Thursday, October 28, 2010

Birthday, Round Two

Fair warning: this is a mega-post. In fact, I have my computer propped on the window-sill with the window cracked open so that the 37-degree air will keep my computer from over-heating as I download all these pictures (yes, we have a crappy computer.) This was the first year that we planned a big birthday party. (Last year Topher had no idea what was going on so we kept the celebration within the family as to not disorient him even more.) It was SO MUCH FUN to plan this for my little boy. Not only would we talk about the party and tell him how many days more until the fun, but he seemed excited. This only fueled me more, causing OcTopherFest 2010 to take over my house. The theme was Choo-choo: I'm turning 2! We chose this because Topher has recently discovered a love for Thomas the Train and all things with wheels and whistles and funnels and fireboxes. I will not detail the month of planning that went into this but will instead skip to the very best part: the actual party. Which townhouse is it? They all look the same...oh wait, that must be the place. Because our bank accounts are not especially overflowing at the moment, I made some of my own decorations. This train border was drawn on plain computer paper with my crayons and markers. This is why is looks like a 5th grade project. I love it anyway.
THE MENU
This is my favorite part. We start with some home-made caramel apples. I will not tell you what my first round of caramel apples looked like or, because of that first failed experiement, how last-minute these were.
The cupcakes. I opted for the simplicity of cupcakes rather than trying to make a fancy cake. Maybe next year.
The dessert spread.
Okay, now for some actual food. Perfect game-day snackies.
And don't forget the beverages. (Sodor Island is where Thomas the train lives, just in case you are grossly underinformed in all things Thomas.)
The other highlight of the menu would have to be the root beer float station. Not only were the floats served in these country-style mason jar mugs, but every adult got to take one home as a party souvenir. Not bad, huh?
And don't forget the float menu. Seriously, every combination was so delicious, it was impossible to pick the wrong one. Some whole-room shots before the guests arrive. Topher took a perfectly timed nap right before the party giving me a chance to snap some photos and get everything in place. Luckily, it also gave him enough rest to be happy and engaging for the whole 3 hours. He was smiling the entire time. It made everything so worth it.
And we didn't forget the kiddos. Placed by the door were the infamous train whistle favors. We made sure they were only given out as the kids were leaving so as not to have 10 whistles blasting at once.
Now just add my absolute favorite part: the party boy. My mom and step-dad, who came ALL the way from KC for this party, thought to bring him a perfect outfit. Doesn't he look adorable??? I can't believe I get to be this little handsome man's mommy. I must have won a lottery I don't even remember entering.
Sprinkle in a lot of friends and family and you've got yourself a great party. Better than great.
The birthday cupcake. He ate it all and kept his outfit clean to boot. That's my boy.
Topher and Daddy playing with the birthday balloons.
The enormous pile of gifts. Topher LOVES presents. (He inherited that from me.)
The day was just perfect. I could not have asked for anything better. Later, after the choas died down and we cleaned up a little, Topher continued to have fun playing with all his new trains.
This is the gift TJ insisted on getting for him...his first metal tractor. Like any little boy, he just loves that green farm equipment.
Later that night, Grandma and Grandpa Clark came back to watch Topher open their gifts. He was so excited about his Curious George movie and--surprisingly--some huge winter boots that he would NOT take off.
(As an HUGE bonus to this already-great day, our little good luck charm helped steer the Missouri tigers to a win over #1 Oklahoma. It was amazing. I wish we could have been in Columbia that night!!!)
The next morning was his actual birthday and he loved playing with all his new puzzles.
Happy birthday, Topher. You are SO handsome!
TJ and I saved our big presents for his actual birthday, so after church we gave him another train set to add on to his Thomas set (a steal on Craigslist)...
and his first tricycle (another Craigslist bargain, we spent surprisingly little money on him somehow, it was really kind of amazing!)
Topher, in a word you have transformed us. Into parents. Into a family. Into a role we didn't think we could perform. And for me, into a life I couldn't have known to wish for. Into someone I never could have otherwise been.
Thank you for coming to us. We love you. Happy two years.
--KC

3 comments:

  1. Macie - I'm not even going to say anything about the fact that this post was published at 6:26 in the morning, besides ARE YOU CRAZY?!

    You threw the BEST birthday party! It was so much fun to watch Topher play and he was so excited to have everyone there for him. Great job on the party Mom, you did an AMAZING job. We loved it.

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  2. What a totally adorable party! I love all the names for the food, etc - so much fun! We so wish we could have been there, maybe next year. You'll just have to throw another awesome party so we can experience it.

    luvs, aby

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  3. Thank you so much for posting the pictures of the party, I feel like I was there! What a great job you did on his party, what a lucky little man!

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