And Still....He Flies....

-Or_

Birthday Balloons for my Baby Girl Made Me Crazy

So, it's no great shock that I planned and planned and planned for KP's birthday party.  I started planning at Thanksgiving, and worked right through Christmas and New Year's crafting the invitations, making decorations, deciding on cupcake flavors and what they would look like...and everything had to have a Sesame Street theme.  The balloon bouquet that was to serve as the main centerpiece was no different.  It was planned.  Planned quite carefully, I might add.

And that's where I went wrong.

Y'all know about what happens to me when I plan.

So, on the Wednesday before the party, my mom, Katie-Pie and I headed over to the party supply store to pick out the main bouquet and the balloons that were to be attached to each goodie bag.  I picked out the individual balloons, and told them that multi-colored curling ribbon would work just fine....make it colorful....it's for a party full of toddlers...toddlers like color.

For the main centerpiece, I wanted NEEDED to have an Elmo balloon, a Cookie Monster balloon, and fill it out with bright, multi-colored, printed balloons.  Again, with multi-colored curling ribbon and, because the party supply store did not have an Elmo balloon anchor (supposedly, they break before they can get them to the sales floor, and they only get two or three at a time), I chose a simple balloon-covered one.

But I had to have an Elmo balloon.  A big one....My baby girl is NUTS for Elmo.  Elmo is her man.  If there was to be only one decoration for her party, it was going to have to be an Elmo balloon, or I would risk losing her love and affection (not really, but you know what I mean).  And, BINGO!!!!  They had the perfect Elmo balloon!  Ummmm...WINNING!!  Oh yes, I'll take that $12 Mylar Elmo balloon.  (Yes, you read that correctly....I paid $12 dollars for just that ONE balloon....this does not include the rest of the balloon order, nor does it take the Sesame Street napkins or plates into account).  Then, I selected the big Cookie Monster balloon.  Not as large as Elmo, but large enough.  You know, not to overshadow Elmo, just to be his friend....Elmo had to be center stage.

They nice lady asked if I needed the order immediately, and I told her no....I don't need it until Saturday afternoon.  Would 1230P work?  Yes, yes it would.  Awesomeness.  So, off we go, to do some Elmo shoe shopping for KP at Stride Rite.  I'm calm, I'm happy, and things are wrapping up nicely.

Then, it came time to pick up the order.

I was already getting antsy about a few things on Saturday morning.  I needed hubby to load the ice chests with the Kool-Aid Jammers, water and bottles of soda.  I needed for said drinks to be iced down so that they would be brain-freeze cold for the party.  I needed for the table decorations and cupcakes to be loaded into one of our vehicles for transport to The Little Gym.  I needed for KP's party outfit (which was already packed and ready in her Elmo backpack) to make it to the party. And, I needed for the balloons to be picked up.  I wasn't worried about the food, because Amie was taking care of that for me, and she's as on top of things as I am.

Hubby was great that morning.  After I told him that I was getting anxious about the drinks getting cold enough in time, he stopped everything that he was doing, went to Spec's to purchase ice and came home to take care of the drinks for me.  I had also charged him with picking up the balloons, but with time getting short, I decided that my mom, Katie-Pie, and I would go pick them up.  Just in case there was an issue, I could handle it....and he still needed to get dressed.  So, off we go to the party store.

Hindsight being 20/20, that was the best decision, as there was no way that all of those balloons (roughly 40 balloons) would have fit into his Mustang.  No. Way. At. All.  They barely fit in my Santa Fe!  Poor KP was screaming at the Cookie Monster balloon, because he was all kinds of in her face and there was no where to  move him so that he wouldn't be practically suffocating her.  Poor baby....

Anywho....we get to the store at 1215P, and they had *just* started filling the order.  I felt really bad for the folks working (at first), because apparently noon was the "Hey!  Let's order balloon bouquets that we need to have right now!" time.  There was a line of about eight people holding packages upon packages of balloons that they needed filled immediately.  I was waiting patiently in line (hey, I still had 15 minutes before the order was supposed to be ready) when the nice manager lady asked if I had an order placed.  I told her that I did, indeed, have an order and I handed her my little slip of paper.  She gasped and told her two co-workers to stop what they were doing and complete my order ASAP.  That was very nice of her, and I thanked her.

So, about 20 minutes after our agreed upon pick-up time, the order was ready.  We're cutting it close to party time, and my mom still hasn't had a chance to get herself dressed.  I grab the balloons, grandma scoops up the birthday girl, and off we go to the car.  We strap KP into her car seat, then begin the process of shoving balloons into the back of the car, and try not to burst any of them.  We get them all in, my mom gets in the car, and I head to the driver's seat, but as I close the back door, I notice it......

Elmo has a limp arm.

I pick him up, and can feel air leaking out of him.  I tried to get that one $12 balloon out of the bouquet and couldn't do it.  I ended up taking my car key and using it as a knife to rip (not cut) the string that had him attached to the bouquet.  I leave my mom in the car with Katie-Pie and head back into the store.

As I approach the balloon counter, I hold dead Elmo out like an offering.  Blonde-wanna-be chick looks at me and says, "Did you even buy that balloon from here?!"

-CLICK!!-

"Ummmm, yes, I purchased it from here on Wednesday and you just filled it with helium."

Manager lady said, "Yes, she did.  That's the order that we just filled, and we were late.  Go get that other package from aisle nine, open it up and get the Elmo balloon out."

(which is a whole other story for another time)

After about five minutes, she comes back and says that she can't find it.  Off I go to look for it myself....no go.  I can't find the package either.  Slight feeling of panic is starting to set in.  They are officially out of the perfect Elmo balloon.  But wait!  There is another......Not as grand as the original Elmo balloon, but he would do.  My little girl had to have an Elmo balloon.  No questions, no excuses, no nothing.  There had to be an Elmo balloon in this bouquet.

So, we get replacement Elmo.  He's cute enough and will get the job done.  He's filled with helium, tied off with a piece of colorful curling ribbon, and off I go.  Gotta get my mom back to my brother's apartment so that she can get dressed, get other stuff loaded into the cars and get to the party.  KP's having fits in the back seat because she can't escape from Cookie Monster, and as my mom is holding the new Elmo balloon, he splits across the neck!!

WHAT THA?!?!?!?!?  You're kidding me, right?!!?  Seriously?!?!  No way that this is happening!!!  We haven't even pulled out of the parking lot!!!

No time to go back in now....I'll handle it on the way to the party (the store is on the way).

Get my mom to the apartment, and kick her out of the car (poor baby is now screaming at the Cookie balloon), rush to the house, get her out and into daddy's car and grab some water.  Thankfully, hubby had already loaded the gift bags and cupcakes in his car, so we were good.  Time to run back to the apartment, get my mom, go back to the party store, and get to the party...which starts in about 20 minutes.

Back in the store, I approach the counter, once again, with a dead Elmo.  The lady looks at me and is like, "Again?!?!"

Yes, again, fix it now.  Right now....my baby's party starts in 15 minutes.  Remedy this situation, or we're going to have a serious problem.  My little girl MUST have an Elmo balloon.

Back to the shelf and guess what???  They don't have another of Elmo Balloon #2.

I don't care if you have to fill an Elmo pinata with helium, I paid twelve flippity-do-da dollars for one Elmo balloon, and my daughter loves Elmo and THERE WILL BE AN ELMO BALLOON!!!!!!  (I did not raise my voice, I promise.  I was only yelling in my head.)

So, we end up with an Elmo that looks like he's for a little boy's party.  He's small and holding a balloon that reads, "Happy Birthday".  Elmo is wearing shorts and a t-shirt with a star on it...and he's woefully smaller than Cookie Monster. My mom and I showed up right at 2P (when the party was starting), frazzled, hyperventilating, dazed, and I was extremely disappointed about not having the perfect Elmo balloon for Katie-Pie.  But you know what??

Baby Girl LOVED him.

And he's STILL flying high.....three weeks later.

All is right with her world.

And all is right with my world because all is right with hers.

I'm a little more insane.  A little crazier.  I think that I got a gray hair over this entire Elmo balloon debacle.  I learned that I had become one of "those" mothers......

And I'd do it all again to see that smile on her face

One of those mornings...

Have you ever had one of those mornings where you're completely unsettled?  Like something is very, very wrong, and you're going to be the last to know about it?  That's the kind of morning that I'm having today.  Actually, it started last night.....this unease is really bothering me.....enough so much that I didn't even tell Munchkin "no" when she asked for some M&M's this morning.....

Praying for some type of peace this morning.....So, Katie-Pie and I saw Daddy off to work, waving out of the window as he drove by and turned on Sesame Street (Thank you Amazon Prime and Netflix!).  I decided to write a little bit this morning, eat some Skittles and have an ice cold Coke.  Maybe I just need a little sugar rush to get me moving into the day.  Luckily, we have The Little Gym this morning, and I think I look forward to that more than KP does.  I'm going to try and get some pictures of her doing her thing today at TLG.  She's gotten so athletic...walking on balance beams, jumping, swinging from the uneven bars.....She's come so far in her two years: from helpless (well, as helpless as only she could be) little baby girl, to imaginative, run-until-you-drop, ABC-singing bundle of life.  I could not imagine life without her!

See?! I had A Plan....And That's Where I Went Wrong...

So, here was my plan for this weekend....

• Clean the kitchen and the floor
• Vacuum living room
• Sort and organize Katie-Pie's Toys
• Catch up on the laundry that's been piling up
• Fold and put away the clean laundry that's living in baskets in the bedroom
• Begin working on Katie-Pie's preschool-summer school projects
• Planned on serving as an EM at 530P Mass 

Here's what happened:

• Washing machine broke....hubby is trying to fix it.....we don't have the ONE necessary tool to do so...and said tool is not available in a store for immediate purchase
• Started working on KP's preschool-summer school projects
• Ate a lunch-sized bag of Dorito's 
• Unloaded and reloaded dishwasher
• Looked at laundry and shook my head
• Got to 530 Mass early to check in, found out that I didn't have to serve
• Five minutes later, found out that my services were, in fact, needed
• Not only were my services needed after all, I also had to take the bowls to the altar.....that scared the living daylights out of me....AND had to serve the cup!
• Watched some American Idol that had been DVRed and wondered if Nicki Minaj could look like a normal person

Ok, about Mass...see, here's the thing....I went through the training and was commissioned as an Eucharistic Minister last fall.  It's really an awesome experience to be able to share my faith with others, be it at Mass, or in everyday life.  However, there are two positions that I purposefully do NOT sign up for.  First, I do not sign up for the C2 position.  This is the position that takes the bowls to the presider just after the Sign of Peace.  I am certain that I will trip and fall....my only saving grace is the fact that there are no consecrated Hosts in said bowls at this time.  The second position that I do not sign up for is the B1 position.  This is the position responsible for taking the carafe of wine and Holy Water to the presider, and returning it after he has prepared his chalice.  Again....I can be a clutz....and I would HATE to spill wine all over the altar, the priest, myself.....

And, when they came to find me in the pew, they told me that my services were actually needed, and that I would serve in the C2 postion.  I might also add that I'm not fond of serving the Precious Blood, because I am always fearful that I will spill it all over someone, or myself, or drop the cup....It's bad enough that once when I was going to Communion, the Host rolled out of my hands, down my arms, through my elbows, and hit the floor.  Time stopped.  I was completely horrified.  Actually, horrified doesn't even begin to describe how I felt....I felt much like I did this evening when they told me C2 postion, by the way, you take the bowls to the priest....abject terror.  (Hubby said that I hid it well, though)

I eventually told Father Bob what had happened with the consecrated Host hitting the floor....he laughed and told me that Jesus had a 3-second rule: If the Host hits the floor, Jesus jumps out of it, so I shouldn't worry about going to Hell for dropping Jesus' body.  He's an awesome priest!  

In the end, the weekend got totally and completely derailed, but hey....isn't that what normally happens?  I have found that the more I plan, the more things don't go according to said plan......just ask me about our wedding!

So, after we got home from church, Matt got KP in her jammies, we heated up some leftovers, I got ready for bed and we turned on American Idol to try and get caught up before the actual competition starts.

Then, we each had a Snickers Ice Cream Bar.  I'm calling it a day soon....I must prepare for the coming week (which WAS on my To Do List and didn't happen).  I've got some more ideas for KP's summer-schoolin' that I need to flesh out and some baking to do.  But I won't plan too much!  *wink, wink*

Stop the world, I wanna Get Off!

I cannot believe how busy our little family  has been since KP's birthday party!  I thought that once it was over, we'd get to breathe...boy howdy, was I wrong!  We've been GO, GO, GO for a month now and this is the first weekend we were going to get a break....so we thought!

I'm so behind, I finally got the thank you cards completed this morning.  I feel absolutely horrible about that, because they are woefully overdue.  I want to make absolutely certain that everyone knows how much Matt and I appreciated everyone for joining us at Katie-Pie's birthday celebration and how she has loved each and every gift that she received.  They just need stamps and will be dropped at the post office post haste!

This past week, we also got to get a good look at Little Baby!  My mom accompanied me to the anatomy scan, while my darling husband got someone to cover his shift at work and was on school duty for Katie.  Little Baby weighs approximately 8 ounces, and is healthy and wiggly.  And, just as Big Sister, Little Baby was not interested in cooperating when it came time to get pictures of the heart.  That alone, took almost an extra 45 minutes!  S/he has definitely taken lessons from KP, already....I can tell that we're in for some amazingly fun times with these two kids!

So, Daddy was on KP School duty for the day.  That way, she didn't have to miss her class Valentine's Day party.  She got some of the most darling Valentine's Day cards and goodies from her classmates.  And the one that she made for Matt and me brought tears to my eyes.  I tell you, the crafts that they make at school are killing me!  Too adorable!

I mean, just look at that face!!  How can you not fall in love with her?!  And those curls!  She gets curlier and curlier every day!  Hands down (or feet down) the most darling Valentine that I've ever received.  Thanks so much to her teachers for all of the amazing work that they do with these kids.  They are some of the hardest working women that I have had the pleasure of meeting.  I can barely manage to keep KP busy myself!  These women do it with 14 toddlers, every day!

Anywho, I got all teary-eyed, and hung it up on the mantle.  I'm a bit behind on scrapbooking her school crafts, and I guess that I had better get busy doing that before my hands are REALLY full!

And speaking of having full hands, I decided to start researching homeschooling for preschoolers.  Not that we're going to homeschool....but I need to keep her mind sharp during the summer break.  I don't want for her brain to turn to oatmeal, so my new project is putting together a "lesson plan" of sorts to get us through the summer.  I've found some pretty good tips and techniques that I'm going to give a try.  Fingers crossed that it'll go well.  I'll be sharing what we're doing under a new tab.  And, if anyone has homeschooled, or has additional ideas, please feel free to share them with me!  I'm always looking for helpful advice on how to keep the kiddo's brain working....unless she's having an Elmo or Wiggles break.

Right now, she and hubby have tummies full of bacon and pancakes and are settling down for a morning nap.  I should be cleaning something, but I really needed some time to turn on one of my mindless judge shows and write a little on the blog.  The toys will be there when I'm finished here.....

Since we didn't do anything for Valentine's Day (I refuse to go out to eat or to a movie on 2/14....too much craziness.....) we're going to have filets, some yummy vegetable, another yummy vegetable, and a delectable dessert this evening.  I'm trying to decide between a port wine-cherry sauce and a fresh chimichurri to accompany the filets.....we'll see how that works out later today.

Now, I'm off to the post office to send off the belated thank you cards.  Once again, I am grateful for understanding friends!!

But before I sign off for this post, I have to share a picture that a friend of mine took at the birthday party.

Wait?  Did I share this one already?  I should probably look, but what the hey?!  It's an utterly adorable picture and I'm fairly certain that just looking at it will brighten your day!

Baby Girl turns 2!!

Where the heck has the time gone?!?!  Just yesterday, I held her brand new, tiny little body in my arms and cradled her to me.  Just yesterday, I heard her cry for the first time.....Just yesterday, we looked into each other's eyes for the first time...I knew her and she knew me.....and we knew that we belonged to each other.

Now, she's two.  I think that I'm having a hard time dealing with this.....she's my baby.  My first....and now, she's two.  I still cuddle her until she falls asleep...and I will continue to do that until she says, "MOOOOOOOM!!!!!!!  I'm 50 now....I think that I can fall asleep on my own!"  Then, I'll do it just one more time.

Honestly, I'm so proud of my little girl.  She's smart (and I'm not the only one who says so), she's funny, she's beautiful, she is just a bundle of awesomeness!! She's everything that I want to be.  I love how she sees the world, and how it's all fun and fantastic.  She cracks me up everyday!  Nothing is better than snuggles with my Munchkin.

Here are some pictures from her birthday party.  Now, I'll preface this by letting you know that in all honesty, this party was for me.  1) She got to have the birthday party that I've never had (that whole born on Thanksgiving thing and all kinda makes it hard to get folks together); 2) She didn't have a first birthday party (she's one of the older kids in our circle of friends, so when she turned one, everyone else was 6-8 months old....not really ready for parties); 3) This will be her only birthday party as all hers....next year, her little brother or sister will be there, too.  I wanted her birthday celebration to be something absolutely special.  I made her invites, table decorations, and cupcakes.  Finishing up the thank you cards to get them in the mail soon.

I had the support of my loving husband (by the way, Katie's party was actually on his birthday!  Happy Birthday, my love!!) and Amie (who was awesome enough to pick up the food so that I could focus on the last second details)  I love that girl!  She is such a blessing to me!

So, anywho.....here are some pictures of our little Sugardoodle's party

Seriously, this was like herding kittens full of Jello!

We did have a genuine blast at the party.  Thanks so much to the folks at The Little Gym of Friendswood and Julie Ovalle Castillo, for Katie-Pie's one-of-a-kind birthday outfit!  

We are so blessed to have the friends and family that we have, and the love and generosity showed to Katie and our family in celebration of her birthday.  

Seems that I have some catching up to do!

After a two week sprint to the finish line, I'm happy to say that I'm back, and alive!

Lots has happened...and as you can probably tell, I've been in over-drive busy.  I haven't even really Facebooked that much...crazy, right?  So, let me start by posting some pictures from a super awesome trip that I had with some very special ladies to Cali.  We visited the California Wine Country, sampled some pretty tasty wines (well, the other ladies did, I mostly watched....I had a random sip here and there), attended a swanky party at a winery and lived in a veritable palace for four days.

I missed my baby girl terribly, but this was definitely something that I needed to do.  The last time I had girls' time like this was before Matt and I got married.  It was a truly wonderful experience to be with a group of women and not have any cattiness, pettiness, or competition involved.  We just hung out, talked, laughed, and enjoyed each other's company.

And with that, here are some pictures!!

The main living room

A portion of our fabulous group

The receiving area

The kitchen....**SWOON**

I'll take my orange juice straight, thank you....but I'll make mimosas for everyone else.

Our chariots

Sis, Adrienne

After a wild and swanky party, Amie, Adrienne and me

At the airport in Orange County

Some more of our group

Amie, posing like a boss!

Sitting pretty

Sitting pretty with the prego

Singing along with the tunes

At The Coppla Winery

The Godfather's desk.

A look down the hallway

Coppla's Oscars

In California, with a Texas flag, an Army flag and a glass of wine on a beautiful day

Walking the vineyard

So, in all...this was a great trip.  I'll add pictures to the blog as I get them downloaded, but I thought that I would start here.  

Next post.....My baby girl turned 2!!