Birthday Craziness

I haven't blogged in awhile - but I figured these pictures were definitely blog worthy, so I decided to post. Lauren just had her 7th birthday. I am so NOT a birthday mom - I hate throwing a party - it gives me serious anxiety. Thankfully, Lauren - being who she is - already knew exactly what she wanted to do. We had THE LIZARD WIZARD come and do the party for us. All I had to do was provide the cake and the goodie bags. (Seriously - this was my kind of party). It was so great - they bring in all sorts of animals and let the kids have a chance to intereact. I am posting a few pictures for your viewing enjoyment!

Yes - that is actually a tarantula on Lauren's head. She thought this was SOOOOOOOOOO cool - I was completely creeped out and you couldn't have paid me money to do it. But it was a big hit with the kids.

Snakes were also a popular item. They even had a 12 foot long snake that the kids all helped hold. So interesting . . . . .

Lauren getting a kiss from a lizard.

So - I had to throw this picture in because this is a good memory for me. Lauren has had a HUGE crush on 'Jake' for the whole school year. He came to her party, and Lauren was so thrilled. He came a little late - and as soon as she heard the doorbell ring - she jumped up and started running - saying "Jake is here!". He came in and she threw her arms around him and it was caught on camera. SO cute - it makes me laugh. But - it was a great party, Lauren had a lot of little friends there and she declared it was her BEST birthday ever!! Bonus points for mom - YEA!!!

My Baby is Growing Up . . . .

We went to a wedding reception tonight for a friend of our family. After all the traditional things were done - the music was turned on and it was time to dance. I'm sitting on the sidelines (of course) trying to keep my 2 year old from setting herself on fire (she was completely insistant that she was going to climb up on every table and blow out all the candles) when I noticed something happening on the dance floor. My oldest daughter, Kylie . . . who is almost 9 years old . . . was out there dancing with her cousin. She was all dressed up, sporting her new 'high heeled' shoes that we recently purchased for her, and was she ever dancing. She was shakin' her booty, twirling around . . . and looking so grown up. This was another of those moments when I just feel like I need time to freeze. That I am not going to allow one more day to go by, because my little girl is starting to not be so little anymore. I was overjoyed and completely floored all at the same time. I never knew that being a parent was going to include so many of these moments when you feel like time is just slipping through your fingers. Can we make it stop?