Aloha Sunday

Epic Sunday morning attire awesomeness. Just take a moment and breathe it in, my friends, because I'm pretty sure this is the only moment in my lifetime that I'll manage to get all six of us in identical print! I could tell you how I got Michael to wear that shirt... but then I'd have to kill you.

Carigan's Five Year Portraits

Carigan's 5th Birthday Party!

I know better than to attempt an outdoor party for Wesley or Anna Kate in the summer months known for pop-up thunderstorms.  But if there's one month you'd think it safe to plan an outdoor party in central Florida, it would be January!  But after a solid week of perfect weather, we woke up to rain and a completely overcast, dreary sky.  The weather app said 100% chance of rain at 9 a.m., 45% chance at 10 a.m., and 0% chance at 11 a.m.  It seemed awfully optimistic to me, but I held off calling everyone and telling them to just come to the house (but I spent many hours late into the night cleaning just in case!).  Michael took the kids to Wes and AK's 9:00 basketball game while I frantically made beds and continued to prepare for an indoor party.  At 9:45 I drove through drizzle  to pick up some helium balloons.  At 10:00 I drove by the park and it was bleak and gray... and empty.  Once home I started assembling all the supplies (assuming we'd have the party at the house), when I noticed it starting to get lighter and lighter and lighter in the house.  By the time Michael and the kids got back from basketball, the sun was out.  I handed Michael an armful of towels and told him to go to the park and start wiping down tables and playground equipment.  By 11:00 it was sunny and dry... truly a miraculous weather recovery!  And one big upside of the close call - we literally had the entire park to ourselves.

Picnic in the park!  I couldn't find decorative lunch bags, so Anna Kate and Carigan personally decorated each plain white bag with their own illustrations. 

The new version of our old school merry-go-rounds from back in the day!

Spinning Emma.  Looks... fun.

Tate kept trying to escape the preschool playground and make a break for the big playground!  I finally let him in.  He was cracking me up on this twirling seat!  He would swivel until he started to fall back with his head angled directly to the ground and I would catch him.  He'd laugh and then hop on and do it again and again.  -BELOW- Olivia, Gracie, Carigan and Kaylie swinging their little hearts out!  (Anyone seen Despicable Me??  Gracie is straight from a movie, she's so stinkin' adorable!). 

Cake!  I didn't even try to light the candles.  The sun may have been out, but it was still windy!  

Everyone collectively blowing out the imaginary-lit candles!  About this point in the party, Carigan started announcing she wanted to go home.  Deflated at first, I realized she just meant she wanted all the people at the party to come to her house.  She had seen me cleaning and preparing for company and I realized she was super excited about having her friends over.  We tried to recruit one to come home with us, but everyone had plans.  All of her friends have been to her house, but just never all at the same time!  But next year she'll be six, which is when I let Anna Kate have her first sleepover.  So she can knock herself out then.  

We go way back with Cambelle cupcake pics at Rogers Family birthday celebrations!  I love the one with dark red frosting smeared all over her face.  Not sure which party that was, but the image is ingrained in my memory.  Painting in the Park!  Carigan, Gracie, Brianna, Selah, Olivia & Arabella:

Anna Kate & Kaylie.  -BELOW- Matthew & all the Shelley boys! 

Katie, Grace, Isabella, Emma & Kerrigan.^  Keeping my little artists happy!  Both of my girls color and draw all day long.  But painting is a treat, because Mommy has to be in a good mood to be willing to pull out all that gear and clean it up!  Wesley and Anna Kate both had their 5th birthday party at Family Fun Center.  I tried to sell Carigan on the idea, but she wanted to paint!

Marty is such a good mommy friend... she asked if she could help Tate make his own painting.  He was proud as punch!  I don't know what I'd do at parties without my friends!  I'm so very blessed with amazing friends.  Marty and the Melissas (Cano & Shelley) are always working hard at my parties, making sure things go smoothly, and jumping in to help when they don't!  I'll be up a creek if I every attempt to throw a party when they're all out of town!

April is my new recruit!  I see many many MANY Rogers family birthdays in her future.  Ha.

Kaylie, Christian, Olivia, Carigan, Gracie & Arabella 

Kelly & Sweet Caroline!  Carigan was so excited to see Arabella & Hadley - It had been months!  So exciting to have ALL of her best friend together in the same place... old neighbors, new neighbors, old preschool pals, new preschool pals, dance class buddies and church buddies.  They were all there!  It was Carigan heaven!

We left the party sufficiently sticky and covered in paint.  We walked in the door and it was straight to the bath for #2, #3, and #4!  I realized as I was washing Carigan's hair that I hadn't had a single picture made with her either on her actual birthday or at her party.  So I had Michael take one as soon as I got her out of the tub.  Me and my big five year old girl.  Love her so much!

A WHOLE HAND!

And to think that not that long ago, January 22 was just another boring, regular day!

Carigan's favorite restaurant is Crisper's.  She loves it simply because you get a free scoop of ice cream with every kids meal, and you get to keep the cup and spoon.  I had told her I'd taker her there for lunch on her birthday, but Aunt Cynto stopped by the day before on her way back to the beach from Orlando, so we walked downtown and took the girl to Crisper's.  I decided it counted as her birthday lunch.  :-)

The morning Carigan turned five... she technically had a few hours left of being four here since she was born in the afternoon.  She often joins me in bed when Michael and the big kids get up to go to LCS.  Usually I stay up after Anna Kate appears at my bedside with a brush and says, "Hair."  But if Carigan has found her way to my bed, I often sneak back for snuggles.

We woke up to the sound of crunching metal.  In honor of Carigan's 5th birthday, the church next door sent over some heavy duty construction equipment to demolish her old preschool classroom.  We watched from the window, and then we watched up close as we walked to school.  A mom had plopped down on the sidewalk with her toddler son to watch the show.  This poor guy's job was to stand with that hose and spray each chomp.  All. day. long. 

Tate and I brought cookie cake to Carigan's class.

Carigan with her best friend Gracie.

Back row: Julia, Luke, Grace, Colby, Damien.  Front row: Thor (for real, his name is Thor), Gideon, Wyatt, Carigan and Hannah.  It was a big treat to get to visit her at school.  Other than a few minutes on Halloween, I've never had the opportunity to visit her during school (very strict rules with VPK).

Michael came home early and took Carigan to Mimi's so she could take her shopping.  Usually I have a good idea of what the kids want for birthdays, etc., but Carigan has simple wants and couldn't really think of anything when I drilled her.  But she felt special shopping with Mimi and picking things out herself.  I had to run Anna Kate to the doctor after school (I suspected a UTI and was right) and we ran next door to Target while we waited for Publix to fill her prescription.  Anna Kate picked 5 or 6 things out of the dollar section for Carigan, and she begged to get her Frozen earmuff's as well.  We had just enough time to throw everything in gifts bags when we got home before we had to walk out the door to meet Mimi, Grandpa, and Carigan at Olive Garden for her birthday dinner.

Carigan is such a fun gift-opener!  She marveled at all her dollar treasures as if we had spared no expense.  The earmuffs were a hit.

Opening the presents she picked out with Mimi.  Other than a pair of Frozen pajamas, everything she picked out was an art project.  -BELOW- Tate giving me a "pppppbbbbbtttttt."  It's his new thing.  It's how he says hello to strangers.  Especially in elevators.

They brought Carigan ice-cream and sang to her... you can tell she was really appreciative.

New jammies, Check.  Frozen earmuffs, Check.  Five years old, Check, Check!

I have to brag... this is what happens when you have a big sister that loves art.  Carigan has been at this coloring/drawing thing since she was a toddler!  She came home from school the day after her birthday and immediately set to work on coloring the black and white bag she picked out at Hobby Lobby to personally decorate.  She spent a good meticulous hour or more before allowing me to come in and see the finished product.  Pretty darn impressive for a newly-minted five year old, if I do say so myself!