Sunday, November 1, 2009

The Best Birth-oween Ever!

For those of you who don't know, Anslie's 2nd birthday was yesterday, on Halloween! What a fun day for a birthday! This year, we tried to incorporate her Halloween costume into her birthday party theme. Anslie was Alice from Alice in Wonderland and we threw a Mad Hatter's Tea Party for her and all of her friends. Kevin's parents, Walt and Connie, flew in from Chicago to help us celebrate. We all joined in on the dress-up fun; Kevin as the Mad Hatter, me as the March Hare, and Connie as Tweedle Dee (we're calling Walt Tweedle Dum because he didn't dress up:). Here are some pictures of some of the fun decorations from Anslie's party. I took some of the pictures, but most were taken by my dear friend, Tonya Peterson, who willingly became our resident photographer for the party (Thank you, thank you, thank you, Tonya! I don't know how I could have run the party and taken pictures at the same time. Plus, it was really nice to be able to be in some pictures with my daughter for a change!)
Paper flowers hung from the ceiling to represent the Singing Flower Garden
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Glass vases filled with colored water and a sign that says "Drink Me"
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Kevin made the Doorknob from the top of a shoe box, home made modeling clay, and gold spray paint. You could even turn the doorknob to open the door!
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Giant playing cards hung from the ceiling
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One requirement we had of our guests was that they wear a silly hat to the party. Most complied, but some went above and beyond and shared their adorable Halloween costumes with us. They were all so cute! Once our guests arrived, we set out the Tea Table and let the kids have at it. We also served them lunch consisting of PB&J sandwiches shaped like hearts, diamonds, clubs, and spades, fruit and dip, veggies and dip, cocktail wieners, chips, and cucumber sandwiches. They even got to drink pink lemonade with fresh raspberries right out of their tea cups.
Anslie and Gracie
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Little Miss "Alice"
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Paige
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Enjoying "high tea"
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Hailey the Kitty Cat
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Baby Alvaro
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Yum, yum!
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Anslie was the BEST Alice!
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Ava rockin' her sunglasses
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After lunch (and the "tea party") it was cake time! Anslie's adorable cake was made by Michelle Wilkes. It was so darling! We sang "Happy Birthday" and Anslie was so proud of herself when she blew out the candle all by herself!

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And then, the presents. We have such generous and loving friends and family! Walt and Connie brought tons of gifts with them from Chicago from all of our relatives out there. And the wonderful friends we have made in Roswell didn't disappoint, either. Anslie had some fun opening her presents (she actually did it by herself this year!!!) and the other kids at the party had a fun time helping her out too. She received clothes, shoes, homemade hair bows (thanks, Jeanine, so cute!!!) a giant bouncy ball, a magnetic paper doll set (soooooo cool!), a baby doll, complete with stroller, high/rocking chair, and bassinet, and a play kitchen with all of the food and dish accessories a kid could want. Talk about a blessed kid!

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We had such a fun time at Anslie's party and are so grateful for our friends that were able to make it. It was definitely the best party we have ever thrown and Anslie had a blast, so it was totally worth it!

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After cleaning up, naps, and dinner, we then headed over to our church's Trunk-or-Treat where we gave out and collected candy. So fun (and safe)! Overall, it was one very special Birth-oween!
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7 comments:

Kendyll said...

Wow Shillawna! Her party looks unbelievable! She is one lucky girl to have such a creative and talented mother. It looks like you guys had a great time!

Tera said...

Awesome! I love the flowers, they turned out really cute. The doorknob is amazing and I think the best decoration of them all. It looks exactly as it should! Your guys costumes were so great. I loved your teeth, they made me laugh and the tweedle dee costume was hilarious. Connie was a good sport. But oh, that Anslie! She made the absolutely perfect Alice. I don't think anyone could have been a better Alice than her. She is absolutely breathtakingly beautiful! Happy Birthday Beautiful Anslie!

Diane said...

What a fun party!! Great job!

Shelly said...

Happy 2nd Birthday sweet Anslie!! WOW! What an amazing party! I loved all the decorations and the costumes-absolutely perfect! And Anslie was the perfect Alice, absolutely beautiful!! You really out-did yourselves on this one!!

Erica said...

i LOVE the birthoween! so cute! and that is one incredible party!!! great job shillawna, so creative!

Darren & Kenna said...

Absolutely Adorable! I hope I can be a fun mom, too!

The Daltons said...

That's awesome Shillawna! You always did know how to throw the best parties!