An Elmo Birthday Party

We celebrated Ryleigh's birthday in a way I knew she'd enjoy:

an Elmo theme

a Chick-fil-A location

with an indoor playground

and balloons

and cupcakes

and candy cane favors.

It was simple and sweet in the midst of this busy holiday season.

Shh, don't tell the older brothers and sisters, 

but the party was while they were off at school. 

The birthday girl!

Everyone picked a balloon to take home

Delicious "cupcakes" from 'Nothing Bundt Cake'

I pushed for Dora or Tinkerbell,

but the birthday girl was pretty adamant that she liked Elmo best

As a seasoned parent,  

I've learned to let go and do what will make her most happy. 

Not a fan of the party hat,

though it sure does look sweet on her

She had been practicing singing "Happy Birthday" for a month,

first to her sister, then to her daddy.

Finally, it was her turn!

Mesmorized by her candle

Miss Kim always there to lend a helping hand

Ryleigh is so lucky to have begun forming her very first friendships.

I'm so lucky that the kiddos all have such wonderful and thoughtful mommies. 

You can't totally tell from this picture, 

but she's just finishing giving her friend Bennett a giant hug.

And there you have it, 

a perfect little party for our sweet-as-can-be birthday girl!!

(Her big sister was thrilled to help with the present opening later that evening.) 

Comfort and Joy (and our card)

On this most special of days, we wish our family and friends 

a Christmas filled with comfort and joy

Thanksgiving Flashback

We celebrated the Thanksgiving holiday here in Dallas this year.
For the first time ever, it was just the four of us.

It goes without saying that we missed the extended family dearly,
but we made the most of our first real holiday here in the rental house.
Lexi was our eager helper throughout the day.
She spent hours with me in the kitchen on Wednesday preparing
Nanny's sweet potato casserole, pumpkin raisin cookies and corn muffins.
And she got straight to work with Vic the following morning
tackling Grandma Lu's beloved sausage rolls and corn bread.

Even though it was a small group, we still cooked all the usual favorites
and had ourselves a feast.

The weather was downright perfect,
so we got in a walk to the playground at the end of our street.
Afterwards, we were thankful for dear friends who treated us more like family
by welcoming us into their home for dessert.
It was a day that left us grateful for our many blessings
(and eager to see the rest of OUR family at Christmastime).

(P.S. - to save you the concern that a few friends expressed
after seeing this "Thankful Turkey" from Lexi's school,
each child contributed one feather…
her's is the yellow one - not the pink one up top!)

Ryleigh Turns 2!

Our little lady turned 2 today!

We really just cannot believe it.
She had a sweet birthday party (at Chick-fil-A, no less) last week.
As soon there's a free moment,
I will download and post all of the photos of her and her buddies,
as well as share an update about "the 2-year-old-Ry".
In the meantime, here are a few pictures from her actual birthday.
If we had to describe her in one word, it would be "joyful".
She makes every day brighter, and we couldn't love her more!

And, let's not forget to wish a big Happy 35th Birthday to her daddy.

We celebrated as a family on December 8th -

got our Christmas tree, cooked some soup,

played indoors as the ice/snow came down, watched holiday movies

and had wine, champagne and an ice cream cookie cake.

Then, I really took him out of his comfort zone

and threw a little surprise party at a new bar/restaurant this past weekend.

Just like Ryleigh, I hope he felt how loved he is!

Disney World: Days 4 & 5

We awoke to the big day on November 16th…

Lexi's official 5th birthday. 

And to celebrate it…we had something fun up our sleeves. 

We got the girls all dressed in their Disney finest.

The Belle Halloween costume for Lexi,

and the Minnie Mouse dress for Miss Ryleigh. 

We took a taxi straight to Magic Kingdom - 

where we walked right on in to Cinderella's Castle.

For her birthday, we had booked breakfast with the princesses months in advance.

(To ensure a seat, you basically need to schedule this 6 months out!)

Once again, Ryleigh was hesitant posing with Cinderella.

But the birthday girl marched right on up for hugs, a sweet little chat 

and to get that autograph book signed. 

We headed upstairs after these sweet pictures 

and a cute little commemorative folder with a picture of Lexi and Cinderella

and a professional picture of the castle at nighttime. 

We went up the winding staircases and entered the main dining hall,
complete with this huge vaulted ceiling and these decorative flags.
The girls were just amazed.
We were escorted to our table by a "Royal Waiter"
who would act as our personal server for breakfast.
He brought a platter of scones and rolls,
along with "wishing stars" and princess wands as the morning got underway.

After ordering our meal,
special music started to play and the excitement level
for all the little girls reached a peak.
And just like that, the princesses made their grand entrance one by one -
visiting each table for a meet and greet.
We were so thrilled to visit with Snow White

and another of Lexi's favorites, Sleeping Beauty

as well as Jasmine

and our latest fave, whose movie was recently re-released, Ariel 

The signed both autograph books, they posed for pictures,
they all wished our girl the happiest of birthdays, and cheered her on
as she showed off her very own royal curtsey.
It was a magical morning, indeed.

We left the castle to visit with the Sauer family a little while longer,
and then we decided to head back to the hotel for a bit.
It had started drizzling, and both parents were starting to feel sick.
By the time we got back to the Beach Club, I had a raging fever.
I desperately needed a nap, but being stuck at the hotel on a rainy day
seemed to leave Vic and the girls with few options.
Fast forward two hours.
Medicine was working its magic, napped was thoroughly enjoyed,
and my three monkeys had had a ball eating ice cream for lunch,
playing hide 'n seek around the hotel, watching part of a movie (Disney, of course)
in the lobby and checking out the gift shop.
We decided to venture back to Magic Kingdom and hope for the best.
Well, we really couldn't have asked for luck to be on our side more than it was.
The rain stopped, the weather turned perfect, and we set off on a fantastic afternoon.
We fit in many of the rides we hadn't gotten the chance to experience yet -
Goofy's Barnstormer, Ryleigh's turn at the PhilharMagic, another trip on the carousel.
We were on no set schedule and just enjoying the moment.
Originally, we had planned to leave Ryleigh with an in-room sitter
and treat Lexi to a formal birthday dinner at the new Be Our Guest restaurant.
It had been getting great reviews and was one of the newest attractions at the park.
But Lexi honestly just wanted to stay and play her way around Magic Kingdom.
She had already met Belle and been to her castle,
and she had had such a wonderful morning with the princesses earlier in the day,
that we decided to cancel and just let our birthday girl continue her fun.
Later that evening, I headed back to the hotel with Ryleigh,
while Vic and Lexi stayed and had the time of their lives (truly).
Just add a little Bailey's to his coffee, and the guy is the biggest "Disney dad' there is.
He likes to tell me that they "owned" Magic Kingdom that night.
They went on ride after ride -
Astro Orbiter, Journey of the Little Mermaid, Buzz Lightyear's Spin,
Tomorrowland Speedway, Winnie the Pooh.
They stopped for snacks at Gaston's Tavern.
They got flatbread pizza.
They enjoyed treat after treat.
I so wish I had been there - just to see how big their smiles were.
Vic shared this picture with me, so I could get an idea.
It was such a wonderful way for our big girl to round out her very special day/week
(with her "bestie" as she calls him, by her side).

The next morning was, sadly, our last in Disney World.
We only had a half day to work with, and it happened to be the warmest since our arrival.
We decided to stay back at the hotel, to really enjoy all it had to offer.
First up was a buffet character breakfast.
True to form, Ryleigh was not the least bit happy when Donald Duck came over.

She loves him in the Mickey movies we watch,
but she definitely doesn't like the live version just yet
(which gives us a good excuse to go back in a few years)

 Also true to form, Lexi was not the least bit timid about handing out hugs and high fives.

After breakfast, we decided to hit up the pool. 

This pool system is known as one of the best among all Disney resorts -

and it did not disappoint.

There was the main pool area, as well as a hot tub,

there was a huge pool with fake sand at the bottom and a little beach

where Ryleigh spent a great deal of time building sandcastles. 

There was a lazy river that Lexi and I enjoyed on inner tubes. 

And the best part of all was probably the water slide.

It was massive - part enclosed, part open.

It's fashioned after a shipwreck, and Vic, Lexi and I all tried it out. 

You can see the spiral staircase in the picture below, 

and also the tunnel at the top of the slide.

It was awesome!

I don't have any other shots from our time at the pool…

and I'm not at all upset about that, because it means we were all too busy having fun. 

These photos are from a previous day - but show a portion of the pool

And, just like that, it was time to say goodbye to Disney 

and the magic it had shared with our family throughout our five day stay. 

In true Erin/Vic form, we raced off to the airport 

and arrived just as our flight was boarding (literally). 

Don't worry - they let us on, and Ryleigh slept the whole way home. 

See ya next time Mickey and gang!!!!

It was such an amazing vacation…far exceeding all of our expectations. 

We honestly can't wait to go back again. 

(Major kudos to my dear childhood friend's cousin who served as our travel agent.
If anyone reading is planning a trip, you must use her.
She is so knowledgeable and a pleasure to work with.
She works directly for Disney, so her services are complimentary. )