Happy 2nd Birthday, Stella!

"I'm not a baby; I'm a big girl!"

Happy 2nd birthday to our big girl, Stella! Mommy and Daddy are so proud of our beautiful and amazing little two-year-old. We had a wonderful couple of days to celebrate the milestone birthday. On Friday, Grandma Louise came over with some little Sesame Street characters for Stella and a pair of overalls. Stella loved the overalls because they have a ton of pockets for all of her little buddies.

We then headed over, pockets stuffed, to meet Daddy and the Stahlmanns at a restaurant for dinner. Stella was able to indulge in her favorites: pizza, mac and cheese, and the biggest bowl of ice cream imaginable. Once she had eaten it all, she turned to Dave and asked, "Can I have some of yours?"

After dinner, we went home to open another gift. Grandma and Granddad had given Stella a desk/easel for all of Stella's coloring. She has since created several pictures, which she then crumples up and throws on the floor. A perfectionist at two!

Saturday was Stella's birthday party. We held it at The Little Gym in Glenview and invited fifteen of her closest kid buddies and thirty adults. It was a massive event. The venue was great; the staff ran activities, served the food, and packed up the presents. All of the kiddos appeared to enjoy themselves. Stella was a bit obstinate (she is two, let's not forget) and didn't feel that she needed to follow instructions on her birthday, but she had a hoot of a time jumping, running, and swinging about. Uncles Jack and David stole the show with their floor routines and general perpetual eight-year-old behavior. It was a lot of fun.


Stella's party was robot themed, and wouldn't have been complete without a giant vegan pink robot cake, made by Mommy. She had been snagging tastes of the frosting every time we opened the fridge door. When snapping a photo of the cake, Chris caught Stella in the act! She also had RoboStella buttons, and RoboStella cupcakes. We ordered in pizza, sang, and blew out candles!

We hauled the loot home with the help of Jack and Colleen, and boy, did Stella make out like a bandit! She has a very generous group of friends and family. So generous, in fact, that Mommy had to stash some of the goods away to release on a future date. There were just way too many toys to put out all at once. Here are some of the highlights: Lots of cute clothes, a toy ipod, a toy phone, puzzles, a play dough factory, some great books, videos (including the Elmo Potty Time video), Sesame Street stuff, a faux fur vest and outfit (like a rockstar!), my little ponies, a baby princess, a leap frog game, a vet clinic, her first Barbie (a mermaid for the bath), a rocking electric guitar, and a POWERWHEEL ATV. Craziness, right!!! What a spoiled little queen we have. We have many thank you cards to write, and I hope someday Stella realizes how much she is loved!

We had a great time over the birthday weekend, and are so thankful for those that celebrated with us and continue to support and love our children. Also of note, I can now say that we've survived two under two! Love and thanks to you all!