Happy 2nd Birthday Caroline!

Time sure does fly- we celebrated Caroline's 2nd birthday this past weekend, on her actual birthday, April 5. We had a cook out with a farm animals theme (Caroline loves animals) to celebrate and several of her friends came. The guest list included friends Ali, Kate, Samuel, Lindsey, Kaitlyn, Knox, and cousin Eva, and all of their parents. I was bummed to wake up Saturday morning to rain, as this put a slight damper on our plans to have an outdoor party. But, I wasn't going to let anything rain on my parade (or Caroline's parade, rather!). We were still able to have the party on the screened porch and the kids played in the sand table. Since Caroline is allergic to milk and eggs, I had special cupcakes made for her. I was glad to find a lady who makes allergen free cakes and cupcakes, allowing Caroline to have a little something sweet. :)

Before all the festivities began, we had a couple of days with Uncle David, Aunt Wendy, and cousin Eva. The girls enjoyed being together so much and were showing their love through lots of hugs. On Friday morning, we went to Monkey Joe's, a place with inflatable slides, tunnels, and obstacle courses. Caroline didn't stop for one minute! Eva was afraid of all the commotion at first, but warmed up after awhile. When I told Caroline it was time to leave, she gave me a sweet look and said, "More Monkey Joe's!". I bribed her with a slushy for the car and that worked like a charm. (sometimes you have to do what you have to do!) Below is a picture of them playing in Caroline's bed after their naps. Grandma Rogers and Papa Sam arrived Friday night and Caroline was so happy to see them!


More excitement to come! Grandma Rogers and Papa Sam surprised Caroline with a tricycle on the morning of her birthday! We came outside in front of the house and they brought it around. Caroline loves it! She feels like (and looks like!) such a big girl on it.




I will let the pictures speak for the events of the party- sorry, there are a few! You only turn two once, after all! After we sang Happy Birthday to Caroline and she blew out the candle, she wanted us to do it again. So of course, we repeated the whole ritual (just once though!). Ben had his hands full at the grill cooking hamburgers and hot dogs- and in the misting rain, no less! I wish I would have gotten a picture of all the kids together, but that is a difficult task these days! They are off and running before you have a chance to snap one.

Caroline with Ali and Samuel- playing with her new sand table