Birthday Planning is in full swing . . .

I'm such a dork that yesterday I started planning the trio's 3rd Birthday party. Actually a couple months ago I compiled all my ideas that I found on the internet that I may want to use. Now I am doing to the actual planning of our party. I pretty much know the menu, what decorations, how I will make the invites, etc. I LOVE planning their birthday party; I think it is so much fun. I love to make everything myself from the invites, to the decorations, and even the cake even though everything looks handmade and not so perfect I love it that way. I always have a theme. I have had our 3rd birthday theme picked out since before they turned two and I also know what our 4th birthday party theme will be too. A little obsessive? Yes, but I know MY TIME is limited on picking out themes before I am told "I want a Barbie having a tea party riding horses party" or "I want a Spiderman goes to the moon party" etc. So I am picking out the themes I like, plus our themes are somewhat limited since it has to work for both genders. Last year we did cowboys & cowgirls. I loved it! I'm not sharing my theme for this year yet as I like it to be a surprise. We even went shopping today and I got some of the supplies I needed. I usually do get started in September even though their birthday isn't until November 5 because it gives me enough time to work on all the homemade things and gather things up (even though I have been picking up things as I see them for about a year already), not to mention thoroughly cleaning my house takes me 2 weeks (it's the only time it gets thoroughly cleaned) and Halloween is a week before their birthday. This year will be even more challenging since I will be 9 months pregnant at the time of their birthday so I'd better get as much done as I can in case I start to get really tired and lazy soon.


You may be wondering who gets this "jazzed" about their children's party? Well, I do. Why? I think it's because I never had a birthday party when I was little. We had some family get-togethers with some of my mom's family-- like cake and ice cream but I never had a PARTY. When I was a little older I would get to have one of my friends spend the night but I wouldn't consider one friend a party. I remember my sisters having a party or two at Happy Joe's Pizza, a pre-Chucky Cheese kid place with several of their friends but I never got to do that. Am I a little bitter? Yeah, a little, but I just want my kids to know how glad I am that I have gotten to spend another year with them. It's a celebration of their life just as a birthday should be. I waited a long time to be a mom and their birthday is more special to me than them, I'm sure. Although this year they are excited about it. We were talking about their birthday at dinner last night. I was telling them about it and Addison said "A party? for me, for me?" I told them we would play a couple games too and Caden proceeded to dance around the table saying "Play Games!" It's going to be a long wait for them and for me too!