Bekah's 5th Birthday

Bekah is 5!

 I want to do a birthday post ABOUT her, but that would require more thought for my debut back in the blogging world, so here is a snapshot of her party!

"All about Bekah at 5", soon to come . . .

 

Way back in early January, Bekah decided she wanted a Frozen party for her 5th birthday. So a Frozen party it was, and mommy did her best!

I do regret not capitalizing on all the after Christmas sales for anything snow/frozen related, but thanks to my friends and their great ideas ( amy!) we made due!

 

 

Party prep involved the birthday girl more than ever thins year! Here she is making some olaf's for the décor.

 

 

We did our best to give the house and backyard a frozen feel, it helped that it was honestly a cold day Texas day in April!

 

 

It was pretty special, having the party at our house, after only moving in a few months earlier, it was sort of like a housewarming party too, as we welcomed all our friends and family into our new san Antonio home  : ).

 

 

 

Bekah's BFF from Houston even made the trip in!

 

 

 

Bekah and I printed up coloring pages for the kids to do, since coloring was basically her favorite thing to do at the time! ( now it is drawing : ) )

 

We ordered pizza, salad and pasta from our favorite local pizza place, Luccianos'

 

Kids made olaf's out of homemade playdough:

 

Since the backyard is one of our favorite parts of our house, we wanted a backyard bash,

despite the chilly weather!  : )

 

Sweet Evie making her Olaf

 

Elsa's Ice Castle Bounce House!

 

We were so happy to have so much family there with us!

 

It was a great feeling to have so many loved ones there with us to celebrate our Bekah!

 

And so! For the big surprise! Elsa came! I decided to tell Bekah like 5 minutes before she showed up, so she could have a bit of time to let it sink in, and boy was she thrilled! It's the best, surprising your kids! The word got out and the kids came running!

 

 

 

She was a pretty spot on, if you ask me!

 

 

 

So, funny thing is, she was supposed to sing to the kids outside, on our patio, but she requested we go inside because it was so cold . . . . . I couldn't help but want to say, " but you're Elsa, sooooo???", but we made space in our family room and I'm sure the guests appreciated some warmth as well.

She sang 3 songs, she was awesome! Maybe I will be  successful with the videos next post?? Sorry!

 

 

Cute shot of the parents and their phones/cameras:

 

This was my favorite part of the whole party, watching our girl light up while she sang along with Elsa! True joy really!

 

 

Then she read the audio book that we gave out as a party favor for each family.

 

Birthday cake time once Elsa was done.

 

Attempt at a family picture with Elsa:

 

We had one happy girl that day!

 

Opening her presents and sporting her new Frozen aviator that is sure to catch anyone's attention:

 

It was such a great day and we thank god for our precious, healthy little girl and all the ppl who love her!

 

Benjamin's 2nd Birthday Party!

When thinking about the theme of Benjamin's 2nd birthday party, the obvious choice was an airplane party, the kid LOVES them! It felt pretty symbolic of his 2nd year of life too, with the way he went on so many airplanes to see friends and family while we were away. Benjamin did not just see them in the sky, he was a legitimate flyer, 7 airplane trips under his belt, by the age of 2! Not to mention the fact that my parents took the kids to see the movie Planes back in August, and apparently, he was mesmerized the entire time, never got the wiggles once! Love that Planes was his first movie : ).

 

The way the calendar has worked, I've usually had my kids parties on their actual day, so thankful that it didn't work out this year, so I was not in crazy party mode on both his party day and real day. I was able to really appreciate both days!

 

Just like the year before, we had it at the park in my parents neighborhood, worked out well this year, since we are temporarily living with them! Now, each time we drive by the park, Benjamin says, "that were my party be at mama!"

 Thanks for help on the Benjamin Banner MP!

 

Paper plane banner was fun to put together, recruited the hubby to help out with that one, but then again, when do I NOT recruit Zack in my crafting? Poor guy : ).

Harder to decorate a park, so I always resort to LOTS of balloons! ( 5 of the 6 birthday parties I have thrown for my kids have been at parks)

 

Benjamin had fun going to the cake shop with me and handing them the invite so they could make a cake " with an airplane on it mama!" He was sooo excited about that cake, and it was a good reminder of how much involving the kids in the birthday party planning can mean to them! That's just half the fun!

 

 I had a craft area where they could make paper planes, color Dusty pages ( from the movie Planes), and color precut airplane silhouettes.

 I had fun finding party favors for all the ages of kids. For the older girls, they got wooden planes to paint, with a brush and some paint.

 

 

Bekah's finished product.

 

Older boys got an wooden model plane/glider.

And the babies got a Little People person in a plane.

 

Tried to combine the retro plane look with a few pops of  "Dusty" here and there since Benjamin liked him so much!

 

It was a sweet party for many reasons, one, it is our first, of many birthday parties, as real San Antonio residents! It feels so good getting to that point : ). It felt like the first real day of fall too, which was a nice change : ).

Best part, was all the family and friends who came. I did my best, to get around and talk to everyone, but it was so relaxing, knowing that if I didn't get to talk to them as much as I wanted, it was okay, I LIVE HERE with them! Yay! Love how our time away has made us appreciate so many of the little things in life!

 

 Cathy and Cassie, with Ellie and Jacob

 

And speaking of Cassie and Jacob, they drove here from Austin for the day, to meet those cute Bass twins AND go to Benjamin's party! Aren't they the best????

This used to be me and Cassie's park, it was pretty cool celebrating Benjamin's birthday party with one of my best friends and her kids at the park we played at as kids!

Love you Cassie!

 

When I asked Benjamin who would be coming to his party, he always said, "Bekah and Evie!" and here they are! Relieved that those Whitesides made it, my boy would have been pretty confused had she been sick and unable to make it! 

 

It's so special to be in town with my cousin's and their kids, which makes them Bekah and Benjamin's cousins! I can tell Bekah is proud to have cousins around her!

Easton and Alexis

 

So grateful for my new SA playgroup! What a blessing they have been to my family!

Lisa, Nancy with Evan and Mary Pat



Girl table!

 Izzie, Evie, Bekah and Ellie



 Big Boys!

Andrew, Hudson and the Norred boys

 

Our dear neighbors, Ray and Barbara

 

Aunt Pamie Pie and Uncle Igor drove in from Austin!

 

Big thanks to my mom and dad for all their help, like always!

 

Another friend who I played with at this very park, Sara and her family!

Couldn't find an airplane piñata, so rocket it was! Atleast the colors coordinated : ).

Benjamin wouldn't let go of that new front loader he got earlier that day, even for an opportunity to swing a bat, so daddy had to help him out : ).

 

See, there he is with the truck!

Benjamin was feeling quite triumphant when he found a ring pop from the  piñata. It acted as a nice passy substitute, something he had recently been asked to "give up."

 

Benjamin with his best friend, Bekah

 

Zack made fun of me for trying to coordinate our outfits to go along with the red, white and blue colors I used, but it really is fun for me! The host family can be part of the decorations! Though I did pick out another shirt for him that was all 3 colors, in efforts to give me a hard time, he switched to this one. I was a tad bit stressed before the party : ) , so I actually appreciated him making fun of me and defying my silly request, always love a good laugh when I'm worried about something!

Not sure which one I like more, so I included both.

Well, dear Benjamin Baby as I still call you sometimes, what a joyful 2 years you have given us! You delight us daily with your smile, humor, hugs and ALL that you have to say! It warms my heart to see you acting like your daddy, your sister, and even Uncle Jeff and Aunt Sarah at times! You've been so colorful and fun these past few years, I get sad thinking about you growing up, but at the same time, I just can't wait to see what you are going to be like in each new stage! We love you Benjamin and I thank god every day for giving you to us, your adoring family who cherishes you!!