It has been three months, so it is probably silly to talk about Raine's 2nd birthday now, but I could use some cheer! Years ahead, when I use this blog to go back and look at things, I will probably be in the habit of searching a few months ahead for a recap on a special event, anyway. I imagine myself remembering this as a time of chaos. I would like to think this is a phase, related to so many big changes in one year (my mother's illness, buying a house, renting our condo, moving to a new town, traveling, changing jobs, and the whirlwind of Raine growing up so fast...) but who knows?? Perhaps from here on out, the tempo will stay at this rate?
Anyway...
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Birthday gear.
Train signs for photos of guests, a card Raine bought himself (HA!), birthday ribbon & cap, & birthday tee. |
Raine turned two and I initially had no grand plans. I was a *pinch* obsessed with making
his first birthday party absolutely perfect, so the following year, I gave myself a free pass. No party. He is only two and wouldn't remember a party or gifts, right? I planned a quiet morning with the three of us, and just giving Raine an art easel and train track. However, as the day approached, Dan tugged my ear a little bit about at least having a few of our friends over to share in celebrating. I agreed to check with them, and to my surprise, they were all available, as well as the additional people I started asking. ;) In the end, I had a last minute excuse to put on my super creative hat and couldn't resist giving Raine a little party with a small
Thomas the Train theme.
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| Train ticket invites. |
I browsed the internet to see what train tickets look like and made my own version as an invitation with Illustrator. I made sure every guest family had their own train (number and name) and that each family member had a corresponding seat on their train. I even made sure that the departure/arrival times were appropriate. For our family in Illinois and friends in Colorado, I sent an additional letter from the commissioner at the Island of Sodor explaining the weather in the Rocky Mountain Pass might make train travel that week unsafe. (This helped the adults explain to the kiddos that they couldn't actually
use the train tickets we sent them.) Dan thought I went a little bit overboard, but it is my attention to detail that makes me 'me.' ;o) I also had a fabulous assistant to help me save time with stickers and addressing envelopes:
His birthday weekend was busy with trips to the park and pool Sunday morning, Dan and I sang 'Happy Birthday' when he woke up and brought him out to the living room full of balloons. We watched him open presents that were shipped from family in Illinois. He was excited about everything and so sweet. When guests started arriving around 10, he was shy at first, but quickly warmed up
once he was playing with Carlie. ;o) He had a little orange juice and cake, which was more sugar than he normally has --especially in a given day--so that was probably HIS favorite part of the day. LOL. He played, played, ate cake, played, opened presents, ate again, played, and opened more presents. There was a lot of running, bubbles, and balloon animals. It was adorable.
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| Help from daddy opening presents. 2 years old and he still doesn't quite get it. LOL. |
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| What a special boy we have! Custom Thomas artwork by Mark & Mel. Pretty cool, huh? |
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| Party down. |
Raine scored some major awesome loot. And I can say that after three months he is STILL playing with all of it quite happily. In no particular order of awesomeness: A tool set, Dr. Seuss matching game, wooden barn set, trains and a track, matchbox cars and a monster truck, an art easel, a wooden train whistle, bandana, and conductor hat (embroidered with his name!), books, socks & shirts, wooden produce, felted pizza, puzzles, a soccer ball, and custom artwork!!! :o) The best part was seeing him play with his friends and loved ones. I am totally happy it worked out that way. *And a special thank you to Dan, who baked the cake, cooked brunch, and mixed my mimosa. XOXO
You can see more photos from his birthday weekend in
my album or more beautiful ones taken at the party by Christie
here! ;o)
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