Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Harper's Second Birthday Party

Harper turns 2 in September. I can't believe my sweet baby boy is going to be two! We started to experience the "terrible twos" a few months early. He throws the occasional tantrum in the middle of a store, he shrieks at the top of his lungs for no apparent reason, and he does not like to share with other kids. Hopefully this is just a stage but I hear it only gets worse at three. Who really knows!? Luckily his adorable dimples melt me and I have a hard time staying mad at the kid. This phase brings a new level of stress to my life. He used to go with me EVERYWHERE. Business meetings, restaurants, shopping, you name it! He was such an easy baby (besides the fact that he never slept through the nights). Now I can't take him anywhere without stressing. For the most part he is still an exceptionally well-behaved child but I realize how good I had it for his first year.

Harper's first popsicle!

Erik and I travel ALL of the time. It is kind of ridiculous really. This week we had work in Atlanta and Charleston. Next week we are going to Cashiers, NC and Columbia, SC. It doesn't stop. Harper isn't a fan of the long car rides and it is getting a lot tougher traveling with him. I think momma and baby are going to have to stay home and let Erik go on more of the work trips by himself. It is going to be tough but we want to get Harper on more of a normal routine.

Speaking of "normal routines," Harper started daycare today. I wanted to wait until he was two but a spot opened up at the church daycare we were looking at and we couldn't say no. We really wanted to take him to the Montessori school but it was a little out of our budget. The church daycare was another option that we loved but sometimes it takes people up to a year to get in! Erik and I went on a tour of the facility and I felt really good about this place. The director, the pastor, and the teachers were fantastic. They are very lenient on the dropping off and picking up policy which is perfect for our crazy schedule. He is enrolled full-time but I think I am going to start off taking him for a few hours a day. This allows me to do all of my PR/Marketing work, casting, photography, grocery shopping, and cleaning. For the past month I have been doing it all with a baby at the house and to say it was stressful is the understatement of the year.  No mother should ever try to work from home with a two-year old. Bad idea! So even though today was very bittersweet, I think it is going to be a good situation for everyone.

Harper did great! I snuck out of the classroom before he could see me leave. They say the worst thing to do is take a long time to say your goodbyes to your child when you drop them off. Apparently it builds up their stress and anxiety of you leaving. So I dipped out as fast as I could. He played with the other kids and even slept on a nap mat. I am still astonished that they got him to sleep on the floor. I bought him this ridiculously cute plush dinosaur sleeping bag and we practiced napping in it over the weekend. He would roll around and cuddle for a minute then get right back up to play. The fact that they got him to nap is amazing.  Fingers crossed the rest of the week goes well.

Now for the fun stuff... planning another birthday party! I love planning parties! And I love doing arts and crafts. I can't stop thinking about the endless possibilities for Harper's second birthday party. We have booked the venue! We are going to The Sunshine Ranch in Spartanburg. Harper LOVES animals and he was in Heaven when we took him to the ranch. I am so excited to have his party there! I want to do bright and bold decorations. I think a cute bunting banner would be fantastic. And of course animal cupcakes are a must! The possibilities are endless.



I am most excited about his invitations! They are ABSOLUTELY PERFECT! Jessie from The Perched Owl designed them for me. I told her exactly what I wanted (red barn, a big sunshine, animals with party hats on, bunting banner, and a wooden sign) and she absolutely NAILED my vision. I couldn't be happier! I am going to do an entire blog post about her incredible designs because they are super cute and very affordable! She can pretty much do anything your little heart desires. And if you like my invitation she can customize it just for you! It is only $12! 


Do you all have any cute ideas for a farm themed birthday party? Anyone planning a party for their little one now? I would love to hear your themes! What do you think about the invitation!? Isn't it perfect! 

10 comments:

  1. Wow. Your Harper sounds amazing. Can't believe he got used to daycare so quickly. Must be a smart guy. Don't worry about those "terrible twos." My little 20-months old screamed us out of a sushi restaurant.

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  2. Wow! I can't believe you've been able to juggle all those balls for this long! And I'm in the same "terrible-2's" boat! Mine will be 2 in July and the tantrums are in full swing!Thankfully, he has lots of great qualities that make up for the sometimes rotten behavior! Love the theme for Harper's party! I'm doing a "rootin'tootin'2's" party. My little boy LOVES Woody from Toy Story, so I thought having a little cowboy round up would be fun :)

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  3. Awww! It is a huge change when they turn two, but you kind of learn to live and deal with the tantrums as they come. My baby girl turns 3 in September and I am still trying to think if a theme. We want to keep it simple, but still fun for her! The traveling will get easier! I promise! And yay for him loving daycare! I work from home and can see how that would be amazing!!! Lol

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  4. I love Harpers theme! And Jackson does daycare too and he loves it. In fact he throws a fit when I pick him up because he wants to continue to play outside with his friends.

    Did you ever see the theme of Jackson first birthday party? If you get a minute check out the album on Facebook. It was so much fun to plan!

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  5. We somehow escaped the 'terrible 2's' with our first child but we're already starting to feel the pain with #2 and he's not even 2 yet! Three was a tough year but it helps knowing it's a phase and they will grow out of it - if we live that long!

    Your invites are SO adorable! I'm planning a party for our oldest right now and it's going to be superheros. I thought I'd have one more year to get to pick the theme but I was outvoted. So enjoy getting to pick while you can (:

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  6. Jaime,
    Thank you so much for all the advertising you are doing for The Sunshine Ranch. We are also excited for you and Harper. It will be a Birthday that will be remembered for many years to come. If you have any more photo shoots to do, you know our door is always open. Thank you again, Mick

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  7. Hi Jaime,
    Thank you so much for all the advertising you are doing for us here at The Sunshine Ranch. We love the invitations you had made for Harpers Birthday.
    We are also looking forward to Harpers special day. It will be a day he will remember for many years to come. If by chance you have any more photo shoots you would like to take, our door is always open to you. Again Thank you, Mick

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  8. His party looks like it will be fantastic! I'm in the process of planning Andrew's first birthday- which will be a beachy-crab theme. I'm having so much fun putting it all together!

    I know it's got to be hard to discipline when you have those adorable dimples smiling at you!

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  9. That's so awesome he took so well to daycare! I work from home too but I'm lucky enough my mama takes my Parker 2 days a week. Once Baby2 makes his appearance I definitely think we'll need something a little more full-time! Harper's invitations look SO cute!

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  10. Cute! Cute! Cute! I'm helping plan a farm themed bday party for my twin niece and nephew! I love party planning..banners, cupcake toppers, invites, door signs, party favors...I just love it!
    I just went to my bestie's son's second bday party last Saturday and it was a nautical theme for Memorial Day! I'll post those soon!
    Hope you are well!

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