Swinging!

We took the boys to two birthday parties this past Saturday. Clearly, the Peas have a more extensive social calendar than we do! Both parties were celebrating the birthdays of our NICU buddies. At the second party, Joseph & Rafael's, there was a swing set and the boys loved it! We actually have a set at home that the former owners left, and at first I wanted it gone. I noticed at the Peas' party that the kids were playing on it and it was in pretty good condition. You know what that means! Daddy P is on a mission to spruce up our set for Ryan and Evan. He's staining it now and we bought these same swings and a new tarp. I think we'll be spending a lot of time in our backyard this summer:)

The Party is Over

I found this adorable construction worker cut-out and I meant to take R & Es picture in it during the party. They were so busy being spoiled by everybody that they didn't have time for their mama though! I decided to take the pics the next day, but as you can see they were so over it by then!

Ryan was tired of this whole construction worker stuff!

Evan looks like he's being tortured!

Alright, that's it! Enough is enough, already. I'm outta here!

I love this picture of the Peas with Cousin Betty! This is their first time wearing the big boys PJs that she bought for them. Betty was a brave woman--she wanted to bathe the boys and get them ready for bed all by herself. Mama appreciated the help:)

Daddy P and his boys. They are getting so big!

Birthday Party continued

R & E's party was such a blast because of all our wonderful family and friends who joined us. My grandmother came up from Alabama, my sister joined us, Cousin Betty made the trip, and the boys' Godmother, Erika, came all the way from Texas. Many of our church family members came to celebrate, and some of them didn't even have children to bring. They just wanted to be there for Ryan and Evan! I was thrilled that my coworker and darling Q came to celebrate with us. Last but not least, there were three fellow NICU grads in attendance. Thanks to everyone who made Ryan and Evan's birthday so special.

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day, Daddy P!

Today we celebrated Father's Day and honored Daddy P for being the fabulous father that he is. I can honestly say that my boys have a good Daddy. My husband works hard to provide for our family, he's hands-on and involved in every aspect of R & E's life, and all three of us absolutely adore him. Most importantly is the covering that my husband provides for our family. He is a man of God in every sense. He leads our household as he is lead by our Heavenly Father and we are blessed because of it. Last year this time, Father's Day was a bit different for us. The boys had just been born and we were in the throes of NICU life and I know my husband was praying for all of us. He supported our family through the most challenging event we have ever experienced. I watched him father his tiny baby boys in that NICU and he was never afraid. He kangarooed them, changed their diapers, read to them, and loved on them.

This year I watched my husband chase his all-over-the-place baby boys all around the house, feed them, change their diapers, kiss them, play with them, take them for a walk, and put them to bed. What a difference a year makes.

I couldn't help but smile. And remember. And give thanks.



Happy Father's Day to my Daddy too! My daddy is another example of who and what a Father should be. I love him to pieces and I know he loves me. I will always be your little girl, Daddy.

As if I weren't already blessed enough, I have a terrific Grandaddy too! My grandfather has fathered my sister and me since we were little girls. He taught us so much, provided for us, and made sure we knew the Lord. Happy Father's Day, Grandaddy! I can't wait for you to meet the boys! Just two more weeks:)

Video!

Be sure to pause the song at the bottom of the blog!

As you'll see, we did make it outside for party after all! It actually worked out better this way too. It wasn't too hot and we didn't have to worry about fighting the flies for our food:)

I have more pictures to post from the party and its aftermath tomorrow.

The Cake!

I was so stinkin' happy about the way R & E's cake turned out! There was big debate in the Parker household on whether or not to get a cake for their 1st birthday or get a CAKE! We decided to get a CAKE and it was the right decision. I ordered it from Sweet Lisa's in Greenwich. If you live in the area and you need a cake or for a special occasion, call Sweet Lisa's. Right now.

I sat down with the designer and told him what I wanted and he came up with this sketch. When he showed me the finished product I nearly swooned! Everything on this cake was edible-- even the rocks and the construction signs! The cake had an Oreo cookie filling with buttercream icing. De-lish! Ry and Ev thought so too:)

The Peas are ONE!

Saturday June 12th was the day that we officially celebrated Ryan and Evan's first birthday with a construction themed party! I actually started thinking about their 1st birthday party when they were only 6 months old ( I know, I know...I'm loony in that way!) I researched different themes and I knew that we had to do a construction theme. (Thus the inspiration for Evan's head gear decals!) I was also determined to hand make their invitations. In life before the Peas I loved to scrapbook and make cards. I still love to craft, but what I now lack is time! LOL This was a perfect excuse...I mean opportunity to get back into the craft room and pull the Cricut out of the box. I had so much fun making the invitations. I loved that no two of them were exactly alike. Another great thing about them? They were easy to make. I really only used the most basic crafting supplies and voila! The Peas had custom made by mommy party invitations!

Here was the activity table for the kiddos. They each had a tool kit (not pictured), a construction themed coloring book, and a favor box with a construction truck and crayons. Oh, and the kids had puzzles to play with too.

Each child also received their very own hard hat. Thanks to the Cricut I was able to make a few signs for the decor.

This was at the foot of the stairs as the guests entered the basement.

I was going to order a banner from etsy until I got all ambitious and wanted to make one myself. I heart my Cricut:)

DISCLAIMER: I have a confession to make...this party was NOT supposed to be in our basement. We watched the weather all week to see the forecast. We were anticipating lovely sunny weather with rain Saturday night. Perfect, right? WRONG! It was cloudy all morning and it rained on our heads when we were lining the driveway with cones and balloons.(remember that line from The Color Purple..."It's gon' rain on yo' head" ROFL...) We kept hope alive and thought that maybe, just maybe it would clear up. Wrong again! It rained harder...grrrrrr! Daddy P and I made an eleventh hour decision, literally at about 12:30, to move the party inside. I was feeling some kinda way about this, because my dear husband worked SO hard to get out backyard ready for the party. I mean he worked and worked and worked on this yard for weeks. But what do yo do, ya know?

So inside we go. At 12:30. The party starts at 1pm. The basement isn't decorated, cause why would it be? The guests are coming. Did I mention that the basement isn't decorated for a party? YIKES!!! It was a mad dash to get things all set up and ready to go. There were things I wanted to do, but didn't have the time. I have an entire roll of caution tape sitting here now just looking at me. And worst of all? Our guests had to wait for us, and Daddy P and I don't roll like that! We HATE that. So to all of our guests who came and so graciously waited, thank you and we are so sorry.