In fact, I planned ahead really well this time! I was so proud of me!! I started making the cake Thursday, just in case things went badly like they did with Austin's cake! But it went so so smoothly that I really didn't have much to worry about. Auntie Suz was also there to help out and that allowed us to crank it out while also attending to all our kiddos at the same time!
After getting a lesson in using fondant from Auntie Robin when we made the cake for Auntie Suz's baby shower, I felt comfortable giving it a go for this cake! Just the ladybug covering (having a pink ladybug instead of a red one save me a ton of time! It's hard to make red, but pink is easy!) and polka dots are fondant though, cuz I wanted the cake to be yummy, not just cute and I'm not horribly fond of the taste of fondant.
And yummy it was! I think that was the yummiest cake I have ever had. And I'm not just saying that because I made it. The cake itself was "Darn Good Chocolate Cake" with chocolate filling, a recipe I got from Rebecca. It's almost too rich, if there could be such a thing! And the frosting was White Chocolate Cream Cheese and I swear it tasted like I spread cheesecake all over the cake. I probably gained 5 pounds making her cake, cuz I couldn't stop testing the frosting! The only bummer about the frosting is that it doesn't pipe well, so the grass was very problematic and didn't turn out very grass-like, but at that point of the process I was pretty tired and didn't care so much!
McKenna's smash cake was a little teddy bear, just like Austin's was. Both Brian and my 1st birthday cakes were the same bear, and I've kept that tradition going. That's why it doesn't go with the "theme". Auntie Suz decorated it and it came out adorable!
The day of the party, we decorated with pink ladybugs everywhere! Plates, napkins, banners, pink balloons. I love me some pink!
(By the way, if anyone is ever interested in custom banners, please let me know. I'm considering selling these!)
As much as I enjoy planning the party, it doesn't compare to actually celebrating my baby girl! It was a great day and I think everyone really enjoyed themselves! Especially my birthday girl, all dressed up in her new pink ladybug outfit!
While we waited for the pizza to arrive, the kids played in the backyard. Once again, we borrowed a bouncer and the kids had fun hopping around. Austin didn't used to like bouncers very much, but he has started loving them!
We set aside some little kid time, so that the birthday girl could experience her own bouncer, without the threat of being squished by a big kid. McKenna had never been in a bouncer before but she quickly got the point and thoroughly enjoyed herself.
The kids also had a lot of fun in the little playhouse my parents have.
Some pics of my other favorite kiddos!
Then we all had a yummy lunch of pizza, potato salad, fruit, mac&cheese, and butterfly & flower shaped sandwiches. It was nice not to have to have someone manning the bbq for a change!
I kept giggling at this scene! All adults sitting at the kiddie table with only one kid with them!
Decorating sugar cookies was such a hit at Austin's 2nd birthday party, that I decided to do that again. The kids all gathered at the little table and decorated either flowers or butterflies. (Ladybug cookies are pretty much just ovals!) The kids were all very serious about their decorating and even more so about eating them!
The birthday girl got first pull
The mad dash after Brooke pulled the right string. This picture cracks me up! You can see Austin peeking over the other kids. He could see precious lollipops just laying there, but for the life of him, could not figure out how to get to them! Poor kid!
He finally got some assistance and all was right in his world!
Then it was time for McKenna to have some cake! I tried to use frosting that wouldn't harden as much as Austin's 1st smash cake did, but it still hardened somewhat overnight. So McKenna didn't get real into the smash part of the smash cake. Just like Austin she daintily picked at it and needed a little assistance figuring out that there was yummy sugary goodness there! But she once she did, she enjoyed it!
And as always, my proper little lady!
The final carnage
By the time the cake was eaten, McKenna was pretty wiped out and we figured since she had no concept of what presents were anyway, we decided not to open them during the party and just call it a day! But another thanks to everyone for such wonderful gifts! She got some really cute toys and some really cute clothes!!
So we quickly got some photos with the birthday girl and then put her down for a nap!
Happy Birthday sweet girl!
And a special thank you to Rebecca & Papa for taking pics for me! I was so busy enjoying my kid's party, I barely took any! I know, I'm shocked too!
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