1st Birthday Party Recap

I have to start by saying that parties have always caused anxiety for me both throwing them & having them thrown for me. Combining family & friends has been a source of anxiousness maily because there's so many people that form both groups. We are fortunate to have a large extended family as well as wonderful groups of friends. But having everyone under one roof is nearly impossible (our wedding was overflowing with over 215 ppl). I know most 1st birthday parties are done up BIG. But I wanted to break with tradition and I tried my very best to keep my peanuts the focus of the party & have something that they could enjoy as much as possible. I guess that's terrible hostess etiquette. I realize usually the guests are the focus. So we kept it low key as much as I possible could considering our large families on both sides. I planned ahead as much as I could & a little daily prayer to the Big Guy upstairs helped too :) but nevertheless the anxiety was high & so was my blood pressure.

The start of my day was to feed the girls & get them to nap time as quickly as possible.









My own creation...cupcake towers! And that's plural..yes TWO towers.







While mommy tries to multi-task the kids don't make this easy....uggghh!



I got almost everything done before they got up from their extremely short nap. It figures! And J ran around town running errands & picked up the cakes.

Hooray for cupcakes!! No cake cutting. I dread cutting cakes. It's so messy!









We started with singing Happy Birthday 2x & blowing out their #1 candles. I know, I know, this usually happens at the end of the party. I'm telling you, this party really had me stressed out thinking about how most kids can get cranky & tired & down right unbearable at their own party. And at the end of it all it doesn't seem like they enjoy it all. At least that's what MY 1st birthday party pictures looked like. So I decided we'd start with the important elements first and make sure the girls were in a great mood AND clean!

Catalina



Valentina



Mommy & the Birthday Girls



Bring on the entertainment!!! We're not into characters, YET so I decided to ask their music teacher if she could entertain the girls & their friends for their birthday. She jumped at the idea (thanks Miss Wendy!). And I have to admit the girls really enjoyed it. And so did many of our little buddies. YAY!! I was pretty darn proud of chosing to go with something that everyone really enjoyed. At least it seemed that way to me.





























And finally our guests enjoyed the BBQ provided by mommy's helpers! I couldn't have pulled this off without some professional help (thanks to Enjoy Your Party Co.)




At the end of it all when J & I sat down to reflect on the day I realized how incredibly special it was. I enjoyed my party with my peanuts and at that moment I figured out why people throw such large celebrations after the first year of your child's birth. We do have a lot to celebrate & be thankful for....

Twins Turn One!

Our Birth Day!

Early to rise at 6:30AM!! Good morning sunshines!!









And our nanny Magi got to our house.



And Grandma came to help blow out our candles.



And mommy's Tia Antonia



Bring on the cake!!!






Yes yes sing sing sing...ok when do we eat?



And we clap...Val we'll be eating soon, I promise.



YUMMY!!





And then somehow we tried to put this sugar saturated children to bed!! And that was our very 1st Birthday.

I'm celebrating today because I survived my first year of motherhood. There were moments when it was touch & go there but in the end we did it! And if I can toot my own horn for a moment, I'm pround of having survived the first year with twins. ching ching :)

One year ago today about 30 minutes ago my life changed forever. And I can't help the tears stream down my face as I think about meeting my little peanuts for the first time. The most beautiful sound I ever heard was the soft cries of my baby girl being born and my ears ached longing to hear the sweet sound of my 2nd baby girl crying. And this day is tatooed in my heart forever.

To my sweet peanuts: I remember your birth like it happened moments ago and I distinctly remember it was love at first sight. I remember all I wanted was hold you in my arms and never let you go. I love you more than I ever imagined possible. With each day I know you I realize my life would have never been complete without you both in it. You are the reason why I was born. You remind me of all the good that life has to offer. Every moment I'm away from you is a moment too long. This year you've taught me so many things. I never imagined revolving my world around another human being and now it's completely wrapped around the two of you. You have changed me forever. I 'm not the woman I once was. You have taught me patience and perseverence. You've taught me to be vulnerable and to be selfless. You've taught me that I can control nothing. You've made me see in myself incredible strength and yet clearly see my weaknesses. We did it girls. We made it through this year with all of its ups & downs & highs & lows & happiness & even the difficult scary sad moments. I loved every moment.

Stay tuned as the party continues...

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