Adelyn's 3rd Birthday

Adelyn is 3!  And if you ever forget, don't worry because she will let you know :).  Adelyn loves hearing stories and reading story books, so for her 3rd birthday party, we thought it would be fun to do a story book theme.  Not that a 3 year old needs a themed party, but it was fun for me.  We all had a lot of fun eating, playing, and swimming in the baby pools out back b/c the day was HOT!  We loved celebrating this sweet girl, and we are so grateful for her.  She is a sweet big sister (as long as her toys aren't snatched from her by little sticky fingers), loves to dance and sing, and has a slightly introverted personality (unlike her extremely extroverted brother!)  Despite being introverted, once she gets to know someone, she becomes and instant good friend.  She loves reading and learning, and I think that preschool this fall couldn't come soon enough for her.  Our Northern Virginia born child is learning to love the outdoors, getting much better about swiping away spider webs on her outdoor toys without too many squeals, and has discovered that getting mud on her dress (b/c we must wear a dress most of the time, preferably with her hair down) is a natural part of playing outside.   We can't imagine life without this very dramatic bundle of joy!

Desserts.  Building materials for the 3 little pigs (chocolate spiders - sticks, haystacks - straw, and peanut butter/chocolate bars - bricks) and little green candy for Jack and the Bean Stack's magic beans.

Dinner.  Sliders for the 3 Bears (Papa bear - beef, Mama bear - turkey, baby bear - pbj) and mac n cheese muffins for Goldilocks.  3 Little Pigs (pigs in a blanket), Princes and the Pea (layered salad with peas on the bottom), and Rapunzel (curly fries)

We wrapped books in fun paper and wrote the menu on them

Vintage story books that Ashley and I found at antique stores

Adelyn newborn - 3 years old

 A pail of water

The birthday princes

Kinley

Turner

The McNerney family riding down our "race track"

Cousin Joshua

Poppy and Bubba

We love Aunt Ashley!

Riding in the cars with Cousin Robert

Great Grandmother Nana

Uncle Rudy and Aunt Veronica

Look at this beautiful birthday dress that Auntie Ashley made for Adelyn!

Aunt Catherine!!!

We all had the same idea for what color was appropriate for a Luck party...orange of course

Prince Charming :)

The Luck cousins, Pop and Grami

Visit with Grandmother and G Pop Carlton

After visiting Dee Dee and Sam, we then traveled to Hilton Head to spend some time with Grandmother and GPop Carlton.  They live in a beautiful house with a private pool, so the kids loved playing in the water, and I even got some alone time, relaxing by the pool and reading magazines (as you can imagine, I'm already planning our trip back!)  Grandmother is infamous for always stocking her fridge full of wonderful food that the kids love, so as you will see in the pictures, Braden enjoyed eating...a lot!  The Carltons are so hospitably, and so wonderful with the children, that visiting is very easy (despite the travel.)  These children of ours are so blessed to have so many wonderful Great Grandparents!

Eating Pears....

And Popsicles

"helping" Daddy set up the umbrella

reading at nap time

Adelyn in her tutu swimsuit playing in the small pool.  It was perfect in so many ways!

Building with G Pop

They have a piano that plays wonderful music just by pressing the petals.  Adelyn fell in love with it and sang and danced for hours!

Oh, how we all miss them!