Laurel's Pedi Party

Every year we alternate one of the kids having a little party and one having a big party. We originally started doing it this way because their birthdays are so close together but it has been so great I think we will always do it this way with all of our kids. Since Micah had a big party this year, Laurel got to pick what she wanted for her little party. All she wanted was to go get her toes painted with her bestie, her cousin Sadie. She also specified that she wanted it to be a mermaid party, which is ironic seeing as mermaids don't have toes. It was such a sweet and simple request and I loved putting it together. Yes, I still created an invitation even though it only went to one person. We had the mini party at Bliss Nail Spa and it was PERFECT! They put us back in a room that just had 4 chairs so we had the whole room to ourselves. Everyone there was so sweet and so good with the girls. I have never seen my girly girl so giggly and happy, she was in heaven! She stayed completely still when they told her to and only moved to sip the orange juice they brought her. I will not be surprised if she requests to do this shin dig again next year...

After getting our nails done, we headed to Jus Mac for lunch. Once we finally got Laurel to try her mac and cheese (her favorite food), she loved it and had a blast. After lunch, we had cupcakes and then the girls got their little favors with bubble bath a brush and a mini nail polish. Sadie and Laurel's little relationship is precious. I foresee lots of little parties with Sadie as the only guest in the future! We had so much fun celebrating our spunky girl girl!

Laurel is 4!

I cannot believe that our little girl is already 4!!! She turned 4 on March 31st but I am a little behind. We had such a fun couple of days celebrating her! 

She is a lot easier to interview than her big brother and was so excited to answer all of the questions...

20 questions: 

1. What is your favorite color? pink

2. What is your favorite toy? my pink magic wand

3. What is your favorite fruit? grapes

4. What is your favorite tv show? Super Why

 5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? macaroni and cheese

6. What is your favorite outfit? my pink twirly dress, I want to wear that today!

7. What is your favorite game? mouse trap

8. What is your favorite snack? goldfish

9. What is your favorite animal? a pig

10. What is your favorite song? Miss Star's Song

11. What is your favorite book? my long princess finding book

12. Who is your best friend? Sadie and Ashton

13. What is your favorite cereal? cheerios

14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? ride my bike 

15. What is your favorite drink? orange juice

16. What is your favorite holiday? Easter

17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? one of my babies, a book, my blankie and my bunny, but sometimes I throw my bunny and blankie on the ground because they make me mad

18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? cinnamon rolls

19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? Pronto!

20. What do you want to be when you grow up? a mommy

and then I added a few:

21. What is your favorite thing to do with Daddy: give bear hugs

22. What is your favorite thing to do with Mommy: just cuddle on the couch and watch a show together

23. What is your favorite thing to do with Micah: jump on the trampoline

24. Where do you go to school: Yellow School

25. Who are your teachers? Mrs. Bean and Mrs. Boggs

26. Where do you go to church? I don't know


Laurel had a mini-party a few days before her birthday so we spent her special day celebrating as a family. Pink pancakes and opening presents at breakfast, pink 4 sprinkle cookies (that she helped make and decorate) with her classmates at school and then dinner with the family at Pronto (her favorite)! It was such a fun day celebrating our 4 year old!


Laurel has been dreading her 4 year checkup for months because her sweet big brother has been reminding her that she has to get shots but she survived and did great! 


4 year stats:
Weight: 40.5 lbs (85%)
Height: 3'5 1/4" (82%)

Bluebonnets

I LOVE bluebonnet season in Texas! We found a field close to our house and went last week with my sister to snap some pictures of our little ones and I LOVE how they turned out. Micah is turning into such a little man and his precious dimple really showed up in these pictures. Laurel is growing up way too fast, too. Lately, she is insisting on wearing a "Jumbow" (as she calls them) everyday. 

This girl...

... keeps me on my toes! She was 3 1/2 in September so I am just a little behind on her post, too. She has grown up so much since turning 3 in March and I know I am going to blink and she'll be 4. The biggest way she has changed is her little developing personality. I've always said she was spunky and had a lot of personality and nothing has changed about that. We have learned over the months what a passionate little person she is. She passionately loves and she passionately dislikes and the switch can flip in the matter of seconds. She speaks mostly in hyperbole and rarely uses the word "like". She either LOVES something or does not love something. She is confident, bossy and tough as nails. It cracks us up because her personality couldn't be any more different from her brother's. She's definitely going to be my little heart breaker. While she certainly has her "threenager" moments, most of the time she is sweet to the extreme. She lavishes compliments and hugs and is so nurturing to everyone around her. Our little lady will laugh at almost anything and everything Micah does she finds hilarious. She is obsessed with all things princess and babies. While she is in school 3 days a week (2 mornings and one full day), she is still my little buddy. Her favorite errand is going to Target where she points out all of the beautiful pink things and asks for each of them for her birthday or Christmas... including tampons because that box is pretty and pink, too. She has recently gotten very particular about her hair and clothes which is usually a daily battle. She likes her hair to be blow dried on days she wants to wear a head band and she also requests 2 braids "like Jessie" a lot. I fear that our days of bows is coming to an end. 

She is still a great napper but she is now at the age where she won't fall apart if all she gets is a power nap in the car. Every night, she wants to be tucked in my mommy and daddy and she likes it if one of us lays down with her. Just another way that she is different from her brother, laying down and rubbing her back does not put her to sleep. As long as there is someone next to her, she is singing made up songs or telling stories. 

2 more of Laurel's favorites: playing with her cousin Sadie (they really are growing up to be the best of friends) and cooking in the kitchen (here she was helping Aunt Pickle makes pizzas)

Two of her favorite things right now: lunch dates with mommy when Micah is at school (left) and her dance class (left). 

At her end of semester dance recital, I couldn't have been more proud of my big girl. She participated in all of the activities and did not shut down like recitals in the past . At the end of the class, I learned that she is the youngest in her class which made me even more proud!

These 3 pictures so sum up Laurel right now, concerned about making sure her skirt is just right, biting her nails (yes my 3 year old is a nail biter) and getting ready to boss someone around. 

My favorite Laurel story as of late...

One morning I was trying to help Laurel get dressed. It was a Saturday so I had set out some cute sweat pants with a matching t-shirt. She was (as usual) arguing and telling me what she wanted. Finally I said "look, it's Saturday and we have nothing to do, you are wearing this outfit." She heavily sighed and said "I need some alone time." I walked out of the room (laughing) and about 5 minutes later she came and got me and said "ok, I will wear the outfit you picked for me." This little lady does not like not getting her way or being told what to do but if given a little space usually comes around! 

Love my sweet girl and the tenacious and spunky personality that God gave her.

Bye Bye Ba

I have been meaning to write this post for awhile but keep forgetting! The night of Laurel's 3rd birthday she threw all of her Ba's (pacis) away! She was so brave and did such a great job getting rid of them but it has been a HUGE adjustment ever since. For awhile I was worried that she was done with naps entirely but the last week has been a great week for her and she seems to be getting back to normal with napping. She was also laying in bed talking and singing for a couple hours some nights and that is significantly less now. She was way more dependent on them than Micah ever was so I knew this was going to be tough for her and I am so proud of how she is handling it! 

Laurel's Spring Dance Recital

The second semester of dance was a much bigger succes for Laurel than the first semester. Most Mondays, she ran right in without any tears (which was a huge change from the fall). She gets excited when she realizes it's a Monday and she dances around the house all day. She is still not a fan of all the attention being on her, though, so I wasn't sure how this recital would go. I was SO SO proud of how well she did (especially compared to her first recital in which she laid down in the middle of the room the whole time). She takes dance at a place in the Heights called Claire's School of Dance. We love it because it is very low key and low pressure. It is more "creative movement" than it is ballet. So her recital is really just a parent demonstration of what class looks like. She started off a little shy (see below) and David and I could not stop laughing when she laid down on the floor but she quickly popped up and hung out on the wall and behind the curtain for a bit before joining in with her dancer friends. 

 She LOVES her teacher, Miss Michelle. She even asked if she could invite her to her birthday party. She is always so patient with her and sweet and encouraging. She is excited to be in her class again this summer.

 At the end, she got a flower and a tiara from Miss Michelle-- she felt like such a princess! 

 

I'm so proud of my Tiny Dancer! 

Laurel is 3!

I can't believe that our baby is 3! She turned 3 on March 31st, I am just a little late on getting this post up...

I thought it would be fun to do a little interview with my THREE year old (just like I started when Micah turned 3):

Q: What is your name?
A: Waurel Nicole Saxe

Q: What is today?
A: My brfday!

Q: How old are you today?
A: Three

Q: What is your favorite color?
A: Pink and purple

Q: What animal do you like?
A: I like elephants

Q: Where do you like to go?
A: I like to go to Pronto

Q: What do you like to read?
A: The princess book with Princess Caroline

Q: What do you like to play with?
A: I like to play with bunny ears and my doggie and I like to carry around my baby too

Q: Who do you like to play with?
A: Ashton and Gage and Irelyn, you know that!

Q: What do you like to watch?
A: Ariel

Q: What song do you like?
A: Jesus Wuvs Me

Q: What do you like to do outside?
A: I like to wide on my bike what you gave me mommy!

Q: What do you like to do with Daddy?
A: I like to play with him

Q: What do you like to do with Mommy?
A: I like to give you huggies!

Q: What do you like to do with Micah?
A: I like to play prince and princess. I am the princess and Micah's the prince and we go to Pronto and then we dance.

Q: Where do you go to school?

A: at church

Q: What do you learn at school?
A: I don't know

Q: Who are your teachers?
A: Miss Gloria and Miss Peeby!

Q: What do you do when you are 3?
A: Take away pacis

Q: Where do you sleep?
A: In my bed

Q: What food do you like the best?
A: Ummm bagels!

Q: What do you like for lunch?
A: I like macaroni, the kind what I like, with the shells

Q: What do you like to drink?
A: water

Q: Can you say your ABC's?
A: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z!!

Q: Can you count?
A: ONE, TWO, THUWEE, FORW, FIVE, SIX, SEVEN, EIGHT, NINE, TEN, ELEVEN, TWELVE, THIRTEEN, FORWTEEN, SIXTEEN, SEVENTEEN, EIGHTEEN

Q: Who are you friends?
A: Ashton and Gagey (Gage)

Q: Do you have any other friends?
A: yea, Irelyn

Q: Who is in your family?
A: Daddy and Mommy and Micah and Laurel and Riley

Q: What do you want to be when you grow up?
A: a mommy!

Sweet baby girl,
You have brought so much spunk, laughter and joy into this family. You are the sweetest cuddle bug when you want to be and you certainly know how to keep us on our toes. It's hard to believe that you just joined our family 3 years ago when I can't imagine out little family without you in it. I cannot wait to see the plans that God has for your life and to see the young woman you grow into!
Love, Mama

{Photos courtesy of Natalie Blazei Photography}

Laurel passed her check up with flying colors!

3 Year stats:

Weight: 34 lbs (80%)

Height: 38 1/2 inches (83%)

Laurel's Bunny Party

I still can't believe that Laurel turns 3 over the weekend! We had such a fun weekend celebrating her. The year she was born, we came home from the hospital the day before Easter and with Easter being my absolute favorite holiday of the year, you know I had already started planning an Easter birthday party in my head. Since Laurel has been obsessed with bunnies for the past year and her birthday fell on Easter Sunday this year, I threw the idea out to her for a bunny party and not only did she get excited, she got very opinionated. It was so fun planning her little party WITH her (for the first time) and letting her pick stuff out. It all started with the invitation... she sat by me while I worked on it and was very particular about the colors. She wanted all of the bunnies for the party to be "light pink, not hot pink". Here are some picture of the party details:

We had the party at our neighborhood park (just like Micah's 3rd) and the weather held out for a perfect morning and a perfect setting for our Easter egg hunt. I had a picture in my head of exactly what I wanted to use to make centerpieces but couldn't find it anywhere. My mom found these crates at the Bryan Farmer's Market that were PERFECT and FREE! I filled them with moss, florist foam and "bunny grass" (Hobby Lobby) and then stuck eggs and Peeps in them and then wrapped them with a cute burlap ribbon and bunnies (cut out with my Silhouette). I had a bunny book for everyone to sign as they walked in, we did these for the kids first birthdays and I love being able to look back and see who came to their parties. I had a little kid craft table setup where they could decorate a bag for the Easter egg hunt. The kids used their bags for the hunt and then as they were leaving, I had a little "favor bar" set up with bunny bouncy balls, hopping bunnies and carrot shaped bags filled with goldfish. 

For the party food, we had "Bunny Treats" (orange chocolate covered colored strawberries to look like carrots), "Veggie Patch Nibbles" (cups with sliced veggies and a little bit of Ranch in the bottom of each cup), Bunny shaped PJ&J sandwiches, "Easter Eggs" (Chick Fil A nuggets), "Bunny Snacks" (Annie's bunny snack mix), and "Cotton Tail Cookies & Cupcakes". I had so much fun with all of the food for this one. I made little miniature bunny cookies for toppers on the cupcakes and they were a hit with all of the kids-- because what kid doesn't like getting a cookie AND a cupcake all in one?!?

The kids rolled up to the party in style and were excited to celebrate! My little introverted birthday girl took a while to warm up and had major attitude when she got there but she calmed down after a while. I kept the party much smaller than years past (due to how much she shuts down in large groups) but she still got overwhelmed. Big huge thanks to Mimi for helping with the kids while I worked on party stuff on Friday, Audrey who helped me a ton to get ready for the party and to Audrey and Suzu for helping to set up! I couldn't have done it without y'all! Party pics...

{Bottom left- this is the face she made the entire time we sang to her. She's not a huge fan of all the attention}

We opened a few presents at the park but then decided to wait to open the rest until we got home. Her big gift from us was her pink princess bike and she was even more excited about it than I could've ever imagined it was precious. The bike even came with a seat for her baby (big win). We had such a fun day celebrating our big girl!