Friday when Kate walked in the door from school, she was ready to see what preparations had been done for her guests, who would be arriving in less than an hour. Nana Laurie did the grocery shopping & the majority of the preparations for our gourmet cooking themed party (and sleep-over), and with Grace in her pouch, I was merely the helper.
Nana Laurie made these aprons for each one of the girls, complete with embroidered names & embellishment! How many weeks of preparation did she spend before coming to Denver? I even got an apron that was black with ruffles & pink lining, also with my name embellished!
We cleared out the formal dining area, aka baby play room, for a place for the girls to sleep. Grace & I wrote on Kate's easel, and Andrew picked up the balloons on his way home from work. If I had a scanner, I would scan in the invitations we sent out. They were fabulous! Little aprons with the invite stuffed in the pocket. My favorite part of any party is the invitations & thank you notes. I love stationary... Hallmark, Papyrus, you name it!
Nana Laurie also made each one of the girls a cookbook to take home with the recipes we prepared that evening. Here the girls are toasting with pink lemonade & shirley temples. For appetizers there were vegetable spring rolls & Kate's version of bruschetta (tomato, basil, olive oil on top of a toasted crustini); the main course included pizza squares & inside-out cheeseburgers; the dessert round was decorate your own mini cupcakes, marshmallow squares, & Oreo truffles. Andrew & I traded off Gracie and helped where we could, but Nana really ran the show.
10 year old girls being goofy! Every picture I took of them, we did a serious one, then a goofy one. Oh to be 10 years old again without a care in the world! (And to convince Kathryn to just enjoy being a kid and not try to grow up too fast, is a whole other issue in and of itself).
All the girls with their lovies, some dating back 10 years, others brought their latest and greatest Webkin. Some girls have 20+ Webkins. Kate probably has somewhere between 10-15. For those who don't know, these are little stuffed animals that come with a code that you put in the Webkin website where you get to name your animal, decorate their room/house, earn money by playing educational games, do virtual gardening, feed & care for your pet, and meet up with your friend's Webkins at the park or playrooms. Sound like fun?
Whenever Kate is having a melt down or too hyper or just needs a reality check, Andrew has always done this with her. "Time for a deep breath, come on, do it with me", you breath in while lifting your arms in the air, then out while lowering your arms. It was getting quite loud before bed, Laurie & I were in the kitchen, and we hear Andrew say "okay girls, time for some deep breathing, do it with me." Had to grab the camera for that one!
After reading the back of 3 movies aloud, discussing the options at length, then voting, the girls decided on The Princess Bride for movie time. Perfect choice, nice and slow, so we were hopeful that they would fall asleep sooner rather than later. They brushed each others hair, and decided they needed some popcorn, after brushing their teeth of course. "Really girls, you are still hungry after all you ate tonight?" Growing boys eat a lot? Watch out, growing girls can put it away with the best of them. Sometimes Kate eats more than Andrew & I. Umm, where are you putting all that?
After water, a coughing spell, talking/whispering, giggling, many trips to the bathroom, and a few friendly reminders, the girls finally fell asleep, somewhere between 11 & midnight I imagine. Peaceful; still the sweetest when they are sleeping!
In addition to their aprons & cookbooks, the girls took home these goodie boxes ala Nana Laurie filled with the dessert goodies from the night before. I had never had Oreo truffles before, but you better believe I'll be making them again. Yummy!
Thank you Nana Laurie for all that you did to make Kathryn's 10th birthday a very special & memorable one! We appreciate you for all that you do!
Papa Homer was wise and arrived the next morning right before the girls left. He is quite taken with his newest granddaughter and was ready for some Papa/Gracie time right when he walked in (after washing his hands of course). Just for the record, he sings to her in Latin while rocking her in the lazy boy in the nursery. It is too sweet! Grandpa's with their granddaughters is really a special thing to watch.
Our little sweetie pie, who is turning out to be a perfect blend of Andrew, Kate and I. On a side note, she had her 4 month check up last week and is doing wonderfully, growing appropriately & developmentally, hitting all important milestones right on time. Now for the stats: 15 1/2 lbs (80th percentile), 25" (65th percentile), and head 41.7 cm (70th percentile). The pediatrician said breastfed babies are generally chunkier in the beginning, and round out later after solids are started. We have a few more months before we start solids, so our little butterball may get even chubbier. I had a friend at work tell me that babies should be fat, there is just something not right about skinny babies, and imagine this being said in your best "Aunt Jemima" like voice/accent.
Gracie at the ceremony of our friend's wedding. She was quite well behaved, we were impressed; although I did bring the pouch, which she stayed in for most of the evening. This was also the first time that all of Andrew's friends from college were able to meet baby Grace.
Andrew, Grace and I with Tylor & Luz at their wedding reception. Don't they look lovely! These are some of Andrew's friends that have been dating since the beginning of college, so for close to 10 years. I think everybody pretty much considered them married, and we are so pleased that they finally tied the knot & joined the ranks. Andrew said that this was probably the last time everybody would be together in the same room, as Luz & Tylor were friends with everybody.
On another subject, isn't Grace's carrier too cute? For those looking for a carrier that won't kill your back (like the Baby Bjorn), and that you can use to carry them in the front, back, and hip until 45 lbs, then check out the ERGObaby. I LOVE this carrier and take it everywhere. I don't even bother carrying her in anywhere in her infant carseat because I know she will not last in there. She can sleep & nurse in here, and I can get things done because I have both of my hands. They even made "suck pads", those white things that the baby can chew on, then you can remove and wash. The only think I haven't figured out is how to change her diaper in here? Rest assured, I may figure it out before it is all over with.
While we were at the wedding, Nana & Papa took Kate to the rec center for some indoor swimming. I know they had a wonderful evening together, and Kate got some much needed one on one attention. Nana also took her to the Museum of Nature & Science that weekend, but that picture didn't make the cut. I started with 40 pictures and decided I had to trim it down.
The next morning prior to getting ready for church, Kate & Grace doing their morning routine of hanging out in Mom & Dad's bed. I love seeing my girls together! We are so lucky to have two healthy, beautiful, intelligent young girls and are enjoying all the special moments that entails. Who knows what the future might hold, the possibilities are endless!
Grace's baptism was so very special! We stood up there as a family and took the vows to raise Grace in the church and in God's word. It wasn't too long ago, only 3 1/2 years to be exact, that we stood up as a family and took the same vows for Kathryn. What a glorious moment and one we will never forget!
An upclose shot of our baby girl. She wore the same dress that my mother made for my dedication to the church when I was a baby. It was just perfect! Our good friends Brittany & James joined us and took pictures for us to remember this day by. Can you tell that Daddy is proud?
Reverend Cindy said a few words to the big sister who had attended the baptism class with us. Kathryn of course had questions during the class and Cindy referenced them during the baptism. And for those who know Kathryn well, they were very thought out, in depth questions, and the people attending the class were quite impressed. At this moment, however, her exact questions have seemed to allude me. Kate also walked around the sanctuary with Cindy while she was introducing Grace to the congregation.
Not to lessen or down play the significance of this moment, but this picture reminds me of the movie The Lion King where Simba is held out over the cliff for all to admire. Andrew concures.
The actual baptism with the sprinkling of water on Grace's precious little head. I love that Kate wanted to be a part of everything. She wanted to carry Grace back to our seats afterwards, but it made me nervous having her carry Grace down the stairs, so I said no. She was very disappointed.
But then her opportunity came during Children's Time, when they call all children to come to the front of the church. She looked at me, "please Mom?", so I let her take her. After service she said to me, "Mom, did you hear when I carried Grace up to the front how everybody said "Ahhh"?" Yes Kate, I did. Boy was she a proud big sister that day!
Grace sitting in Mommy's lap during service, no doubt taking it all in. This is after we spent most of the service in the hallway making lots of noise, nursing, and needing our diaper changed multiple times. What a busy little baby she is when I don't want her to be, and not when I have the time. Babies will definitely teach you a lesson in patience, and lessening your grip on a strigent schedule. You think you are going to do one thing and the baby dictates otherwise. Fortunately when they are 10, you are able to regain control (for the most part).
Afterwards we went out to lunch with Andrew's parents, and Brittany joined us too (James had to head out to work). I love this picture. It captures the essence of the day perfectly, beauty in its purest form, children being children. Kate picked this dress out with Aunt Justina for her birthday for this occasion. Do you think we had to twirl in the dressing room to make sure it made the cut? Absolutely!
What a wonderful weekend, that we will never forget! -SR
