Maddie's Cinderella Party, Part 2

And the saga continues! Maddie continued to show Cinderella around her party.

I love how the boys are peeking around to see what's up!

And then it was story time...

Maddie thoroughly enjoyed being princess of honor
in Cinderella's lap

There was princess dancing!

Princess laughing!

And even princess certification and autographs!! What a thrill.

This is my favorite "cheese"


Avery got to meet Cinderella too :)

 And of course the birthday cake! Sweet girl was not scared of the candle this year. She waited and made a wish and blew it out perfectly, with Cinderella right by her side. She did not demand we sing a second time like last year lol.

Simply precious! So glad we decided to bring Cinderella to the party. It truly was magical.

We gave our guests Princess Pretzels as a parting gift. Yum!

Maddie still talks about her party and the "adorable Cinderella." Her words. She wonders when we will see her again but doesn't push me for answers... which I find interesting. She has been assuring me lately, however, that if we see any other Disney characters again, like Minnie and Mickey, she would NOT be scared this time. She's referring to our Hawaii trip to Disney Aulani when she clung to me like a spider monkey whenever one of them came within 10 feet. So, there's that subtle hint. Point taken, love.

Maddie's Cinderella Party, Part 1

So excited to share our Cinderella party! At three years old, it would be hard to find a little girl who likes to dress up more than our little Maddie Brynn. It all started last December when a sweet friend of mine gifted her a fancy Cinderella dress. 

Doesn't she look like so little here? Those cheeks! 

This was only 10 months ago!

The dress was a little big, so we had pin it up in the back... and it was a little hard not to trip, but she made it work with help from a pair of adorable Cinderella glass slippers we found at Target. Both items have become staples in this household. A couple of months after the dress arrived, somehow we came across princess songs on itunes and since then we have heard DAILY renditions of "Bippidi-Bobbidi-Boo" and "A Dream is a Wish...". 

The weird thing is that she does not constantly request to watch the movie. Although sometimes she does ask me to cue it up to the part with the Fairy Godmother and Cinderella going to the ball. And she does ask almost daily if mommy and daddy would dance with her like Cinderella and the Prince. We usually twirl around the kitchen a time or two.

I gave Maddie several options for her birthday party, but she never wavered from her initial choice:  so Cinderella it was! And Bub the hub and I would have no idea that the best decision we'd make would be having a Cinderella character come to the party. Maddie was totally enchanted! Enough background though, here is the party.

Although initially excited about her "before the ball" dress, Maddie saw

 all of her guests in their princess attire and felt a little left out....

A change was in order!

that's more like it!

FAB-ulous carriage cake topper, cupcake toppers 
and cookies by my wonderful and talented bestie, Allison!!

Just a few of our princess friends!!

I didn't set up activities this year, but we did have

a dress-up station that seemed to be a big hit.

I had fun getting a little crafty and making a Cinderella 

Story Banner for the entry way.

Mid-way through the party, there was a little knock on the door...

She's here!!

Maddie's sweet little face just lit up as soon as Cinderella 

arrived. She showed her all around the party!

Our Cinderella was fantastic, she really made Maddie feel special.

And here is where I have to leave you, on the edge of your seats I know--

but I have a jillion more photos to go, so I am posting a Part 2 

tomorrow. Stay tuned for the rest of Maddie's magical Cinderella Party!

School for Maddie

The Cinderella party will have to wait, again, so I can post about my little bug's first day of school this year! She has been itchin' to go ever since Avery started almost 3 weeks ago. 
She leaped out of bed this morning, so excited to get ready and wear her new yellow "apple" dress we got months ago just for this occasion.

 When we got ready to take this photo she told me that she needed her back pack in the pic as well. Well of course, how could mommy not think of that? This girl always keeps me on my toes.

And to compare with last year, of course.

Just growing like crazy!

I really wanted to get a pic of her with her new teachers, or going into her classroom! But like last year, she basically ran in before I could do anything. I barely got a kiss. It was an air kiss, actually, and then she was gone. She ran right over and started doing a puzzle.

When I picked her up today, I was happily surprised to hear her talk nonstop about what she did in school. Last year it was like pulling teeth to get anything about her day! I just loved listening to her tell me little stories and who she played with and how funny something was. Almost brings tears to a happy mommy's eyes. All I can hope is that she keeps loving school and stays as bright and thoughtful as she is right now at this age that I can't help but love.