10.8.14

Ellie is "tutu" years old!

Her birthday was July 16.  But we waited until yesterday to have a "proper party" for her. It was a Tutu and Bow Tie party because our little Ellie is "tutu" cute and now "tutu" years old!

"Ellie, how old are you?"

I enjoyed getting ready for this party.  It was very fun and very girly and very pink.  It was also very much Pinterest inspired.  There are no original ideas here.  None.

There were tutus everywhere.  Even the cake wore a tutu.  And I gathered several yards of tulle together to make a tutu for the table. 

There were tutus on the glasses for the ladies and bow ties on the glasses for the gentlemen.  But the punch . . . well, that's another story.  That would be the one thing that did NOT turn out like I expected it to.  It was definitely a Pinterest fail!  First of all, it was this horrible goldy looking color.  In the picture on Pinterest, it was a beautiful hot pink.  And second of all, it wasn't very kid friendly.  Apparently it wasn't very adult friendly either.  Everyone complained about it and pretty much refused to drink it.  So I had to pull some juice boxes out of the frig for the kids.  I really don't know what happened.  I followed the directions exactly . . . ginger ale, pineapple juice, water, frozen pink lemonade and strawberry ice cream.  It was very tart.  I like tart.  So I drank three glasses.  But everyone else?  Not so much.  And my friend pointed out the fact that I used organic strawberry ice cream instead of the typical hot pink neopolitany kind.  So maybe that had something to do with the yucky color.  But I did love having the drink station on what was my great-grandmother's tea cart.

And the cake . . . oh, the cake!  It was just beautiful!  I had a little help here from my favorite bakery.  I thought about making it myself.  I knew exactly what I wanted.  I even watched YouTube videos about how to pipe rosettes onto a cake.  But in the end, I had no problem ordering that cake because I knew I would go crazy if I tried to do it myself.  Best decision I made!

We had little pink candies and rock candy suckers and pink white chocolate covered popcorn . . .

. . . and pink chocolate covered pretzels and these little marshmallow "ballerinas."

You can't have a party without fresh flowers.  These definitely aren't Cindy flowers, but they were just fine.

Hannah Kate said this party involved a lot of fabric.  I guess she's right.  I made these little bow ties for the gentlemen to wear at the party.  They were cute and super easy to make.

And, of course, I wanted a picture of all three.  And this is what happened.  This is what always happens.  And then I can't choose just one!

Ellie was a little more willing to have her picture made with Abbie.  Notice Abbie came already dressed in her tutu (and her new glasses, too - aren't they presh?!)!

It was time to blow out the candles and cut the cake.

At first she wanted nothing to do with it.  I don't know why.

That was a big cake for a little girl, and Abbie had to help her get close to the candles.

And then this happened.  At the same time that she's covering her face with her hands, she's also yelling, "Hot!  Hot!"

So I got down with her, and we blowed those candles out together.  Of course, no one got a picture of that!  And then it was time to eat cake and ice cream.

Remember what I said about the punch?

This was Ellie's reaction after taking a sip.

And then it was time to open a few presents.

She was excited about her little Minnie Mouse scooter.

She couldn't get this one open fast enough when she saw Dora on the side of the box.

We got her a precious wooden train set.  Most times it's hard to think of gift ideas for Ellie because she already has everything that Hannah Kate had.  But when I found this I thought it was absolutely precious.  I thought she might like it because she likes putting things together, and she plays with Mason's matchbox cars a lot.  I was right!

She was very patient while Daddy put her scooter together.

And here she is playing with her train set.

And here's my party of five!  Notice Ellie has her hand on top of Mason's head.

She had a good time with this sucker.

And then there's the AFTER party . . . the guests go home, the dress comes off, the hair lets down . . .

But we're wearing our statement necklace!

So that was Ellie's Tutu and Bow Tie Party.  It was a joy to host this little party for her.  I am grateful for those who came and blessed her with their company and gifts yesterday.  I am so very thankful for the blessing that little Ellie is and for the BIG personality in that little bitty girl.  I still can't believe I have a 2-year-old again.  I'm not sure right now that I'm cut out for this.  Either I forgot a whole lot about the 2's when Mason and Hannah Kate were that age.  Or I'm just a whole lot older this time around!  Or maybe a little bit of both.  Regardless, I have to admit I'm giddy with excitement too see what Ellie's next year of life brings, to see how she grows and learns and explores her world.