{My Beautiful Bride}

Let me explain. My girls are somewhat obsessed with princesses and everything super-girly. They are just at that age when fairy tales are real and the best thing in the world is pretending to be Cinderella.

So when Sasha asked to be a bride for her birthday a few months ago, I wasn't at all surprised. A bride party actually sounded fun!

For the past two months I have been busy making plans for a bride party that would live up to the fairy tale Sasha surely has been envisioning. I've been scouring the clearance aisles at all the local stores for end-of-season wedding supplies; I've created invitations (that sadly never were sent via mail due to a faulty printer); I've ordered a wedding cake; I've purchased wedding dresses and a veil; I've made a menu. From establishing a color scheme to creating place cards and goodie boxes to hot gluing ten veils for her "attendants", every detail for a perfect party was examined closely. At times I really did feel like I was planning an actual wedding!

The perfect venue for the day was my dad's backyard. It is beautifully shaded by big trees and there is a stream that bubbles for a romantic atmosphere. Not that I was going for romance. Nope. Not at all. The backyard was simply a gorgeous place to have a bride birthday party.

Thankfully we had picture-perfect weather and all the girls and boys Sasha invited were able to come. With the exception of a handful of family members who weren't able to make it, Sasha was tickled with how everything turned out.

And without further ado, here is my beautiful bride!

I love the little details of this picture, like Sasha's missing front tooth and the engagement ring on her thumb. I didn't even know she had the ring on until I posted this picture here. It's just perfect.

I wanted the tables for the kids to look like reception tables. Each place had a wedding plate, a box they would later decorate and fill with their favors, a mesh bride dress with six cookies and cream Hershey Kisses, a mini champagne glass, bells, and bubbles. The girls' chairs had a veil lying on them that they put on when they arrived and the boys' chairs had a top hat. I then sprinkled heart confetti and candy engagement rings all over the tables.

Sasha had a big bouquet complete with a blue and white satin wrap and accent pearls.

The color is terribly off in this next photo, so much so that the red roses look black. Let's look beyond the bad colors and check out the food! On the menu: heart shaped sandwiches, fresh fruit salad, sweet red pepper dip with veggies, chips, pretzels, peanuts, and a variety of blue and white candies.

The kids patiently waited to be served. Don't they all look wonderful dressed up?

We had to get a standard wedding party photo before things got too wild and crazy. All but two of the kids are pictured here. So stinkin' cute!

Finally it was time for presents! Sasha sat down in a spot that was flooded with light and gave me her typical girly-girl poses. Check out her friend peeking in on the side. Adorable!

The birthday girl had to have a Wedding Day Barbie, right? And one of her friends got her the groom! Sasha was thrilled beyond belief with all the wonderful, generous gifts her friends and family gave her. She is now stocked with a fresh art supply and lots of crafts, jewelry, and other goodies.

As she opened each gift, she thanked her friends and gave them a big hug. I could post a dozen photos of those sweet hugs, but I'll choose just two.

Isn't this gal beautiful?!?

And get a load of Mr. Blues Brothers himself! Yes, folks, Billy showed up in a tux and he ROCKED that thing!

Now for the cake. I asked my friend Kristi, who makes amazing cakes, if she would create a miniature wedding cake for Sasha. Thankfully, she said yes, and what a cake she made! The bottom tier was called a tuxedo cake. It was white and chocolate cake layers with mousse between each layer. Drool. The top two layers were chocolate with chocolate mousse filling. More drool. The icing was buttercream, and there were tiny handmade blue and white roses decorating the whole thing. I knew I wouldn't be able to have the typical "Happy Birthday, Sasha" message on the cake, but I totally didn't expect what Kristi did instead. Check out that "6" and the monogram! It was so elegant and absolutely perfect. The photo simply doesn't do this masterpiece justice.

Cory and Sasha cut the cake together.

And then they took turns feeding each other the first bites. Yeah, a girl's first love truly is her Daddy. Look at the complete joy on this girl's face. Sigh.

The only mishap of the day (as far as I know) did involve the cake, though. Poor Kristi decided to go for a run in the morning and ended up on crutches with what I believe is a torn ligament. (I could be wrong about that, but I think that's what the injury is.) I pray you heal quickly, Kristi!

Every wedding has to have a bouquet toss, so all the girls -and boys- took turns trying to toss their bouquets into a basket. Their first attempts were done the traditional way: backwards over their shoulders. But after two rounds and zero bouquets in the basket, the kids just started tossing any which way. And as it turned out, the extra confetti I had left in the basket became the focus of the play and they had to be torn away from the little sparklies. I guess a party is a success if you leave with confetti in your hair!

Every year Cory and I give Sasha roses for her birthday. We used to give her a rose for each year: one for her first birthday, two for her second, and so on. But it's way easier to simply buy a dozen roses, so that's what she gets now.

Happy Birthday, Sasha Rose! You make a stunning bride. And I know that on the day you actually do get married, we'll pull out these photos and remember the joy you had as a six-year-old bride. Oh, how the tears will surely flow . . .

{Birthday Celebration!}

No, it isn't my birthday or any of the kids' birthdays, but there is definitely a celebration going on! I recently was invited to be on another digi designer's Creative Team (CT) and she is having a birthday sale. Danielle, a.k.a. The Design Girl, has amazing kits and goodies in her store at Polka Dot Plum and they are all 27% off this week!



This is the adorable birthday kit she created. It is full of fab papers and loads of elements. It is perfect for birthday photos, but it can be used for all kinds of other photos as well. I'll soon share what I've created with it. :)

Grab this wonderful kit here: http://polkadotplum.com/shoppe/product.php?productid=16560&cat=0&page and don't forget to check out the rest of her store!

{We Miss You, Daddy}

Cory has been in Omaha all week and we've all missed him TONS. The girls have been asking when he's going to come home each day.

So this is for you, Daddy!

{Ducks and Giggles}

On Tuesday night I had a parents' open house at Clara's pre-school. Since Cory is in Omaha, I had to take the girls to my grandmother's house for the evening so I could go to the school. I decided to head to MickeyD's for dinner first as a special treat. There is a stream behind the joint that usually is full of ducks who like to be fed, and the girls love to eat there and feed them.

So we went through the drive-thru and then set up our dinner at one of the tables. It took about 30 seconds for the first duck to approach us. And what a duck he (she?) was! Check him out: he looks like a penguin duck!

This little guy has been fed a time or two before. He had no problem whatsoever coming right up to us to beg. We tossed him a couple fries, and then I held one out to him to see if he'd eat from my hand. Yep! Sasha and Clara thought that was hilarious, so Sasha held out a fry for him, too. He took it and gobbled it up. Clara did the same and laughed and laughed when the duck grabbed it from her.

But then she made a mistake. Ducks apparantly don't have the best eyesight or sense of smell, or the following would not have happened. Clara dangled her hand at her side and you guessed it: The little quacker tried to eat a finger. It didn't hurt, but it startled Clara enough that she kept telling the duck to go away.

Here she is checking over her shoulder . . . he's still there.

Big sister Sasha can be seen here scolding the webbed one. "Don't bite the hand that feeds you!" She didn't really say that. I just found it fitting.

We had to cut our meal short when Clara announced she had to go potty now. We packed up and headed to my grandmother's house and that was that.

Look out for the penguin duck at MickeyD's. He's a fiesty one.

Today I decided to video Dixon for a bit. Sadly, I haven't taken any video of him at all up to this point. It's one of those things that I keep saying I need to do, but I don't do it.

Dixon has been rolling like a log lately, and his laugh is really developing into that cute baby belly laugh that is contagious. I managed to get both on tape!

Please excuse my creepy-looking hand. His main tickle spot is around his neck, and I had to do what I had to do in order to get the giggle. Also, the weird sound at the end is one of the dogs crunching kibble. Hey, this is life!

Hope that put a smile on your face!

{I Thought It Was Allergies . . . }

but I'm sick. Ugh. Yesterday I started sneezing and had a terribly itchy, sore throat. I was certain it was allergies, as my allergies seem to get a little bit worse every year. I took Clara and Dixon through a corn maze and thought that the dust and pollens or whatever is in corn made my allergies worse, but I was wrong. I have a cold.

Last night I kept waking up feeling awful. Today I'm beat. I'm forcing myself to stay active because if I sit down too long or try to rest I know I won't want to get back up. So I've been cleaning the girls' room (what a mess!), doing laundry, and getting odd jobs done around the house.

I can't stand being sick. Especially when it's beautiful outside.

So do I blame "those germy Kindergarteners"? Or do I blame the runny-nosed kids I was around earlier this week? Or do I blame a dirty shopping cart? Regardless, it is what it is. I'm sick.

Whine.
Whine.
Whine.

Amen.

{The School Girl}

The big day finally came. Sasha's first day of Kindergarten. On Monday morning, Sasha woke me up by bounding into my bed and announcing that it was "the day" and she was ready to go.

We all got dressed, ate breakfast, and then headed outside for some pictures. She looked so darn cute in her new outfit! But I do feel badly about one thing. The sweater. I didn't think it would be cold in August, but it has been downright chilly in the mornings and evenings! And I didn't have a sweater that matched this outfit. So the poor child had to wear a size 3T sweater over her top. Oh, well. She didn't care and I don't think it looked all that bad.

Cory rearranged his morning schedule so he could be here to see his big girl go to school for the first time, and Sasha was thrilled. It's a day not to be missed!

Here is my school girl ready for her first day of Kindergarten. Clara had a hard time with the idea of Sasha going to school. All day long she sobbed and sobbed. "I don't want Sasha to go to Kindergarten." "Is Sasha going to come home?" "I miss Sasha." Clara lost her best friend, and she is not happy about it.

But back to the joy of the first day! Sasha literally danced and skipped her way to the bus stop. Check out her Cinderella backpack that her Nana got for her. Inside is her princess lunchbox. She has since informed me that she will pack one day, but the next, and keep alternating. We'll see how that goes.

I wasn't sure how she would do being away from me all day long (she leaves at 8:26 and doesn't get home until 4:00), so I drew a heart on her hand and told her that every time she misses me to look at the heart and know that I love her and miss her, too. Sasha liked that a lot.

The bus pulled up and Sasha bounded off. She has been SO looking forward to riding a bus!

She climbed up and never looked back. I love her brave spirit.

I will admit that a few tears were shed when she got on the bus and it pulled away. My baby is now a school girl. It was a long day for me. I thought about Sasha all day long, and even drove by the school twice to see if her class just might be outside playing at recess. They weren't, but it was nice to see her classroom and know she was there. (Before you think I'm a total nut, I will add that I was already in the van and didn't load up the other kids to make a special trip to the school.)

Clara was a mess all day, which made it even harder for me. Thank goodness Dixon had a doctor's appointment in the morning. We met some friends at Tarbucks (Starbucks inside Target) and then headed to his appointment. The distraction was great, and I got to compare notes with other moms who sent their kids off to school.

Finally it was time for Sasha to come home. Her bus was about 15 minutes late, but I suppose that's to be expected as everyone works out the kinks on the first day. Sasha got off the bus and Clara was there to give her a huge hug. Sasha was happy, excited, and gushing about her day.

Here's a little bit about her first day:

What am I going to do next year when Clara has to go to school full-time, too?