Lately...

Lately it seems like our house has been doing a lot of dressing up.  It all started with Emme and a pair of purple goggles that she fell in love with...

She requests them at least once a day and watching her zip around in them is quite entertaining...

She's always had a little thing for eye gear.  Case in point...

She also ditched the glasses/goggles and got all dressed up for her sweet friends birthday party...

But Emme's not the only one who has been dressing up around here.  Carter found herself playing doctor (thanks Aunt Kathie for the perfect birthday present) and heading to her first gymnastics class on the same day...

I think it's safe to say after one lesson she is officially in love...

Nate also found a reason to get all dressed up (his favorite little lady was hoping to tag along as his date)...

She couldn't go this time so we stayed home and made the most of things with, what else, a little more dress up...

She even channeled the orient (look Jenny it fits!)...

Lately we've been having fun...

With a day that starts at the crack of dawn (6:30 am to be exact)...

I'm looking at the bright side and realizing that just leaves us plenty of time to squeeze in trips to the park...

It's not hard to wake up knowing you've got this little face to play peek-a-boo with...

I think as time goes on I become more and more appreciative of the laughter these munchkin's bring to our home...

Hope your lately has had plenty of laughs as well.  Happy Tuesday!

The Morning After

Okay so technically it was the afternoon after, but our backyard was littered with the evidence of one fun birthday.  


I had two options.  One being to clean up and two being to make the most of the mess and have a little photo shoot with my girls.  


Obviously I chose the latter...

They just so happened to be in sunny spirits...

Getting the two of them to happily pose for a picture can be a bit tricky at times...

Seriously, who am I kidding?  It's darn near impossible...

But on this day...

The clouds parted...

The sun shone...

And they smiled like they've never smiled before...

Oh...and did I mention I bribed them with cupcakes?

Yeah, I totally did.

And you know what?

Not only would I do it again...

I also highly recommend it!

Sugar makes everything a little sweeter...

Now if only it would clean up my backyard we'd be in business...

Happy Friday!

Wipeout

Carter never ceases to surprise me.  This year when we started brainstorming about her birthday I had a few pre-conceived notions.  Most of them involved glitter, paint, and something very girly.  Carter on the other hand had another idea.  Wipeout.  She loves the show and looks forward to watching every time she visits Roxi and Pops.  I'm always up for a challenge and set out to plan the best darn Wipeout party my backyard could hold!


I wasn't sure which direction to head but decided to draw inspiration from the famous "Big Red Balls".  Her invitation (minus our address and phone number to protect the innocent *smile*)...

From there it was surprising how easily everything came together.  First up, a table full of goodies...

I especially loved the way her cake with name banner turned out...

Carter gave everything her seal of 6 year old approval...

And then it was time for the fun to begin!  We set up our backyard with a mini Wipeout course (age appropriate for our little contestants).  Giant slide...

and Big Red Balls were a must!

We also added lot's of bubbles for good measure...

Once everyone had arrived we gathered all the munchkin's...

So "Big Nate" (who is a really good sport) could show them how it was done!  First you plummet down the giant slide...

Then it's on to the Big Red Balls...

Next up the Soapy Swamp where you dig until you find a ring...

Then a weave through the crooked noodles, just watch out for those crazy hitters (Carter demo's this one)...

If you manage to make it through give yourself a big pat on the back!

The kids couldn't wait for their turn...

They each had a chance to run the course on their own and it was highly entertaining...

A couple of great wipeouts made things even more fun...

After they all got the hang of things it was a free for all on the course...

My favorite part of the day was the giant smile that was plastered on Carter's face every time I saw her...

I think it's safe to say she and her buddies had a great time...

Even the littlest guests found something to make them giggle...

But you don't have to take my word for it...check out our day in motion (you may want to pause the music at the bottom before watching)...

When everyone was all wiped out we headed over for a little cake...

Note to self: Those fancy "sparkler" candles take a realllllly long time to light...

FINALLY!  

Make a wish...

It was one of those really great days.  Because if you ask me there is no better reason to celebrate than life.  A big thanks to all of the special people who shared the afternoon with us...

I'll leave you with a few more smiles...

The end.

*A big thanks to Brenda Marafioto (aka Rylie's mom) for donating her photography skills and helping document our day!