Ice Cream Party for Grace's 2nd Birthday

Not only is it less than two weeks until Thanksgiving, there are just 5 more weekends until Christmas! Before the madness of the holidays takes hold, let me take a minute to recap Grace's 2nd Birthday.

First- like all mothers, I can not believe how quickly she has grown up. She is not a baby any more. She is a big girl with a sense of humor and a fiery attitude. She says "Thank you, Mommy," and "Ready (to) go?" She sings (most) of her ABC's, Twinkle, Twinkle, and Rock-a-bye Baby. She can count to ten. She loves apples, eggo waffles, pizza and our dog. She is two.

We had her birthday party early, so we could go to the farm by our house for homemade ice cream. It was a hot afternoon spent with friends eating ice cream and touring the farm.

Mommy blowing out the candle for Grace

Invitation 

Party favors for the boys- handmade bow ties (tutorial)
Printable adapted from One Charming Party 

Party favors for the girls- ice cream hair bows (Simply Pretty Bows)
Printable adapted from One Charming Party  

Ice cream tickets for the party guests-
"Exchange this ticket for a small cup of ice cream"

The Birthday girl checking out the animals with her friends. 

Opening presents- not her best moment!

Tired and dirty at the end of the party! (I love the little smudge of dirt on her nose!)

Special thank you to Auntie Jen for driving down for the celebration and for helping with set-up and clean-up! LOVE YOU!

We also brought S'more fun treats to her class the week of her Birthday.  (Printable)

Streamers on the morning of her birthday. 

The day of her second birthday she also figured out how to climb out of her crib. This has signaled the end of nap time as we knew it. We finally had to switch her bed into a toddler bed, so that she wouldn't hurt herself. She is doing great at night, but WILL NOT stay in her bed during nap time. She trashes her room and pounds on the door.

I am devastated to see the end of her long afternoon nap. When am I going to shower/eat lunch/clean up/put laundry away (watch Scandal)??? I'm hoping we can make some sort of compromise where she will spend some quiet time in her room without flinging all of her belongings all over the room... Please tell me there's still hope for the afternoon nap. I don't know if I can survive the terrible twos without it!

I Am NOT a Hoarder

Yesterday I was unloading the dishwasher, and as I was wiping dry a garlic powder spice container, I thought to myself,

"When did I become the person who keeps this?" 

Seriously? 

The top shelf of one kitchen cabinet may be filled with jars and containers that I might use later.

Picture Credit

I decided to confess to my sister, and get her take on my escalating habit:

Me: So, I have this empty spice container that I kept...
Jennifer: Kept? What do you mean? Why?
Me: I don't know, for like a craft project or to hold glitter or something.
Jennifer: Glitter already comes in a container.
Me: True. 
Jennifer: Oh, no. You can't keep that. Throw it away.
Me: I guess you're right. Funny, the other day I was trying to decide whether I should keep the empty oatmeal container, too. I thought Grace could play with it, or we could make it into a drum or decorate it as a bow-holder or something. 
Jennifer: Decorate it? No! You're like a hoarder.
Me: What? That's rude! Don't call me that! 
Jennifer: You can't keep that stuff. It's trash. Throw it away.
Me: But we might need it...

So, apparently there is a line that you cross when you become a hoarder. Keeping an empty spice jar is that line for me.

However, I refuse to be a hoarder, and I take great offense to being called one. Did she really call me a hoarder???

I don't keep the cotton from inside prescription bottles, nor are there dead cats rotting beneath piles of my belongings unbeknownst to me.

I'm not there. You could hardly call my house cluttered. It was just some innocent jars...and an oatmeal can.

I was going to do crafty-mom things with them. I swear. I'm more of a hopeful up-cycler, who never quite gets around to doing anything.

There's hope. Right?

I threw away the oatmeal can, but I kept the spice jar.

My own cinnamon & sugar shaker!

The last time someone called you a name.