More Gabbi Girl's Birthday Party!

Ok, so finally I was able to load up the 600 or so pictures I took this weekend.  We have a LOT to share.  Soooo, I hope you are one of those who gets a little Mo'JOY in the mornings over coffee.  Radstitches, you still there?  You still reading us with your Raisin Bran?!  Well, settle in... cause here we go! 

I already shared a few pictures of the birthday girl enjoying a slip and slide with the "big girls" who were invited to her party! 
Because I know I have a Breanna and a Jessi who are suckers for the details of a party.... let me show you a few of the special things we used to decorate....
Our theme was "All things pink"... that included our punch and these cool tissue flowers.
We had balloons everywhere.  I found these sweet 1st birthday ones and I HAD to have them!  We got a helium tank at MMPT lately, so now we have balloons for EVERY event!  I don't know how I have gone so long without a helium tank.  That thing ROCKS!
Breanna ordered the Martha Stewart kits where you can make all those cute little crepe paper flowers.  She overnighted them to me because she knew I would need to have these.  Thank you, Breanna.  They were so cute! 
And these paper lanterns were the ones we spray painted for Jessi's wedding.  Then, we used them for Ellie's first birthday, and now Gabbi's!  Jessi let us borrow these, as well as the jumper thing and the Slip and Slide.  They became the hits of the party! 
And you KNOW we had to have cute little clips for party favors.  
and buckets of "smaller candy", as Ellie calls this kind of chewy candy, with treat bags for the kids to fill up as they wanted. 
Which takes us to the party outside....
Gabbi Girl is a FISH!  She just LOVES the water! 
Sarah was so helpful with the girls as they played in the pool and on the slide. I am going to MISS that little girl when we move! 
She is a joy! 
as is this little precious baby! 


ANd then there is this NUT! 
She would head in face forward....
Come up. Look around to make sure everyone was watching....and clap for herself. 
This is Sam from up the street.  She was also helpful with the birthday girl! 
Gabbi was so excited.  She was just blissful!  Almost inhaling when she giggled because she was so excited with all the activity. 

She started crawling all over the yard ... finding the rocks around my garden. 
Meanwhile back at the slide....
Sarah and the other "big girls" were doing all kinds of tricks! 
DId I mention that Emma Lou got a very, very cute little bob haircut!? 
JinJin was my special helper (can you tell I have a two year old... I always have a"special helper") and let me go to town this morning while she stayed with the girls at the house.  Thank you, Mom. 
Dad got involved as the party continued, and LOVED seeing all the expressions the girls had as they flew down the slide.  
Again, I say... YAY for the "big girls" who were my "special helpers"!!
And hello there, Maddi Boo.  Staci said to tell you all that she is still fishing!  She had about a hundred pics of the party (the ones from yesterday were from Staci's camera), but won't blog them.  She is "sooooo outdone"! 

Here goes Dad again.  Gabbi was such a sport.  She seemed to really like the slide!  
He worked hard to get all of the girlies together on the slide... but YOU KNOW WHO barely cooperated!  
It is no small miracle that we caught them all in a photo.  This one may be worthy of being blown up into a poster.  Those faces are a HOOT! 
This little girl seriously thinks she is about 8 years old like our other guests!  

Ok, so let's move on with the party.  There were definitely different phases of this party... pool, jumper, slide. cake, clean up with cute clothes.  opening gifts, and chilling in the highchair. 
This is preparing for the cake time! 
Oh, and did I mention, watch the big girls dance time?! 
Wait!  Also, that little girl to the far right (Ellie Sue Lopez... throwing that pelvis around like a much too big girl!)  

By now, you should know that I ONLY use my friend, Kelly, for my CAKE and Bakery needs!  She did an all pink cake just like I like them!  Soooooo cute!!  And speaking of cute... did you notice the attempt to dress up the ugly brown chair in the above photo?!  I think it helped!  Maybe we will keep that trim on it permanently! 
"Happy Birthday  to You... Happy Birthday to you... "
Ok, Gaggi Gull... time to dig in...
Ummm. NO.  Gaggi was very slow to check out her cake.  Gabbi has a bit of hypersensitivity and was not ready to dive into anything with all that stickiness. 
Man, oh, man.  WHAT is our daddy thinking?!  He is a good sport. 
As is my neighbor, Nicole.  WHAT am I going to do without my next door neighbor?!  WHO is going to bring my 2 for 1 margaritas on Fridays after work?!  WHO is going to bring me milk when I am out of it, SO OFTEN, that my kid calls her husband "the milkman"?  And WHO is going to be the single only numero uno adult friend who comes to my one year old's birthday party?!  STOP the construction.  I can't move! 
Ok, I am over it.  I have a guest bedroom, she and Sarah will just have to come stay often! and Billy.  Chris.  No go.  I have daughters! 

Next....
This is my cousin, Dane's, daughter, Chloe.  she is about 3-4 months younger than Ellie Bellie.  Now, am I a nut or do they look alike?! 
I swear I find it uncanny that they look so much alike.  Since, you obviously know that there is no genetic pool shared here?!  

And this is Brenna Faith, Chloe's baby sister.  This is her first birthday party! 
Ok, are you tired yet?  Or are you like Staci and Don and Paula and Emily, and you don't read the words anyway?!  They are the ones who just look at the pictures, remember?! 
ALrighty... Gabbi is getting the feel for it now. 

Can you see the mounds of cake in her seat?  Look down beside her in her chair.  GROSS! 
Ahhhhh... clean at last!  And now... for the presents! 
This may be her favorite gift.  
It was a little Beanie Baby type bear that sang, "Happy Birthday". 

In our family, just because one person is having a birthday doesn't mean that ALL the girls aren't going to be getting a present! 
Ellie and Maddi scored new rainboots.   
oh, and Gabbi Girl also got an Elmo chair.  As much as she is starting to like that princess couch, this is a nice new one to try out... from Pops and Nana. 
And here is Nana!  
We sent balloons up to Jake, as I always feel his presence when I am having just deep bliss.  Do you know that emotion?! Deep satisfaction!  Pure JOY!  Intense happiness!  That is when I feel very grateful, and I sense Jake!  
Well, can you believe it?!  You made it to the end.... This is it.  The final frame of the Gabbi's First Birthday Party blog post.  
This sweet baby girl is so special to us!  She is pleasant and happy and very loving.  She loves to have her mama hold her and absolutely loves ice cream!  I look forward to seeing what she will become.  Who she will be.  How her little personality will develop.  She is my sweet angel!   And in two days, she will be one year old!  

Mo