3rd Birthday Party

We had Ella's birthday party last Saturday, January 8. Ella does soccer with Happy Feet at school every week and really enjoys it, so we decided to have her Happy Feet Coach come play with the kids for her party. We held it at the Cultural Center which is just a few minutes from our house. The decorations were a no-brainer because Ella was very clear that her party be all Mickey Mouse Clubhouse!

In her birthday shirt before the party


Checking things out at the party room with Aunt Tesie


With Grandad


We had playdoh and many playdoh tools for the kids to play with, and we put together little foam sticker puppets. We ate pizza and the kids got in plenty of running-around time.

Having fun with her best buddies from school, Gillian and Tess




Ella and Elise


Dominic looking adorable as always


Sweet brothers


With Grammy


The Wards


Teresa and Carmen, who came all the way from MD for Ella's party


Little cutie Morgan ("Baby Morgan" as Ella calls her) - although she is almost 1 now, not a baby much longer!


So cute with Daddy


Big hug from Tess


The 3 of us


When it was time for Happy Feet, I had planned to watch and take pictures while all the kids played with Coach Sarah. However, Ella would have none of that, and as soon as she sat down against the wall, she starting yelling "Mommy, come here", patting the ground next to her, so I did Happy Feet too :). I wasn't really able to get any pictures, but did manage to get my camera out for a second to catch them getting ready to do the parachute!


After Happy Feet it was time for cake! When we were talking about her upcoming party, Ella went back and forth on whether she wanted a cake or cupcakes. She knew she wanted Mickey Mouse on top, but sometimes would say 'cake' and sometimes 'cupcake.' I decided to go with the best of both worlds and got a pull-apart cake that is all cupcakes but frosted like a cake. I was really happy with how it came out, and more importantly, Ella was very happy with it!



On Ella's birthday night, we had a cake with 3 candles that she blew out on the first try, with no trouble. It was a different story at her party. We sang Happy Birthday and after I put the cake in front of her she first looked at it like she had no idea what to do, and then gave a few half-hearted blows and I think got just one out. Luckily her Mommy is an expert candle-blower-outer and I took care of the others :)







Being silly with Grandma and Grandad


With Grammy and Grampy G


VERY sleepy at the end of her party!


It was a great party - A very big thank-you to our family and friends who came to celebrate with us, we were so happy to have you there for Ella's special day!