Parker's actual birthday is today, so we had a family day focused on him and his favorite things! I intended to stay up until 12:10 AM to get a picture at the time he was born, but exhaustion got the best of me, so 2:30 AM will have to do!
He was in a great mood once he woke up. The cut on his lip had scabbed over so it looked a lot worse today.
We started the day with breakfast at Perkins. Pancakes with whipped cream and sprinkles were perfect for the birthday boy.
Then we did some of his favorite things at home. Helping with laundry...
Jamming his new keyboard...
And beating on the drums...
All that fun made for another quick nap. I love how he fell asleep, so I had to get a picture. This is probably the only way I can get one with his blocks too.
After his nap we headed to Maple Maze at the Maple Grove Community Center. It is an awesome indoor playground. We started in the toddler area, but he wanted to check out the big equipment. Getting to play here is one of the best perks of being a parent!
We climbed all the way to the top and took the tiger slide down.
Yep, that giant orange one!
Of course he found something to spin!
He had a fun bath...
Then his favorite animal sounds app before bed!
It was the perfect way to spend Parker's 3rd birthday!
Whew....I am pretty sure my post from his last birthday started the same way... I probably took on a little too much this year, but it was worth it (for me anyway!) We pulled double duty, hosting a family and friends party in the same day. Probably won't do that again...
As always, I went all out with Parker's Rock Star Party. We set the stage (pun intended) with backstage pass invitations. I printed the photos below, laminated them and added a ribbon so they could hang on the neck.
Next step was to convert our storage room into an awesome backstage setting.
I used plastic table clothes and streamers to camouflage the shelves and floor joists. It was a tight space, but it was nice to have all the events on one floor because our house it on the smaller size.
I also had my first adventure in night before gift assembly. I was a little worried because the reviews said it didn't come with instructions. Luckily, we got some and there were more online resources. Can you guess what he got?
Every VIP event has swag bags and so did ours. Glow sticks, necklaces, Pop Rocks and more!
The final decoration was creating a fun VIP entrance with streamers.
Just before my parents arrived Parker face planted into the floor and cut open his lip pretty badly. It was the most I have ever seen him bleed. Luckily it was better than it looked and he just has a little fat lip.
The family party was at 11:00. We make pizza and chicken DRUMSTICKS for lunch, along with cupcakes and cookies for dessert.
We sang "Happy Birthday" with his cake, but saved the eating of it for his second party.
Mmmmm...cupcake!
Next was presents, Parker still has no interest in unwrapping, he'd rather do somersaults!
Our families are so generous and thoughtful, such fun gifts.
A few people contributed to his main gift, a new drum set! He was having so much fun with his small one I thought it would be great to get him an upgrade to a full junior set. He had the biggest smile on his face when we uncovered it!
It was a quick and easy nap time after all the morning activities.
After a brief break, prep began for round two! We gathered all the musical instruments in the house for the kids to play with (they managed to dig out everything else in the room too!)
Then got the snacks ready, pepperoni guitar pizza, fruit, veggies and lots of desserts.
Pop Rock cupcakes, drum cake, guitar and music note sugar cookies
Immediately after waking from nap, Parker walked into the kitchen and swiped a cookie! He is my kid...
Cookie thief
Guests started arriving and got in the groove right away. It was fun to see Kyla and Simon on the dueling drums.
Diva Kadley arrived in high style!
For our activity we made bongos from balloon and shipping tubes and decorated cardboard guitars.
They turned out great!
Then it was back to play time. Kyla really took a liking to the drums, I don't think her dad was too excited about that!
Four on a couch?
One final encore and the party extravaganza was over. Whew, now I am ready for bed! Thanks to all of Parker's great fans friends that came, it was a truly epic show!
We had a great low-key Thanksgiving this year. It was just us and my parents so we headed over early to just hang out. Parker wouldn't eat much of a traditional dinner so we didn't make his wait. He enjoyed mac and cheese (Kraft) and chicken nuggets before taking a nap.
My mom and dad put together a great meal! It was a true feast!
We hung out and watched football until Parker woke up. Then my mom and I did our version of black Friday shopping, online!
Finally, it was time for the 7th Annual Thanksgiving Pool Tournament, along with some silliness.
This was Jimmy's winning shot against me in the first game.
Parker even got in on the action by stealing a couple balls off the table! He took them to the ball return so as least he had good intentions.
It was my dad who took the crown this year, one of these years it will be me...
How was your Thanksgiving? Hopefully you had a chance to relax as well!
