Happy Birthday!

 We celebrated Hailey's 2nd Birthday with family and friends.  I rented a room at the riverpark, and it was well worth it.  It's so nice to have extra space for everyone to spread out and actually have a place to sit. We decided to go with a jungle theme this year.  I found a cute pastel design that worked great for a little girl.  Kevin helped me make a leaf banner and he made an awesome hippo bean bag toss game. For table decor I used acrylic frames, superglued some wooden animals on the corners, and matted cute pics of Hailey on printed scrapbook paper.  I think they came out pretty cute - and they were inexpensive!

Hippo game made by my sweet Hubby

Waiting for all the guests to arrive

Hailey was excited about her party.  Several of her friends at daycare have celebrated their birthdays lately, so she knew all about the cake and ice cream.  She just wasn't quite sure what to do about the fire on her cupcake though!

Enjoying some ice cream with Uncle Keith

Right before present time, Hailey discovered her balloon.  Needless to say, she was much more interested in her balloon than opening gifts.  She got some really cute clothes, learning games, a Cinderella dress, and several movies!  We bought her a swingset, but it will not be set up until spring. 

Finding Nemo!

 About halfway through the party, it began to snow!  Luckily everyone made it home safe.  We really appreciate everyone braving the weather to come celebrate with us!

  

Hey, remember me???

I realize I'm a little behind getting things posted, but better late than never I guess.  Between keeping busy at work, tutoring elementary kids 4 evenings a week, chasing a toddler, attempting to keep the laundry and house clean, and the dreary cold winter weather, I just haven't been able to find time, energy, or motivation to do much anything else.  Not to mention it is now 30 days into the new year and I haven't begun to work on the few New Years resolutions that I did make!  Sorry for being a Debbie Downer!  So my goal this week, as we head into February already (yikes!) is to get back on track.  Stay tuned for several new posts this week!

Christmas Celebrations

We began our Christmas celebrations a week early by celebrating at my Aunt Kay's.  My mom has 3 sisters, so by the time you add in aunts, uncles, cousins, and now our husbands and children, it makes for a lot of people to try to plan around.  We've found it a lot less stressful to celebrate early.  I remember celebrating Christmas with my cousins - singing Christmas carols in front of the tree while waiting for our moms to finish cleaning up dishes so that we could open our presents.  (I'm pretty sure dad has those videos somewhere, bet those are pretty embarrassing!)  Now we're all grown up, and it's fun to watch our babies get excited over gifts.

Hailey opening her first presents of this Christmas season. 

She got a dress up doll, peek a boo baby, and a vacuum cleaner.

We celebrated Christmas Eve with Kevin's family. His aunts, uncles, and cousins were there too!  Hailey got to play with her cousins and they had a blast.

Hailey and Addison provided the dinner music

 Present Time!

We stayed up pretty late and ended up having to wake Hailey for Christmas morning presents with just the three of us. She was pretty excited to get her very own kitchen!

 

It took a little work to convince Hailey to leave her kitchen and get ready to head to my parents house for Christmas breakfast.  

 Opening presents is hard work,

 

 But after a quick nap, she was right back to playing...

 

and eating her fair share of Christmas goodies!

We had a great Christmas season.  Being able to experience it all with a toddler is that much more special.  Can't wait until next year when she's old enough to better understand santa claus -that should be fun!

Christmas Fun



Here's a run down of some of the activities that kept us busy leading up to Christmas.

Hailey is still not a fan of the big guy in the furry red suit.......



This is the best pic we were able to get.  Oh well, maybe next year!

And of course, we had to make our annual family trip (Oliver included!)  to see the lights at Creekmore!



Then it was time to decorate some Christmas cookies!

  You can never have too many sprinkles!

 She didn't quite get the idea of decorating now and eating later...

O Christmas Tree

Hailey was excited to put up the Christmas tree this year, and she just couldn't wait to help!

She loved all the pretty ornaments. Problem is, she thought they all looked good in one spot!

Fall Photos

Here are a few pics from our fall photo shoot. Hailey wasn't the most cooperative that day- she was more interested in running around and throwing rocks, but Lacy got some cute shots and we had a good time.

Halloween Fun

This is our little strawberry on Halloween. I just love this costume! I found it online way back when it was still 100 degrees outside and knew it would just be perfect for trick or treating this year. So, of course, I ordered it -although Halloween was over 2 months away. Some think I'm crazy, some may even think I'm a little compulsive when it comes to planning - but hey, I'm a girl that believes you can never be too prepared! (Christmas gifts will be ordered soon, and birthday party plans are already in the works, just in case your wondering!)





Anyways, we kicked off our Halloween by stopping by for some pics with Hailey's cousins Buzz Lightyear and Bee. Unfortunately, this is the best non-blurry pic we got. These three definitely keep me on my toes!




Then we headed off to Nana and Gramps to trick or treat! We figured a circle drive would be a little safer for a toddler to run around, plus mom and dad have the privilege of knowing all their neighbors. Hailey wasn't so sure about the whole trick or treating thing at first. She is going through that phase of being scared to death of strangers, so we weren't really expecting a whole lot, but once she realized she was getting candy, it was a whole new ballgame!




However, she didn't quite get the concept of being able to choose a piece or two of candy. When the neighbor held out her basket for Hailey to "choose what she liked", Hailey decided she would "like" to have to whole basket -haha!


My cousins stopped by with their kids too. We trick or treated together every year when we were younger, so it was a lot of fun to take our kiddos now. I must say though, I got worn out much faster than I did 20 years ago!




Hailey loved trying to keep up with the boys, and by the end of the night she had the trick or treat thing down pat. She came away with a pretty good haul too!

White Rock

We headed to White Rock this past weekend in search of some beautiful fall foliage...while it was pretty, the colors just aren't quite there yet. I was a little disappointed in the lack of brilliant reds, oranges, and yellows, but we had a great afternoon anyway.

We started off with a picnic at Shores Lake, which is at the bottom of the mountain. She had a great time throwing rocks in the lake! This was Hailey's first picnic and I think she was a tad bit confused over eating outside.

We then headed to the top of the mountain, but due to the straight down drop-offs and a rambunctious toddler we didn't stay long. Hailey did find a pile of leaves to crunch, kick, and throw (also a first for her)!





It was fun visiting the mountain with our little girl. White Rock is special to me because that's where we got engaged (exactly 6 years ago this past weekend). Here's a few pics of us on the mountain over the years.



May 10, 2004


October 30, 2004
Right after Kevin proposed



November 4, 2006


October 30, 2010