Soooomebody just turned 3!
I have a three year old. Which means, in 2 years I'm going to have a 5 year old! Which means I'm going to have to send him to school soon! Which means... I might have a nervous break-down. Are they supposed to grow up? Really!? I'm going to get a 2nd opinion. I'm taking my business elsewhere, aaaaannnd I want a refund... because this just feels wrong.
Are those really his long, lanky legs? C'mon! What happened to his chunky thighs? His plump little fingers? Why are his cheeks vanishing into thin air? Why is he learning to ride a scooter!? This is all very troublesome... and overwhelming.
The next thing you know, he'll be dodging my kisses, getting embarrassed about the cute things he does, having slumberparties without me, and... and... and stop having tantrums in public places! Wait... that one I'll take.
But for the love of PETE child... please.stop.growing.
Your poor Mama's heart can't take much more.
I love you, little boy.
Dominic playing with his new train. Dominic spazzin' out over said train.
Before Dominic's party today, I went and bought the cake while Rich took the boys out to breakfast at Joe's Farm Grill for Dominic's free birthday meal, and then I headed to the party venue to set up for the festivities. :)
Dominic loves trains. LOVES them. L - O - V - E.
So for his birthday this year, we threw a Thomas the Train Birthday Party at Freestone Railroad & Park. The kids got their own train whistles, they rode on all the rides, rode the train, ate cake and ice cream, aaaaand almost blew away. (Yup. Can you say 35 mph winds!?) What IS it with stormy weather and EVERY important event in our family's life? Last year it rained on Dom's birthday too. And that's a rarity here.
Here are some pictures I took before the "real" winds started wreaking their havoc...
... still not the way I had pictured it, but the best I could do with the bad weather. I'm just glad I thought to snap some pictures before disaster struck. While the kiddies were (thankfully) having a blast on the rides, and while I was putting on the finishing touches, the weather decided to show me who's boss and before I could say, "Life in unfair", the party area was in shambles. The tables were attached to 3 large umbrellas (think "windsails") which made them able to FLY. Literally. And the cake that was on the middle table? It flew too. I watched in horror as it seriously did a flip in the air as it flew off the table and landed face UP on the cement below... scoring a 9.98.
Me? I was spread eagle on the other tables trying to save all the Thomas party hats, plates, cups, balloons, and decorations. Rich caught my eye as I was cursing under my breath and desperately trying to save everything from flying to Oz. He gave me a little smile and motioned me over to the rides. I shook my head in disgust, wiped away a tear (or four) and stood up and walked away. All my hard work... big sigh. But you know what? The kids had a BLAST.
And that's why we did this, right!? They were absolutely oblivious to the hurricane that WAS the weather... and I have the pictures to prove it.
I loooove the picture below!
Next year though? Indoor party. And the weather will probably be beautiful... just to spite me.
Here are Dom and his little friends, livin' it up and having so much fun it made my material loss so worth it. :)
Giving Mamie high-fives as he went by...
Manning their own waverunners video...
Cute kiddies...
Wind-blown babes...
Miss "A", Dom, and Miss "E"
"T" and Dom and "D"
Check out that face. Soooo excited. Love it.
...and some video footage of the train ride:
There's an antique Carousel too.
It was a hit. Just ask Little Miss "E". :)
Or you could ask Little Mr. "A"... because he thought the bench seat was super-cool.
And the birthday boy with his Thomas the Train cake and. All it has to show for its earlier acrobatics is the little smudge on the bottom right corner. Not. too. shabby.
Dom and his friends and the decoration-less, tablecloth-less, balloon-less table... he didn't even get to blow out the candles because there was no way they'd have ever gotten lit.
I love the collage below... especially little "D" in the middle, enjoying the frosting.
After the party was over, and seriously the second the boys were strapped into their carseats, the skies let loose. Tender mercy. At least we only had to survive the wind during the festivities. We drove ourselves on over to Joe's Real BBQ for Dom's free birthday lunch! Mamie and Papa joined us.
When we got home, Dom was finally able to open his presents without fear of them being blown into the next city.
He got Thomas the Train movies, a Thomas lunchbox, Thomas bath toys, Thomas RR track toys, a Thomas musical book, and coloring books! Plus, a huge bouncy ball, bathtub crayons, and some Legos! He also got a learning laptop from Mamie and Papa and a new razor scooter from Nana and Bumpa.
Thank you so much to all of our wonderful friends who braved the elements and celebrated Dominic's BIG 3 with us! You guys are the BEST!
As if his day weren't already heart-pounding enough... he got another surprise... "Aunt Chachel" came over. Dominic's heart throb. Not only does she make Dominic's heart go a-flutter, but she came bearing a super-cool new dinosaur train for the birthday boy. She just can't get any better. Dominic is smitten.
Dominic had to wait a couple of days for the unveiling of Mommy and Daddy's gift because it rained and was FREEZING through the weekend. But Monday night, we finally surprised him with this...
... now we just need to teach this kid to JUMP! Haha!
P.S. If you're reading this post and thinking to yourself, "What kind of parents spoil their 3-year-old rotten like this when the kid would've been happy with a cupcake and present or two?" You're not alone. I ask myself the same question. Here is your answer: I had a little break-down the night before his party (that rivaled that of a mother-of-the-bride the night before the wedding) when I realized just how much money we had spent on a party for our 3 YEAR OLD. I think I really needed something to keep my mind busy... a distraction, if you will, from the latest, big event that took place in my life a mere 8 weeks ago. And so I dove into party-planning mode and did not come up for air until... now. Healthy? Hmmm... maybe not for our pocket-books, but it did keep me pretty distracted. Anyway, that's my lame, embarrasing explanation for all the over-the-top-ness. Sorry for my lack of inhibition.
2 comments:
So fun! Wish we could've been there. They are both getting soooo big and so cute! I miss you all. Love you guys!
Wow, he does look so grown up! How long has it been since we last saw you guys. Was it Aubree and Hailey's baptism? If so, no wonder-he's a year older.
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