Hello!  My name is Kate, and this is my blog.  I do exist, but the more I want to put on the old blog, the more I have going on, and the less likely it is that I will actually post anything.  I feel like I just can’t catch up!  Sooooo, instead of doing the 43 loads of laundry that await my tired body, I will sit and post my baby’s birthday party.

First, let me say that somehow we have a touch of the stomach bug again!  It’s nothing like the horrible one we had a few weeks ago, but it’s vomit nonetheless!

Anyway!

AnnaLeigh’s birthday was in January, but she wanted to have a party outside.  I told her we had to wait until it warmed up a bit, so we waited 3 months. :)  My sister’s son, Truett, is 5 weeks younger than AnnaLeigh, and we have learned that combined parties are best for everyone!

Last year we had a Hello Kitty Dumptruck party.  The year before that we had a Very Hungry Caterpillar party.

This year, we again asked the kids what they wanted.  AnnaLeigh wanted a Mickey Mouse party.  Truett wanted a train party.

Hmmm.

A Mickey Mouse Train party it is.  The themes are getting a little hard to combine.

Ashley and I decided that life is crazy and we needed simple this time.  We just had a few friends, mostly our regular Sonic group, join us at Sonic on Friday afternoon for some happy hour drinks and cake.  Pretty fancy, I tell ya!

It was the perfect day.  The perfect place to have a party.  The perfect time to celebrate their birthdays…even if it was a few months late.  We had a blast!  Here are a few pics.

This little maniac has decided that this is her new smile.  Pursed lips and sassier than ever!  Such a mess!

My sister made the Birthday Crossing sign and the cute food train.  The train had had a coal car (Coco puffs), a log car (long pretzel sticks), a gravel car (tator tots), a produce car (cuties), an animal car (animal crackers) and a favor car (little Mickey pops).  I will post the recipe for the Mickey pops later this week…hopefully.

(Mickey pop tutorial coming soon.)

My sister, Ashley, with her husband and precious Laurabeth.

Garrett is always a hit with the younger boys!

Walker, Preston, Sam…taking a quick break from football.

Brad’s parents and AnnaLeigh

My dad and my baby girl.

I was teasing with Georgia and hurt her feelings.  It was so pitiful, but it resulted in a few minutes of sweet hugs and love.  I love those sweet little cheeks and tiny little hands!

My funny grandmother, Memama, and the birthday girl.  We are so thankful that she is here and we get to see her every week.  It is so special for Memama to be able to attend all these crazy birthday parties.

My Pinky loved her cake…which made me happy!  She ate every bite, of course.

Sweet Truett couldn’t wait to get the train engine.  It was all marshmallow fondant and food coloring.  He ate the whole thing!

Crazy girl!  I love you more than you will ever know.  You certainly keep me smiling and keep my on my toes…and keep me humble!  I love everything about you.

You are a leader already, and the Lord can use you in mighty ways.  Allow him to lead you and let his love spill out of you.

People listen to you.  Speak words of love and kindness and truth.  Be a good friend and look for friends that are wise.  Make wise decisions.  Love your sisters and your brother.  Listen to your mama and daddy.  Give everyone the respect that you want.

I am proud of the little maniac that you are becoming.  I love watching you learn and grow every single day.  You make me smile.  You have my heart.

I love you, Pinky!

-kate

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We had our annual church Easter Egg Hunt and Potluck Lunch this past weekend…always a fav for my fam!  It was so much fun!  My sister and I decided to stick around and take a few family pics after the festivities were over.

What do you get when you have 7 tired children who have been at church for 5 hours all dressed in their Sunday best- running around sweating and hunting Easter Eggs and playing with their friends and eating Easter candy? (besides a run-on sentence?)

You get pictures that look like this…

and this…

and this…

and this…my goodness, this was the only smile AnnaLeigh would give me.  It’s FRIGHTENING!  She’s in that lovely awkward stage of trying to find her “picture” smile.  We haven’t mastered it yet.

Of course, I sat my sister’s kids down and told them to smile.  I took 3 pics.  They were all perfect!

Here are the pictures from our day.

AnnaLeigh just picked up all the eggs that were falling out of the bigger kids’ baskets.

Lilly Katherine was so thrilled that she had a shiny egg.  With a smile on her face, she kindly donated an egg or two to children that didn’t have many.

Preston had a strategy on how to get the most eggs.  He ran to the back and worked his way forward instead of starting where everyone else was.  My little analytical planner.  I love this type-A kid!

While these 2 were busy taking inventory…

These 3 maniacs were messing with a caterpillar.

Sidenote:  I literally hate worms of any kind more than anything!  I cannot look at these pictures because it makes me GAG!  The picture above and below I had to post without really looking at them because it makes me have the heebie-jeebies!  I HATE worms.  Oh, I just got a full body shiver just typing that!  AGH!  These pics gross me out!

Sidenote #2:  My children think these things are called cal-a-pillas.  They also all three say cim-a-non, which has nothing to do with this post, but I love little words like that and I don’t correct them.  I will one day.  Not today.

Here’s my handsome hubby!

I feel like he should have a “Senior 2012” stamped in gold at the bottom of this picture.  Except it would say “Senior ’96!!!”

And this is the best family pic we got.  No lie!

Ok, well there’s this one, but let me point out a few things…

Brad has a pacifier on his finger.

LK is holding an egg, which she informed me today she did that on purpose so we would know this picture was from Easter.

AnnaLeigh is looking sassy as usual with her hands on her hips.

Georgia is screaming.

My face is round like Kelly Kapowski’s in the later days of Saved by the Bell.  You know what I’m talking about!

Moving on.

My skinny sister and our baby girls…

My maniacs…

The whole crew…

My beautiful blue-eyed baby girl!

Have a wonderful Easter and remember that Easter is not about a silly bunny and bunch of candy stuffed plastic eggs, or even about getting cute pics of your maniacs.  Easter is a time to remember and reflect on the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.  He suffered the ultimate price for me, for Brad, for Preston, for Lilly Katherine, for AnnaLeigh, for Georgia, and for YOU!  Know the truth about Easter.  Know that our LORD did not just die, but he ROSE!  He is alive and he wants you to know him!  Learn more about the true meaning of Easter here.

-kate

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Right before Christmas, my sister and I realized that we needed to have Truett and AnnaLeigh’s birthday parties asap, because both of us are due in January.  Truett’s birthday is February 11, and last year we did a joint Very Hungry Caterpillar Birthday Party, and it worked out beautifully.  We have the same guest list, so we might as well combine our efforts, plus the kids love doing their parties together!

I asked AnnaLeigh what kind of party she wanted, and she said she and Truett wanted a Hello Kitty Party.  Hmm.  I’m not sure that would be Truett’s first choice.  She disagreed.  I tried to convince her to do something else, but she wanted a Hello Kitty party just like Lilly Katherine had a few years ago.  Why argue.  I decided to let the girl have the party she wanted.

Truett’s very into big trucks and dump trucks, and we decided that we didn’t have to have a unified theme.  They could both have their own theme…at the same party.  They could literally have their cake and eat it too! :)

In typical Kate fashion, I was running late.  As our families started to arrive for the party I was not all the way dressed, had no make-up on, hadn’t fixed my hair, was in the process of “decorating” (if you can even call it that), and I was scribbling “AnnaLeigh” on the cake.  Why oh why can’t I just be ready on time?!?!

Anyway, here is our Dump Truck and Hello Kitty Birthday Party.

My mom and I made the invitations, which were a dump truck invitation with a Hello Kitty driver.  The “dirt” pulled up and out for party details.

The rocks in the front end loader and the Hello Kitty Pops are both Oreo balls, which are so flipping delicious! Here are my very imperfect Hello Kitty Oreo Balls.  I know most people use cake, but I prefer Oreos…plus they’re way easier.  I just copied this design.  Not too difficult.

My girl…she loved the Hello Kitty “cake pops.”

Ash made Truett’s precious dump truck shirt.  I used the Hello Kitty Pillowcase dress I made for Lilly Katherine a few years ago.  AnnaLeigh was excited to wear it, and I was excited to recycle it.  Win-Win! :)

The cakes!  Ashley made delicious “dirt” for her dump truck!  Boy-moms, this is the greatest cake ever!  I did this for Preston’s 4th birthday.  Just buy a cute dump truck (it will also double as a gift) and fill it with “edible dirt”…Oreos, brownies, heath bits, peanut butter chips, and pudding.  Serve it with a little plastic shovel.  Easy and delicious!

My cake was not as successful…or easy!  The cake tasted great, but something went wrong and I didn’t have the patience to figure out what!  I was icing the cake at midnight (which is super early for me!) and the icing just wouldn’t stick.  This ain’t my first rodeo, but something just wasn’t working.  I’m so tired and uncomfortable, that when I visualized myself picking the Hello Kitty cake up and throwing it across the room I decided it was time to stop trying to ice the cake and go to sleep!  The cake was not my best, but AnnaLeigh was excited about it and that’s what matters.

You like the chunks of icing missing?

Pinky had to sneak a little bite of icing.  She’s my girl!

AnnaLeigh got a car for her Build-A-Bear from Nana,

a giant Hello Kitty from Memama (my grandmother) that now sleeps with her,

and a “Minnie the Pooh” movie!  :)  We watched it in the theatre and she loved it!

The guests were our family.  (Taylor and Kelly, maybe one day y’all can come join the chaos, too.)

Claire and AnnaLeigh

Caleb, Lilly Katherine, Claire, AnnaLeigh, Preston, Truett, and Garrett

AnnaLeigh and Mimi (my mom)

Brad’s brother, “Silly Unlce Andy,” loves to harrass my girls everyone, and he does it well.  He was messing with AnnaLeigh and she loved it!

A pic of my Pinky and her very large and very tired mama!

I’m only including this because my mom says that one day I will be glad I have pictures of myself pregnant.  I’m not sure this is the pregnancy I would like to have documented, but here goes.  AnnaLeigh asked Ash and I to take a picture back to back, so we did!

OUCH!  I look miserable (as my grandmother points out every.single.time.i.see.her!)  Brad also might have said to me this weekend, “It just looks like your belly is hanging!”  YES DEAR!  It IS!!!  Oh my, I’m having a contraction just thinking about that conversation!

Soon and very soon we will meet this new little one and I will officially have 4 kids…and 3 KIDS’ birthdays to celebrate in January!  Woohoo!

Happy Birthday AnnaLeigh and Truett!  Let’s keep those double birthday parties going as long as possible! :)

-kate

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Saturday night LK dressed she and Pinky both in an assortment of clothes.  LK has on 2 ballerina outfits (one on top of the other) and she put a leotard on top of AnnaLeigh’s pajamas…then they decided to do make-up.

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LK is saying something like, “Don’t you think that’s a good idea?” I should probably warn AnnaLeigh about such words.

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Things like this:

Cause this:

…and this:

Then they busted out this:

Which caused a WHOLE LOT of this:

And can you believe it even caused this:

The maniacs were jamming to Worship Jamz.  It’s one of our most favorite praise CD’s…great for the whole family.

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While LK and P jumped all over the living room, AnnaLeigh cuddled up with her daddy on the couch and read The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

Good Times!

We had her Very Hungry Caterpillar birthday party on Sunday.  I’ll try to post pics tomorrow…after I sort through all 300 of them!!!

“Shout for JOY to the Lord all the earth!

Worship the Lord with GLADNESS!

Come before him with joyful Songs!”

-Psalm 100:1-2

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We were supposed to have a birthday party today for a certain little 2-year old and her soon to be 2-year old cousin.  Of course, we had to postpone because she is sickly.

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Let me back up…I stayed up until 3 am Thursday night (which is totally normal for me) to make AnnaLeigh’s outfit for her birthday party.  It started snowing at midnight, and while I sewed I watched the snow fall.  I was excited just thinking about telling Preston he had a SNOW DAY!  There were very few snow days here when I was growing up, but they were all VERY exciting!

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Well, at 5:14 (after going to bed at 3), my phone rang.  It was a recording to tell me school was canceled.  Really?  5:14?  I managed to fall right back to sleep…until I heard AnnaLeigh crying at 5:30.  It was a sad little cry, and I picked a limp little fever-bug out of the bed.  She was miserable.  She went to bed Thursday night happy and full of life, but she woke up so pitiful.

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P and LK woke up bouncing!  They were so excited to see snow, and P was ecstatic that school was canceled!  His exact reaction was “Yes!! No spelling test!”  (So funny!)

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Brad took the big kids outside and they played for hours.  I stayed inside and held a sick baby for hours.  I could hear them giggling and screaming through the windows while I held and rocked and loved on my sleeping little angel.  I took a pic on my phone, so it’s a poor picture, but so sweet.

Nana and Granddear walked to our house and they had a snowball fight.  Then…they got the 4-wheeler.  Brad wanted to pull them around the block behind the 4-wheeler.  He got the awesome idea that the best way to do it would be to stick all of them in a BABY POOL and have them hold a rope.  (Please notify Jeff Foxworthy!)  I wish I had seen this…probably better that I didn’t.  For some odd reason, the redneck baby pool idea didn’t work.  Hmmm.

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Our sweet neighbors provided my crazy hubby with a sled.  Brad and Granddear drove the kids around the block all morning.  LK rode on the 4-wheeler and they pulled P behind it on a sled.  They all had a blast, and Brad assured me it was “safe.”  His comment when I expressed my mom-wisdom was, “Babe, we never even got out of second gear!”  Whatever in the world that means!  All I know is that Preston had such a great time!  I’m thankful my babies have a daddy and grandfather who are willing to get out there and have fun them!

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Brad even managed to get a few pics on his iPhone when Granddear drove P and LK around the block.

See…safe!…fun!

Makes me cold just looking at the pics!  I won’t lie, I was happy to have a reason to stay in my warm house! :)

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Last night both girls went to bed with fever.  This morning they were all up by 6.  Lilly Katheirne woke up very early because she saw a 4-eyed shark swimming on her ceiling with it’s mouth WIDE open.  She turned the light on to wake Preston up to make sure it was gone.  Then they made sure they were loud enough to wake AnnaLeigh up, too.  The good news is that they all seem to be feeling better.

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We’re planning on having AnnaLeigh and Truett’s Hungry Caterpillar birthday party tomorrow.  All I know is that the Very Hungry Caterpillar ate through a lot of very expensive, not-in-season fruit and we WILL have this party.  I cannot let these plums, strawberries, and watermelon go to waste!

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Stay warm!

-kate