My kids’ birthdays are less than two months apart, and they’re both on either side of Christmas.  It makes for a lot of events and planning during the holidays.  This year I decided to have a combined birthday party for the two of them since they are so close in age and mainly have all the same friends.  It was such fun, and it’s going to be tempting to do it that way every year!  I’m sure they’ll let me know when they’re finished sharing their birthday party!

The theme for the party was a luau which had been decided months ago since they are obsessed with all things Hawaiian after all of our vacations there.  It’s super easy to go with a Hawaiian theme since there are so many decorations, so I was happy with their choice!  I got started with just some standard palm trees, fish, and flowers and then had some custom items made to make the party a little more personal!  I loved how this theme worked so well for a combined boy/girl party as well.  I kept the favors simple; the boys got some wooden sharks on wheels that I had custom made, and the girls got precious handmade flower clips for their hair.  I always come home and throw away the goody bags from parties because they’re full of candy and toys that fall apart.  I probably didn’t spend more for these lasting favors than I would have filling up bags for everyone.  They were all a hit! 

We have a great party place here in town that has indoor inflatables.  To make the theme and the location make sense together, we invited people to come "island hopping" with us!  The kids (and adults) had a blast!  In fact, one of the dads there told me it was his favorite place for kids’ parties.  He even came in from hunting early that morning to be able to go with his three kiddos!  My sister and my mom pretty much only came out of the bounce houses and off of the slides long enough to sing "Happy Birthday" and eat cake! 

All in all, it was a fantastic party!  The kids and parents had fun, and boy, did the kids nap well that afternoon!  I can’t believe my babies are another year older!  Everyone says how quickly time passes, but I don’t think it’s ever quite as evident as it is when you’re watching your own babies grow.  Cherish every moment!

- Tiffaney

July is a month of celebration for us as it brings our daughter’s birthday.  This year was her 2^nd birthday and we have been celebrating almost nonstop since the month arrived.  We started the celebration the weekend of July 4^th when we celebrated with one set of grandparents.  This year, we even had our own local celebration on the roof. 

Lillian was ready for her zoo/animal themed party when she woke up from her afternoon nap that day.  She had been talking about her requested chocolate birthday cake all morning and was excited to see her little friends.  She loved getting dressed in her Strasburg Children Day at the Zoo Bloomer Set.  We headed up to the roof to celebrate and it was a great afternoon, despite some rain showers that made us retreat back to our crowded apartment downstairs for cake and ice cream.

Next weekend we head to visit the second set of grandparents and celebrate once again.  Yippee for July and yeah for 2^nd birthdays!