Abby's 7th (Arty) Birthday Party!

If you know Abby, you know how much she loves to celebrate and how much she loves to bring people together for all occasions. She always finds reasons to party and plan parties. She also makes friends really easily and loves them so much, so she seriously struggles with leaving people out. This year, we broke it down into a couple of smaller gatherings that have Abby details all over them (because I get her...she's like her momma, but every party can't be huge). To celebrate with non school friends, she had a few girls over for an art party. The girls had lots of fun painting and decorating cupcakes together. Abby told me this was her favorite party yet! (She says that every year!)  

Each girl had a canvas and painted her own variation of a flower garden. It was fun to see how each person creatively interpreted the task!

Lots of colors everywhere

A rainbow of snacks (including a colorful fruit and veggie platter, rainbow goldfish, cheese/crackers/pepperoni, popcorn and my personal favorite: rice krispie treat paintbrushes)

Our happy birthday girl!

Seven years old and so much to celebrate in this beautiful life God has entrusted to us!

Sisters make celebrating even better.

This is what seven, four and one looks like!

A room full of lovely artists

When they were done with their canvases, the girls moved on to frames.

A few of the finished products 💜💙💚

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTD43ZQKf4U

To celebrate with family, we had Abby's Taco Night Fiesta (also known as Sunday dinner with a twist). On her actual birthday, she celebrated with her class and Troll cupcakes! Each little party was different, yet "so Abby"! Birthday weeks are so much fun! I love knowing these are her childhood memories.

Mystery Reader

I think it's safe to say Abby's day was made when she was invited to be the mystery reader for a class of Pre-K students in her school. If you ask her, she would be quick to tell you that she is going to be a teacher when she grows up...making this moment a seven year old dream come true!

 

When Grandma asked her if she was nervous while she was up there, she laughed.
"No! Why would I be?"
Yup. That pretty much sums up her confidence any time she is put in the front of a group and asked to lead/teach.

Love this girl and her heart!

Cheers to 2017!

It's been years since we've been in my hometown to celebrate a holiday at "home", so we were excited about our plans to spend New Year's together at Papa's house. We started the party early with Hibachi.

It's crazy to think about, but the last time we were at this Hibachi restaurant, it was for my 8th birthday (i think), which means Cory was about Juliet's age!

The girls were stylin' in their 2017 headbands.

Trying to decide what she should order... 😆

The ladies! 💜

We were thoroughly entertained all evening, both by our chef and the people at the table next to us.

They don't look alike or anything...

I don't know whose face is better....Mama's or Juliet's?

After dinner, we headed back to the house for a night of games and dessert. The girls were hilarious while we were playing Hedbandz, both because they were up way past their bedtime and because Nagymama couldn't figure out that she was a tractor! At about ten, we realized the girls weren't going to make it to midnight, so we decided it was probably a good idea (and necessary) to get the girls to bed. Thanks to the geniuses at Netflix who created kids New Year's Eve countdowns, we pulled out the glow sticks, noisemakers, sparkling grape juice and fancy glasses two hours early and cheered in the new year together. The joy on their faces was the best! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SjPwax_CRc

After the "cheers" and on their way to bed, we headed outside with confetti poppers and let loose on Papa's driveway! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qniGYmdzUiM

It was the perfect way to end the night. The girls were so tired, but so overtired that we knew either daddy or mommy were going to have to get in the middle or they would never go to bed. Joe laid down and the girls were asleep in two minutes. They were excited to have a sleepover with Nagymama in her room. Joe and I were down the hall with Juliet. My dad was downstairs. We told the girls to come to us if they woke up in the night. Ella woke up coughing and Mama woke up to help her, but Ella said she was fine and closed her eyes, so Mama went back to sleep. My favorite was learning in the morning that after Ella couldn't fall back to sleep, she just went downstairs to Papa and snuggled with him for a while. Eventually she ended up in bed with us until the morning, but I love knowing she went to Papa first. 

The next morning, the girls watched cartoons in their favorite chair. We ate a special Papa's house breakfast and then went to play in the park for a bit. Nagymama cooked a Hungarian New Year's Day lunch before we loaded up and headed home. It was a really special way to start the new year!

I'm always sad to see the holiday season go, but once I get over my weepy nostalgia and pack up all the decorations, I'm all about New Year's Day. I'm just a sucker for fresh starts! January 1, 2017: New year, new beginning! Looking into the new year with purpose, hope and gratitude. 

The Afterglow

The day after Christmas is one of our favorites. We have one rule. We do nothing but play and spend time together. No cleaning or organizing. No busy. This year, we played with new toys, built lots of Legos and piled onto the couch for a movie. 

Abby modeling her new sweater from Grandma.

Blurry Lego building party

Princess playtime with Daddy 

Oliver is always happy when it's a movie afternoon. 

 We introduced the kids to The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe for the first time. This little love kept us laughing during our movie.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAc4lNHSRgA

We had a pretty rough night a couple of days after Christmas. Maybe it was the post Christmas crash. Maybe the reality of living in a house of sinful human beings. Probably a combination of both. There were attitudes flying and frustrations mounting. I'm thankful for Joe who led us well in this moment. He took all the female emotions, gathered us on the couch and pointed us to Jesus as a family. We talked and prayed. The girls went from a very emotional 10 to a calm and peaceful 2 after the Lord broke through the resistance. What was shaping up to be a bad end to the night, ended up being the sweetest moment for our family because we pressed in instead of giving up. The girls curled up with both of us on the couch and fell asleep in our arms as we prayed. A grace gift to us and a reminder to me of the process God has called us to as parents. It isn't easy. We often get it wrong, but I'm thankful for these moments of grace and beauty when we are reminded that it isn't about behavior, it's about hearts. 

A couple of days after Christmas, Grammy and G-Diddy came to town and the fun continued with another celebration! 

We exchanged gifts, played games, went out to a fun dinner and had a great time watching everyone take a turn at Twister. 

G-Diddy introduced the girls to edamame before dinner. Once they got the hang of how to eat it, they liked it. One of the things I like about the restaurant we went to is that they have a more extensive kids' menu. It isn't just chicken fingers and mac and cheese. Abby looked at the menu and asked if she could order BBQ ribs. I love that she tried something new and really enjoyed it.

Hanging with G-Diddy before bedtime

Everyone (except me and a napping Juliet) headed out the next morning for a walk through the winter weather!  It was cold, but refreshing to get outside.

After the cold walk, everyone came inside for hot chocolate. Personally, I think G-Diddy and Oliver made the best decision and took a little nap! Oliver is always looking for a cozy lap to curl up in. 

With only 24 hours together, we packed a lot of fun and special memories into our time! Looking forward to the next time we are together again.