Birthday Fun, Part Two

So the weekend after Carson's birthday, we had a shindig for her.  She won't remember it, and it was more our friends than hers, BUT everyone was there to celebrate her and she definitely had a great time.  I know Brandon and I won't forget it, and we really appreciate everyone who came, helped, and celebrated with us.

We have a ton of thank-you's to send out, and I'm sure I'll forget a few, but the party just wouldn't have happened without everybody chipping in, so here goes....

Thank you to....

...my mom for taking Friday off of work and spending the night here to help out with everything.  She was 'on call' from the moment she arrived until the party was over.  She stayed up late helping me make the candy favors (which we then forgot to put out the next day :)  ).  She got up early on Saturday to get started on more tasks.  And she kept an eye on the food throughout the party, so that I was able to enjoy every moment with my daughter, our family, and friends.  Thank you Mom!

...my dad for coming over after work on Friday, staying late, driving home to take care of the dog, and then coming right back on Saturday morning to continue taking orders from Brandon.  He vacuumed like a champ, hung lights like a pro, and knew enough to stay out of the way when I got a little "intense"  :)

...Brandon's mom for coming before the party on Saturday, despite her car issues.  Thank you most of all for the clean-up effort afterward.  I can't tell you how incredible it was not to have to clear dishes, clean pots & pans, load and unload the dishwasher, store leftovers, and trash the trash after everyone had left (or, let's be honest, it probably would have been Sunday morning). 

...my sister Anna for coming early on Saturday, despite work, projects, and being a college student in general (I know that can make rising before noon tricky on a Saturday).  Her steady hand was a huge help on the cake, and she helped out wherever it was needed all day long.

...Corey for taking the video of Carson's first cake experience.  We thought it was fitting, since he filmed our wedding that he videotape our daughter's first birthday.  We truly appreciate you capturing our most priceless moments and tolerating our last-minute requests!

...Meg for snapping all the pics of Carson eating (or more like poking and pinching and gently touching) her cake. I sprung it on her right before go-time, and she was able to get all of Carson's facial expressions--the confusion, the excitement, the realization that icing is full of sugar.....thank you for doing such a great job with such important memories :)
...all our friends who didn't follow directions and brought gifts anyway (please know thank-you notes are in the works).  Carson's head nearly explodes every morning when she sees all the fun stuff she gets to play with that day.  Thank you especially to those friends who got us noisy toys--we can't wait to return the favor with your own children!
...Carson's aunts, uncles, and cousins who stayed late to spend some quality time with the birthday girl--Brandon and I will always remember that evening.

...most importantly, EVERYONE who came to the party--we were amazed that so many people made time in their busy holiday schedules to come over and wish our girl a happy birthday. We are infinitely blessed by your generosity and love--and how much you care for our daughter.

Here's the birthday girl, playing with some toys before everyone arrived:

Lots of people, kids, toys, chaos!

Carson's smash cake (which was really banana bread made with soy ingredients and egg replacer.  Yumm, delicious....but the icing was real!) and the cake everyone else got to eat.  Until I made this, I never thought about how the icing had to be made, then dyed, then piped onto the cake using various decorating tips, bags, couplers, etc. I have a whole new appreciation for all confections now.

 

 Waiting for the cake

Enjoying the cake

And scene.

And here's a slideshow of pictures from the day