Birthday Party Attachment

Please read post below first....This is a continuation from previous party post. FYI...I tend to edit my posts quite a bit, so you may have to read them multiple times before you read or see everything.

Lila is so loved that even my dear friends Jenny and Julie, who were not able to be at the party on Saturday, drove all the way from Morristown on Sunday to visit with Lila. As usual, they did WAY too much for her, but it sure is some cute stuff! Thanks Fen!

Pool and Jump House Fun!

Spoiled Rotten by AP(Coach)! We love you Angela!!

Lila knows and loves her Grandmother! (having the necklace helps too)

Waiting patiently for cake, ice cream, and presents!!! ( I truly wish I was thinking clearly and would have taken a picture of all her presents before she opened them.)

Pop Pop

Now this is just plain funny...Aunt Karen is the BEST!

Whew...what a fun and exhausting day!

One Spoiled Little Girl!

Well, after trying to go through the 500 gazillion photos taken of Lila's birthday, I am hoping to actually post some today. First of all, I can't say a big enough THANK YOU to everyone who came out to celebrate Lila's birthday!!! We are so blessed to have such wonderful friends and family who genuinely love Lila and care for us. The amount of toys and clothing this little girl received is quite unbelievable, but she has been having a great time playing, which is very helpful to mommy! Although it was ridiculously hot outside, I think everyone still had a great time! Thanks to the Morgans for their use of the jumphouse...it was a hit, as well as all the swimming pools to cool off in. I could not have pulled this party together without the help of my husband and wonderful family. My poor sisters and mom worked from the time they walked in the door till the time they left.... making cakes, fruit skewers, decorating, cleaning up, etc. It was non-stop, but it sure turned out super cute! This will be a long post, so I will try to keep the wording to a minimum and just let the pictures speak for themselves. Happy Birthday Sweet Girl! I hope you had a GREAT 1st BIRTHDAY PARTY!!!

Let's start with opening presents. She was so funny and loved everything she opened...especially the cards!

Where is the cake?!?!?

Fun with Friends and Family!

Ok, I think I am overloading blogger. More later!

She's 1!!!

Ok, so, seriously?!? Am I the only woman in the world who doesn't know how to ice a cake? It can't really be that hard, can it? I decided just to make a good ole plain strawberry cake with icing from the can for Lila's "official" first birthday. This thing was absolutley hideous! First of all, one of my layers stuck to the pan, so I just decided not even do any icing in between the layers. Yes, I know...yummy. Then came the icing part. It shouldn't be that hard, but here is what I ended up with. I just started piling blobs on at a time hoping it would come out somewhat decent. Poor Lila...I am sorry honey! I made cakes growing up and my mother is an excellent cook, but I just don't seem to be talented in the cake icing department. Not that it is an excuse, but it didn't help that it was midnight as I was trying to do this. I really really don't like not being good at something. I know it is just making a cake, but still. How am I suppose to teach my children if I can't even do it? Oh well, maybe next year.

I should probably be more concerned about the fact that I let my child grab the candle on her cake while I was reaching for my camera! Needless to say, she will not be having a candle on her cake at her party. We tried later to stick the candle in her individual piece of cake and even in her mashed potatoes, but as soon as she saw it she went into hysterics. That girl is just too smart! We had a great time though for her birthday. She opened some presents from mommy and daddy, including her swing. She did not want to get out! She loved it. We also did her cake at 4:51 pm....the time of her arrival into this big scary world. Michael pulled in the driveway at 4:42 just in time! I think I guilted him into it on Sunday when I burst into tears as I asked him if he could be home on Tuesday by 4:30 so we could do her birthday cake at the exact time of her "birth." He thought I was a little crazy, but he made it home. I will say that the weeks leading up to her birthday I was having a very difficult time. It just didn't seem real that she is already a year old. When the day arrived I was actually very calm and together. I felt as though I had come to grips with it. Now, just don't ask me how old she is. I don't like answering that question yet!

Look at this face. I had just tried putting the candle back in her own piece of cake. Obvioulsy, it didn't work.

She soon forgot about the candle, and started digging in. (More pictures of cake eating from her party coming soon.)

I have never seen a one year old get so excited over clothes. Here she is oohing and aahing over everything she opened!

As I mentioned before, Lila LOVES her swing. She pitched a fit when we took her out.

Wee!!! Telling Daddy All about it!

Be forewarned: Another long posts of pictures from the PARTAY to come!

Time Flies...

My baby is not suppose to be a year old yet. Technically I still have 30 hours and 51 minutes before she turns one. This has been such a hard week. I know I should be so excited and proud that my baby girl is growing up. And I am. At the same time, I just honestly cannot believe it has been a year. Every day this week I keep thinking back to what I was doing on these days leading up to her birth.

Last Wednesday was my due date. May 30th. I am SO glad she did not come that day. Her baby furniture had just arrived and we had to go pick it up and unload it at the house. Here I am on my due date helping move in her furniture! I wasn't in a huge hurry for her to come because I felt great. I just did not want to be induced, which they were going to do the next Tuesday. Therefore, I wanted her to come before then. The day after my due date I was doing all the old wives tales... Eating Mac and Cheese with A1 sauce, Eggplant Parmesean, walking, walking, walking. I DID not try the castrol oil...YUCK! But before I knew it, a few days later, she was here! Labor was not as I expected. Although going au naturale is what I had planned, I did not know that back labor existed and never imagined it would be that painful. With the good Lord's help and Michael by my side, we made it through it without that epi. Not to mention my amazing nurse who rubbed my back and legs and my Dr. who fanned me for 45 minutes! Those 18 hours flew by! (I don't think I thought that during the time though.)

I remember a nurse handing her to me and Lila's hand went immediately to my face. Oh, how I loved her! They say you can't imagine the feeling of holding your newborn baby in your arms, but you just really can't. There are no words.

Peek-a Boo