Wonderland

Do you have one of those friends? You know, the ones who are uber crafty, creative, inventive and all that jazz. Well, it seems I am surrounded by individuals who possess that gift and one of them happens to be my dear friend Janie. When she throws her little princess a party, she goes over the top! And this party didn't disappoint. Gracyn turned FIVE and Janie put together an Alice in Wonderland themed party.

The girls arrived and were greated by the Queen of Hearts, the Mad Hatter, Tweedledee & Tweedledum, the rabbit, the caterpillar and of course Alice herself.

Fountain soda drinks (the magic potion) with fun straws
Janie didn't skip a beat when it came to the details.
These photos only show a glimpse of what was in store.

Take home goodie bags
Golden keys hanging from tree limbs which the girls found to escape into Wonderland

Name place holders

Arts and crafts

And the cake.
Oh my, the cake!
What you see here my friends is 100% edible. Tea cup, sugar & creamer bowl and all!

This was the adult cake which was sculpted of sweet fondant with a thick, rich, moist cake inside. The girls had an incredible time celebrating Gracyn's birthday. Gabrielle always enjoys the opportunity to be in true princess fashion, spend time with friends, and indulge on sweet goodness.

Pinwheels & Parties

I helped a girlfriend ring in her 30th birthday and wanted to give her a little something at her celebration supper. I picked up a cute paper pack earlier in the week and had an empty root beer bottle sitting around so I decided to make her a fun summer pinwheel bouquet for her table, window sill, wherever. I also made her a couple of rosette hair clips as well as a pin to put on a tank or tee. We spent the evening indulging on yummy cheesy chicken enchiladas, chips and salsa, fresh fruit and Megan's signature yumdelicious dip (which goes straight to my thighs let me tell ya), warm brownies and strawberry margaritas. It was perfect weather to sit on her back deck and have some girl time.

The Blue Swirl Give Away

Calling all blog readers
Are there any of you left out there?
Where is the love family/friends?
PLEASE leave me a comment once in awhile.
It makes this girl happy.
Just saying.
Now about that give away.
Go here to enter to win a $40 credit to my friend Chelsea's etsy shop The Blue Swirl. She just might be the cutest girl ever. With the cutest smile. And has a hubby with the most infectious smile OF.ALL.TIMES. Chels, if you are reading this, I may or may not have just stalked your blog for the past hour or more. Why, you ask? Because I have a peanut who is so off her sleep schedule today, who has had two ginormous blow outs followed up by FIVE glorious bouts of chunky, smelly vomit. Yep, that's why. AND I bathed her this morning. Waste o' time I tell ya. Stinky girl. Here I sit with little miss tucked away on my lap giddy for you that you are capturing your most recent dream to put your name on something you are proud of calling your own. Here is to hoping your shop is a success and that it brings you much delight. Now for that give away. PICK ME!!

Marching Two by Two, Hurrah! Hurrah!

Do you recall the children's song "The Ants Go Marching?"
We had our own little rendition today as we woke to heavy rains and overcast skies which made for the perfect morning indoors.



Did it make for a very loud house?
You bet!
Did the kids have a blast?
Double you bet!
Did it end in mommy pleading for them to stop and for the instruments to find there way back to their respective quiet holding place?
Absolutely!!
The ants go marching ten by ten, hurrah, hurrah
The ants go marching ten by ten, hurrah, hurrah
The ants go marching ten by ten,
The little one (or big one in this case) stops to say "THE END"
And they all go marching down to the ground
To get out of the rain, BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

5 Months Old

"Who me??!!??"

"What? That can't be. 5 months! Get out of town. Here we go with the camera again."

This month we visited GG in Springfield, spent Memorial Day at the Kansas City zoo, attended a T-Bones baseball game, have gone to many neighborhood barbecues and social gatherings (you aren't a fan of mommy enjoying the occasional glass of wine, margarita, daiquiri, etc. It makes your tummy upset the following day. Poor girl!). We introduced you to the swimming pool this past week and you proved to be a Hicks through and through. You LOVED it! Your hair is showing growth. I am a fan of the faux hawk look (please don't hate me for that in your teen years) since Daddy loathes the adorable headbands you sport. You recently starting rolling over again after taking a break from doing so for several weeks. You now roll from front to back as well as back to front. You do the funniest thing by arching your body and scooting across the floor on your back. You have backed yourself into the wall, dresser & fireplace several times now and aren't too happy when you come to a stop by abruptly bumping your head. Unfortunately, you don't show much interest in bearing weight on your legs so I don't foresee an early walker in you. Your siblings walked right at one year, so time will tell if you follow suit.

You drool .... all.the.time. as this picture shows. The onesie sticker didn't stand a chance longer than the two minutes it took me to snap these pictures. Your days are filled with lots of smiling, laughing and squealing {I say you are singing us a sweet song}, and sleeping. Oh glorious sleep. You adore your Aden & Anais muslin blanket and your new found love for your pacifier at nap time. You are an AMAZING sleeper and for this I am so thankful!! You take a great morning nap and a ginormous afternoon nap followed by a mini snooze in the early evening, then bedtime around 8:30pm. You still sleep through the night, PRAISE THE GOOD LORD, and wake anywhere from 5:45 - 7. It is at this time that I tuck you under my arm, nurse you and lavish you in a hundred kisses. It makes it difficult for Mommy to get out bed and tend to Gabi and Dawson when you are sleeping like an angel next to me. You still room in with Mommy and Daddy in the pack-n-play bassinet. Call us selfish, but neither of us want to see you move to your nursery. Your bubby has taken to playing a little MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) fighting with you. He loves to roll around with you on the ground and frequently lays atop of you and gets right up in your grill (face) and tells you through gritted teeth how cute you are and how much he loves you. Sissy is still in mini mom mode. She runs to snatch you up when you wake, is attempting to perfect diaper changes, has an opinion about what you wear and talks about how the two of you are going to grow up to be the best of friends.

We love you B-BEG!!
Stats:
Diapers size 1 transitioning into size 2
Clothing 0-3 month and/or 3-6 month
Weight 14 lbs according to our Weight Watchers digital scale