one and some

ok, i know i said i was coming back saturday to post more birthday photos, but see how fast time goes?  it's thursday already.

case in point- she's one.



we spent her birthday doing a little bit of everything and a little bit of nothing.  i took the day off and kept the girls home from daycare and school to just enjoy.

i wanted to celebrate her birth time by making lots of noise like we did for harper, but at 6:31 am, i personally did not think it to be the wisest choice with both girls still sleeping.  so we opted for a new tradition that was set to launch later in the evening.

we started with a bit of homemade waffles, with a candle and a song.



we did a bit of baking- a pistachio pudding cake to match her nickname.


the girls did a bit of tub splashing.


we did a bit of dancing.



we made homemade pizza, threw it in the car and did a tailgate-style picnic in the drizzling rain at the park where we were set to do a bit of surprising.


this was much more of an excitement for harper this year, as she has been asking about doing this since she first watched the movie tangled.  we had high hopes that this would go smoothly.  enter light rain and a bit of occasional wind and 2 parents who had not a clue what they were doing, and you've got a not-so successful paper lantern launch.



it was fun and exciting to watch while it lasted.



that is, until the wind blew slightly, pushing one lantern side into the flame and sending the whole thing down on a slow course right into the woods on the opposite side of the river.  we mad dashed to the car to set out on a hunt through the adjacent neighborhood to make certain we didn't set the town on fire that evening.  couldn't find that lantern.  but also couldn't find any smoke or flames, so i guess we're alright.  it also started a perfectly timed downpour right as we got back home, extinguishing my worries and guilt.

so we decided to cap the evening off with that cake and some superman ice cream.  and more candles and singing.



she's one and she's perfect and happy and growing and stretching my heart every day.  she's pure sunshine.



crosby at one...
*loves her veggies and most any food, but doesn't prefer fruit
*says ma, na, da, ba, ya
*blows killer raspberries and tongue trills
*claps her hands, waves bye-bye, shakes her head no and points at everything.  (soaking it all in, she is)
*crawls and cruises and walks with a walker and is so proud when she does
*loves to wake up in the middle of the night
*can't wait to splash in the tub (or any water for that matter, including the dog bowl or the toilet)
*has 6 teeth and a perfect little gap in the front that i just adore
*has an amazing smile and an infectious belly laugh
*loves her big sister, even when harper's rough with her
*says "nanas" for milk
*can sign "milk" and pound the table for "all done"
*twists and turns and won't stay still while she nurses
*wrinkles her nose to indicate absolute delight
*sucks her left thumb and rubs the tag of her pop the owl on her nose (just like harper)
*indicates she's very tired by placing both hands to her face, thumb in mouth and clinging to pop the  owl
*can get down from the couch by turning around and going feet first

we love her.



til next time...

one.

a quick post...its been a good, but tiring day.  emotions ran the gamut.



it seems like yesterday.  when i was carrying around our baby, gender unknown.  anticipation high as to when we would meet him/her.



it seems like yesterday.  when she arrived, perfect and healthy, pushing all the pregnancy worries aside.  doubling our hearts in size.  making her way into our family and fitting oh so fantastically.



and now, it's today.  and she's one.  i can't believe that she's one.  my beautiful, happy girl who has brought nothing but sunshine into our lives since the moment she arrived.



happy birthday, crosby.  we love you to the moon and back.



more on the day's events to come in a post tomorrow.  til then, g'nite.

color me happy

warning...too many pictures.  i hate deciding which ones to pick and which to leave out.  this is the reason my iphoto holds thousands of photos and is clogging my hard drive.  time to go back and purge.

ok, sidetracked for a minute.  since this one is turning one tomorrow, we threw her a big birthday bash last weekend, on st. patrick's day to be exact.

i've always loved st. patrick's day.  green beer.  bagpipes.  rolling lush hills of ireland, although i've only heard about it from my parents and brother.  and now i have a new reason, because our wee one was born just days after this festive day.

and so we celebrated in true blarney fashion- rainbow style.



we started friday night by making homemade funfetti cupcakes and cake pops.  gosh, were those fun to make.
   

i had my little baking helper, who decided it was her job to add even more sprinkles to the cake mix after it was poured into the muffin tins...



and then sneak a few nibbles herself every once in a while.



the next day, we set up the decor...

rainbow balloon arches.


monthly photo timeline.

zig zag streamers.  found this idea on pinterest.  super easy.


subway art.


paper straws.


and the activities were placed.  a tattoo station.  coloring tables.  guessing game.  and a lucky charms sorting mat.



the guests began to arrive, and playtime warmed up.



eventually, it was time to sing and let them eat cake.  i am not exactly certain why crosby started crying, but as soon as the happy birthday tune began, she immediately stopped and smiled.  she's a music lover.
 

at first, she wanted nothing to do with the frosting on her hands.  she tried a little taste, wriggled her hands to shake it off with a yucky look on her face, but then went back for more. and then she devoured it.


as the cake pops slowly began to dwindle, the cupcakes started to disappear and the ice cream began to melt, we realized it was about that time to wrap it up.  the day had gone so fast, and it was so happy and fun and colorful.



and in the end, the day only solidified just how fortunate and lucky we are to have two very special, amazing little girls to love.  and to have amazing friends and family around us who love our girls, too.



happy birthday party, little one.



big day tomorrow.  more to come.