzzles and baby dolls. She is still an incredible eater (knock on wood many times over) She loves bubbles, swimming and playing in the water. She enjoys going to the beach and playing in the sand. She is great at giving kisses and hugs when we ask for them and even when we don't! It has been an incredible first two years and everyday we love her more than we did the day before.........

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Kelsey is such a sweet little princess! Happy belated birthday!