Happy Birthday Baby Girl!

Much to my dismay, London turned 3 in April. I cannot believe how grown up she is. She's a great kid and is so much fun. It's funny to watch how her sense of humor is developing. She loves to tease (especially her dad). She's learning to manipulate us a little, and it's actually pretty clever. She loves to offer to get us treats so she can just happen to grab one for herself as well. She's stubborn, she's imaginative, she ignores half of what I say, she loves to cook, she always clears her dishes without asking, she still sticks everything in her mouth, she remembers every logo and commercial she's ever seen, and she is extremely polite. The queen of "please" and "thank you." I love this kid.

Since we dragged L half way across the country, away from her beloved cousins, we decided to let her have a party with friends. She chose a Backyardigans theme. We invited her fellow ankle-biters to join us at the park for some pizza, cake and (completely melted) ice cream.

L and her BFF Easton waiting for the other guests to arrive

L's cake.
It's supposed to channel Uniqua. See the curly 3?
Reminiscent of Uniqua's antenna?
Not sure I pulled it off, but I'm proud of it anyway. :)

I was surprised how odd it felt throwing a party for my kid. I was "in charge" but I had no idea what I was doing. I know it was stupid, but the whole time I was worrying about how long to play at the park or when to have cake. And then there were the presents. Why I felt so weird about the presents, I don't know, but I felt like I all but when up to all these wonderful women and said, "Hey! Will you spend money on my kid?"

They really were wonderful women, too. Balancing a newborn, a video camera, a still camera, a cake that needed to be lit (in the wind, mind you), and presents everywhere was pretty much impossible. All I ended up having to do was worry about the cameras, because my awesome friends took care of everything else. And, Amy, I'll always love you for trying to climb that stupid tree when London's party balloons blew away. :) I'm sure it was just another birthday party for every other adult there, but to me, the whole thing was kind of strange and a little stressful, and you guys made it so it was an amazing time for my baby girl instead of a disaster. :) Thank you!

As mentioned previously, L lost her poor birthday balloons. She was SO excited about them and asked for them first thing when we got up that morning. My heart about broke for her when the wind made quick work of the apparently inadequate knot I tied and I saw them fly up into the air and lodge themselves high up in a tree. I was SO proud of how well she handled it. Even when she discovered that the longest stick she could find was not nearly long enough to rescue them.

After a fun-filled morning, the festivities continued. L played with her birthday loot until dinner time, which was spent at her favorite restaurant, Red Robin. At the restaurant, her birthday balloons were replaced with a solitary, but well received, green one. To make things even better, the Red Robin was in attendance, and he gave L a hug. She ordered macaroni and cheese, french fries, and Sprite. This would be her last meal if she were on death row.

Once we returned home, she received her present from us (the cutest pink chair in the world) and opened about a million presents from her grandparents.

She went to bed worn out and properly spoiled. Maybe a little overly spoiled, but I'm okay with that once in a while. Four months later... Happy Birthday, London! We love you and are SO proud of the awesome little person you're shaping out to be.