Where do balloons go?

The Deatons stayed a while after the party and kept us company. We don't see them often, so it was nice to have some one on one time. Noah, Zane and Jack were able to have the balloons we used for decoration when the other kids went home. They were like blue and green lightening tearing through the backyard with their balloons. The fun ended abruptly when Jack accidently let his balloons go! Tons of tears followed and no other balloon would do. Luckily, The Rhodes family brought him a book called Where do Balloons Go? by Jaime Lee Curtis. We read that after the Deatons made their westward trek home and it seemed to alleviate the stress over his balloon's untimely escape. Whew....time for a nap!

Havin' a Blast with Backyard Fun!

Bryan and I set out lots of toys for the kids to play with. Of course, the play house and swingset were the biggest hit! Here are some photos of the fun!

Make a Wish!

One of my favorite parts of a child's birthday party is when the cake is served and all of the kids are quiet, there is frosting all over their fingers and lips and everyone looks satisfied. After Jack blew out his candles on his 3rd birthday cake, all the kids swarmed the table for cupcakes. Of course our Jack with his need to be different, decided to have a grown up slice instead of a cupcake. These were my favorite cake photos of the day!

Puppet Show...sweet or scary? You judge!

We hired the Great Arizona Puppet Theatre to put on thier rendition of Jack and the Beanstalk. Well, it was great fun, but the puppeteer with his booming Paul Bunyan like voice was a bit much at times for the kids. They took turns being enthralled and I think a bit frightened. The show ran a little long for one little boy in particular(Noah)because when the show was all over he said, "Can we go play now?" Too funny! In these pics you can see the show had the kids run the gamut of emotions.


Puppeteer or Texas Chainsaw Massacre extra?







A myriad of emotions! But in the end, fun was had by all.

Jack's Jack and the Beanstalk Party

Yesterday, Bryan and I got the house ready for Jack's 3rd birthday party while Grammie and Papa took Jack to pick up his special cake and cupcakes for our guests.

Whimiscal lollipop flower pots. A new take on "edible" flowers!


Table decor and balloons!



Jack and The Beanstalk Cake and sweet cupcakes treats for Jack's buddies! We used Nana Ruth's Red Velvet cake recipe(like last year)and everyone just gobbled it up!


A party wouldn't be complete without party favors. This year I made another custom coloring book featuring Jack and the Beanstalk and his fairytale friends and also put together Jack's Magic Beanstalk kits. The kids will be able to plant the seeds in the little pots we provided and bring the magic home!

Chihuly Glass Exhibit at The Desert Botanical Gardens

On Sunday, Grammie, Papa, Jack and I went to the Desert Botanical Gardens to see the Chihuly glass exhibit. It was amazing to see such HUGE glass installations....I am still wondering how in creation they manage to pack those up for travel. I bet the artist is a huge shareholder in bubble wrap! Anyways, we had lunch and walked the gardens enjoying the beautiful desert plants and mountain views. We even got to watch a couple of hippies play music with everyday household products. Very strange, but interesting! Can't wait to go back when the wild flowers are blooming and the butterfly exhibit is open in April!