One Years Old- Two Parties

 What a weekend!! Not only did Alina turn a whopping ONE years old! But we hosted not one but two birthday parties for Alina. Did we split the parties into two days like normal people? Well, no we didn't! We had her baby party at 2 and the family party at 6 pm. I don't think I would have attempted such a task without knowing that my mother in law Andrea would be in town. She's the party hosting queen. So I wanted to make her proud and see that I could host the hell out of a party too!

 First thing- the cake. I made Alina's cake and followed this blog post as my guide... It was very helpful and I think  I did a really good job!

 I made really cute treat bags for the babies but I failed to take a picture of them and I'm really, really sad about it. There were Cookie Monster, Elmo and Big Bird bags. I drew the faces and glued them onto the bags. They turned out really nice. I bought a bunch of goodies for the treat bags like cardboard books, shakers and I made homemade apple sauce for the little ones. I sent Andrea a Pinterest inspired project; Sesame Street fruit and veggie platters. She works in the melon department at a grocery store in Ontario, so this was right up her alley. She did an awesome job! Rob decorated the house for me and had Alina all ready for her party by the time the guests arrived.

The Baby Party

The Family Party

 It was a great weekend of babies, family and friends. Alina is now officially a YEAR old. We have one week left together and I still can't think too much about it... On Wednesday, Rob's folks arrived in town in the afternoon. So when I was taking Alina to a play date, I couldn't help but feel nostalgic about it. It was our very last play date and our last day alone together before I return to work. On the drive home, she fell asleep and she looked so sweet and peaceful. I couldn't help it, my tears started to flow and I felt sorry for myself. When I parked, I took some pictures of her and one for my blog, to show my raw sadness! (Side Note: Rob took the Jeep to pick up his parents with and I had the truck. We don't normally have her in the front seat, but for today I did.)

 I'm okay though.. I'm a little bit excited to get back to work. I'm anxious to get into our new routine and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't looking forward to getting this first day or week over with, so that I can get over this sinking feeling. But every time that I get too sulky, I think about how lucky I have been to have this little squirt in my life to begin with. AND- I feel completely blessed to have had this full year with her.