We had a birthday party for Vanessa and for her great-grandma Lou who shares her birthday. Great-grandma Lou lives in Florida, and had planned her trip up to see us since Vanessa was born. We were very excited to celebrate both birthdays!
Before the party, Vanessa was hard at work to make our house clean for our guests.
Since she's 12-months old, I decided to take a picture with her Miss Dee doll, as I have done every three months. First I had to wait until she had finished hugging her!
I had envisioned a nice shot of Vanessa sitting and holding Miss Dee around the waist. Vanessa instead wanted to hold her about the ankles. Oh well. I think it's clear from this picture how much Vanessa loves her doll!
Vanessa was remarkably cheery during her entire birthday party, despite her fourth tooth coming in. I credit her happy demeanor largely to the fact that her best friend Revie was there too. It was great for Vanessa to have someone to play with and snack with! 
Nana's coworker Annie bought balloons for Vanessa. I think this picture describes better than I can how much Vanessa loved her balloons!
I was pleased that my Uncle Bob, Aunt Teri, and cousin Brett were able to make the party. Vanessa was very excited about the alphabet magnets and clothes she got from them. She even helped unwrap her gifts!
Vanessa really likes her new foam blocks from her great-grandma and great-grandpa. She can't build with them yet, but she really enjoys banging them together and strewing them about the house. In fact, right now that's her very favorite activity!
Vanessa's second cousin Alex just started school at Tennessee. Vanessa will get to show her Tennessee pride when wearing this outfit from her great-grammy Dee. Vanessa also got an antique children's chair from her great-grammy Dee. It has been passed down for generations now. Vanessa loves to climb up in it, and she likes to sit in it like the big girl she is!
Heather and Terry gave Vanessa some R2D2 themed gifts. Vanessa really did like that R2D2 mailbox in Kentucky. Somehow, I imagine she'll like Star Wars one day!
Vanessa admires an outfit from Nana II (Geri) and Joe. Yup, I think it's a pretty safe bet that Vanessa will be more stylish than her mommy!
Especially with a Coach purse from her Nana! I mean, I have a worn out purse from Target for goodness sake. Well, I guess Coach just really isn't my "bag," if you know what I mean.
My Aunt Teri gets a cuddle from Vanessa!
Vanessa couldn't blow out the candle on her own, so we had to call on my cousin Brett to help out. Brett didn't get it on the first try either (probably he was just trying to make Vanessa feel better about it).
Great-grandma Lou and Vanessa share some of the very delicious carrot cake that my friend Jessica made for this special occasion. Happy birthday, ladies!
Vanessa was so happy to have her great-grandparents around!
Vanessa likes her sand and water table from her Nana and Grampa. She especially likes the water side.
After a long day, Vanessa just needs to rest on her Daddy's shoulder for a while.
The next day, my mother came to celebrate Vanessa's birthday. She made Vanessa a bean bag. Vanessa absolutely loves crawling in and out of it, and especially likes it when I tug the bean bag around the living room floor with her sitting in it!
We tried out the sand and water table outdoors. Vanessa loved putting her hands in up to her elbows and splashing about. Heather and Terry helped Vanessa explore her new toy.
We also took Vanessa down to play in the kiddie pool in our neighborhood. I wasn't too surprised that Vanessa absolutely loved the water! Oh joy! A bath that she's allowed to stand up in!
Well, I have to say that it's been an action-packed summer for us. I'll be working on Saturdays and taking a class, and James will be taking classes too, so I think that our blogging will most likely slow down a little bit!
No comments:
Post a Comment