Avery Ann's 1st Birthday

Saturday morning before Easter, we had a very special first birthday to go to. My friend Sarah's little girl, Avery, was turning a year old. A few months back, Sarah asked me to be Avery's godmother. I was so honored and immediately said yes :) I was able to go to her Christening and be a part of her special day. I couldn't very well miss my goddaughter's first birthday, so Eli and I loaded up and drove out to their house. Sarah had asked me to take pictures of the party for her, so I wanted to be there early. 

Sarah started planning Avery's first birthday party shortly after she was born...I'm not kidding :) Hot pink and zebra was the theme she picked, and it was over the top cute! Sarah is very crafty, so she made all the decorations and the cake. I think she did an amazing job! Everything was simply precious!

Since Avery's birthday party was so close to Easter, the party favor was a set of dyed Easter eggs. The kids at the party LOVED being able to dye their own eggs, and the parents loved it because it was six less eggs they had to dye at home :)

The birthday girl in her pink and zebra outfit. Why is little girl stuff so much cuter? It's just not fair :)

Sarah is originally from Ohio, so it was special day for her because her mom, dad, niece, and one of her sisters drove in for Avery's birthday. This is Sarah with her sister, Karen.

Avery loved blowing sweet kisses to her Momma :)

Soon it was time for cake! We all sang Happy Birthday to Avery and then she dug in...literally! She LOVED that cake and had such a great time smashing it into bits!

After she had successfully smashed her cake, Sarah cleaned Avery up so they could open presents. Her second outfit was just as cute as the first!

Little girl parties are so much different than little boy parties. Boys mostly get toys, girls mostly get clothes :) Avery got a complete summer wardrobe at her birthday party.

She did get a couple baby dolls and LOVED them. She couldn't wait for her Daddy to open the package for her and get her baby doll out.

Eli and I gave Avery the owl backpack from Skip Hop that I'd been eyeing ever since I was pregnant with Eli. I finally had a little girl I could buy it for and I couldn't wait! We also gave her some little baby TOMS. They were so tiny and cute, I couldn't resist!

Avery loved playing and making faces while her Mommy and Daddy opened her presents. She made some that were just too cute for words!

It was a wonderful first birthday! I can't wait to watch this sweet, little girl grow up. Happy Birthday, Avery!

Easter Goodies from Mammy and Uncle Clare

When we got back from the playground, Eli had a surprise waiting for him at our house. Mammy and Uncle Clare had stopped by to give Eli his Easter bag full of goodies. Eli couldn't wait to see what was in the bag.

Mammy gave him a large CARS Easter egg that was full of tattoos. Eli immediately set out to find the perfect tattoo for him.

He chose Lightning McQueen for his first ever tat, but I couldn't convince him to put it in a normal tattoo spot. He chose his stomach :) No matter the location, that tattoo immediately made him stronger and tougher as you can tell in the picture below.

Eli didn't want to be the only way having all the fun, so he offered to give Zue-Zue a tattoo as well. He picked out Holly for her, since she's a girl and all. 

Zue-Zue was pretty excited about her new tattoo :)

We spent a few more minutes talking to Mammy and Uncle Clare, but then Eli had to give them good-bye hugs because it was time for him to take a nap. I'm so thankful that my little boy is surrounded by family and friends that love and care for him. My little man is loved so much and it makes this Momma's heart very happy!

Thanks, Mammy and Uncle Clare for all of Eli's Easter goodies! We love you!

Early Morning at the Playground

On Good Friday, we all rode our bikes over to my school's playground, so Eli could have some fun. It was the farthest he'd ever ridden on his bike and he did such a great job! He and his Daddy had so much fun swinging, sliding, running, jumping, climbing, and so much more. The weather was perfect!

A couple days earlier, Eli had gotten some brand new tennis shoes because his feet decided to do some growing this year :) He made sure that I took a picture of his new shoes because they're pretty awesome. Haha!

After he played his little heart out, we all rode our bikes back to the house. I love family outings :)