Kate's 3rd Birthday Party!

...our Baby Kate's 3rd birthday party! We were all so excited to have her first friend birthday party. This year all of her school friends had birthday parties where friends were invited, so Kate started asking if her friends could come to her party months ago. Knowing Kate like we do we had to find a place that was low-key enough that it wouldn't overwhelm her when all of the people showed up. We weren't really sure where to find a place that would work for us since the kids are a little too young for a swim party and we knew Kate wouldn't handle that many people being in her house touching her things. After a lot of searching we found the place for her party: Holly Hop Ice Cream Parlor. The place is really cute (think 50's soda fountain) and has great ice cream; it also has a juke box that kept the kids dancing and we had run of the place. It was perfect and I think everyone had a great time!

She was so excited about her party, that every morning for the past week she would wake up and ask if it was time for her party yet. We kept telling her once Ginny (Granny) and Papa Steve showed up it would be time for her party. When they came in on Friday night she was sooo excited. We had our fingers crossed for a good birthday party since she had been looking forward to it for so long, and fortunately the party did not disappoint. 12 of her little friends came plus their parents, which was a great number. Here are some pictures of the party:

The birthday girl with mommy and daddy before the party started. She was so excited, she wanted down to look at her party stuff.



The goodies table. The little gift boxes for the kids who came were super cute. I think all of the kids liked the fun stuff inside too...who doesn't love jelly bracelets, slinkys, pencils, and stickers?



The cupcakes were from Peace o' Cake. They were strawberry with cream cheese icing, and man oh man were they yummy!



The calm before the storm. I think the decorations turned out really great!



The birthday girl waiting for her friends. She was sooo happy.



The kiddos decorating their pinata sacks. I was surprised how seriously they took this and how long it kept their attention.



Indoor pinata...no bats required!



The pinata was a big hit, and I think the beginning of a birthday tradition for Kate.




Amanda telling everybody the good news that it was time for ice cream!




Papa Steve and Jude hanging out and napping.



All of the kiddos eating ice cream. For those of you who live in Lubbock, Holly Hop has really good ice cream. I'm not sure what it is about pre-school aged kids, but they can drink juice with just about anything. Kate has never really cared for juice much, but as you can see from the picture the kids didn't mind a little juice with their ice cream. Not a pairing that would show up on the Food Network, but whatever.



Kate was all about blowing out her candles this year. Last year, she really didn't get it, but this year the candles were serious business.




Kate's friend Taylor was helping out by bringing Kate her presents to open. Taylor is the social organizer of the friend-set.



She has such sweet friends; they got her some neat gifts for her birthday.



All good things must eventually come to an end. After the party I was putting Kate in her car seat to go home, and she gave me a big hug and whispered in my ear..."Daddy, thank you so much for my party. I loved it. I love you." I almost melted into a happy pile of sludge right then. The party was nothing over the top or too fancy, but it was simple, fun, and everybody (Kate included) had a great time. It will be hard to top this birthday. Happy 3rd birthday Kate!