Party Time!

What a day! Last Saturday was so busy for Daniel and I, running 90 miles an hour, and Samuel was just holding on for the ride. The weekend started out on Friday when we drove to Athens to spend the night with Doug and Morgan. We had to set up the pack-n-play crib in our room, which wouldn’t have been a big deal at all except that Samuel was up for about 2 hours between 3am and 5am tossing and turning. He sleeps so hot and he’s used to our thermostat being set way too low...

Saturday morning, I got up and met Andi at Memorial Park in Athens to set up for Britanny and Jose’s baby shower. They’re having their second boy; Naaman is 7 and Gideon is due in September! Andi and I had asked if we could host a couples/families shower for them and it turned out pretty great, I think. The kids all played on the playground near the pavilion and we had some good food and banana pudding for dessert (thanks Robbie!). Britanny looked so cute, and you could tell they were all getting excited about the new baby coming.

After the shower, Daniel and I packed up and raced home to get ready for Samuel’s birthday party that night. We had invited a ton of people, not really sure what to expect as far as turn-out, but we had over 25 people respond saying they were coming. I was so excited!
Samuel slept in the car almost the whole way home and we didn’t get there until almost 4pm. We had a LOT to do before people started showing up at 6:30. I frantically started cleaning the kitchen and cooking, and Daniel worked on the living room and dining room. Samuel was so good and “helped” me a lot in the kitchen. :)

Once folks started showing up, I knew I had to try to relax a little because it either got done or it didn’t. We had SO many people there, it was GREAT! I don’t remember our house ever feeling quite to packed, but I was loving every minute. I guess I get that “the-more-the-merrier” mentality from mom – thanks! Samuel had so much fun playing with the other babies and watching his big cousins run around and play. When it came time for cake, I had one big one for us and a small “smash” cake for Samuel, but of course, he was too quick for any of us and stuck his hand straight into the big cake first! No major damage was done, and we all sang a beautiful chorus of Happy Birthday while Samuel danced, bounced, and clapped along. I really wish I had gotten a video of that, but I wasn’t quick enough to grab the camera.
I sat him in his highchair to give him the “smash” cake and everyone gathered around to watch, but when he stuck his hands into the whipped icing he got very upset! He couldn’t get the icing off his hands and couldn’t figure out how it had gotten there! He was careful not to touch anything (totally defeating the point of giving him his own cake to mess up) and just held his hands out and fussed! Taking after his Great Grandmother I suppose and not wanting to make any mess. :) However, after some encouragement, he tasted it and his demeanor totally changed. We eventually got some good icing on the face but he wasn’t all that into it. Too prim and proper I guess...HA!

Samuel had such a great time opening all the presents and, like any good 1 year old, really enjoyed the tissue paper and bags, too! He got a ton of great stuff like cute clothes, cool board books, toys that talk and sing and cheer for him. But his favorite so far (to Daniel’s dismay) is the greeting card from Mammie and Grandaddy that plays a birthday song when you open it...over...and over...and over...and over...and over! He loves it. Closes it. Opens it. Dances and bounces. Closes it. Opens it. Dances and laughs out loud. Ugh! Such a cutie pie.

We want to say thank you so much to everyone who was able to make it. We had a great time and hope you all did, too! For everyone who couldn't attend, here are some highlights.