June 6, 2015

What a Circus!

While I have a captive audience of folks back at this blog who probably abandoned it many months ago when my life got a little too out of control to keep it updated, and while Clara is peacefully napping (ALLELUIAH!), I thought I'd tackle part of the summer to do list and try to catch up on the blog.  I should start where I left off, but that would be CHRISTMAS, and so instead, I'm going to break my rules and go all out of order.   I'll begin with photos from Eloise's first birthday party which was the day before Clara got sick and our lives got turned a little upside down.  It was only two weeks ago, but it already feels like it was an eternity!

I feel like I should preface this birthday post with a little disclaimer.  There's a lot of buzz in the blogosphere about how Pinterest puts all this pressure on moms to have these elaborate themed birthdays and it's too much and over the top and blah blah blah.  Here's my take on it.  I love birthday parties.  Really really really love them.  I pick a theme months in advance and think about it and look for ideas and shop and just have so much fun.  I think it's maybe filling the void in my life from no longer being in the kindergarten classroom.  I get a kick out of it.  So, I do it!  But if you don't like it, I do not think you should do it.  Know what I don't do?  Eat organic.  Make homemade soap.  Bake or decorate cakes.  I am not good at those things and I do not enjoy them and I do not feel any guilt or pressure to do them because they do not bring me joy.  But this.  This brings me joy.  And Eloise's party was so much fun.

When I was trying to think of a theme for her, I was playing around with Elephants since we've always been kind of drawn to Elephant themed stuff for her.  Which made me think of circuses and I realized that a circus theme was kind of perfect for a first birthday, because let's be honest, the first year is nothing but a three ring circus!  Eloise has been the world's best baby (more on that in her one year post), but adjusting to life with two kids and sleepless nights and general chaos that ensues with a baby made circus feel like the perfect theme.  

And with all that said, here's the circus party!!

The food, table and favors were concessions themed:









  




And then I set up 7 different circus stations. (I got better photos of some than others; it's hard to party and document all at once.)

There was the STRONG (WO)MAN:






 

CIRCUS READS:
 CIRCUS PUPPETS:



CIRCUS BOUNCE CASTLE:








TATOO PARLOR (With Circus tattoos, of course):

  







 BIG TOP PARACHUTE: (Here's the best wide view of the backyard that I got)



 RING OF FIRE:








 Robert grilled out burgers for us and we ate.



 








Eloise got to smash another cake (again, we're all out of order here... I'll post pics of her "real" birthday later).  Big thanks to Mama K for baking our cakes.  {See above: I do not bake cakes}



















And after Eloise got a bath and a wardrobe change, she opened a few presents.














These are my people.  I love them fiercly and could not have gotten through the past circus of a year without them.


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