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! 

The Sunshine Ranch- Spartanburg, SC

Today we had a fun trip to The Sunshine Ranch in Spartanburg. It was so good to get out of the hustle and bustle of the city and into the laid back atmosphere of a real farm. And by real farm I mean there were goats, pigs, alpacas, miniature ponies, horses, dogs, chickens, rabbits, and donkeys. To say Harper was in Heaven is an understatement. He loved every second we spent on the ranch. He pointed at the dogs and barked at them, he starred wide-eyed at the other animals and giggled, he ran through the fields, played on the playground, and he had an absolute blast! 

After spending about 15 minutes at the ranch I knew we had to have his second birthday party there. I went ahead and put down a deposit to save our date. Harper's birthday isn't until September but I didn't want to chance it. It is only $175 and it includes 3 hours at the ranch, pony rides for the kids, and use of all of their facilities. That is cheaper than renting a bounce house. And I don't have to worry about cleaning my house for guests. Sounds like a perfect party to me! 

They have a really spectacular set-up. They have an outdoor miniature barn with restrooms and a refrigerator (for the cake and ice cream). They have a ton of picnic tables under a pavilion to eat at and open presents. There is an awesome playground, petting zoo, and a grill to BBQ. Talk about a perfect place for the kids to have fun and most importantly, wear themselves out! Check out their Facebook page here. 

I am excited to announce I am setting up family photo sessions at the ranch next week! It is a special deal for Father's Day/Mother's Day. A photo of you and the kids is a perfect gift. The cost is $50 and includes 25 high resolution images on a disc. You will get rights to the photos so you can enlarge them and make copies of them anywhere you like! I have two spots left. If you are interested please e-mail me at JaimeNHuffman@yahoo.com. And check out my Facebook photography page here.  I am a few "likes" away from 300 so please hook a blogger up! Here are some of the photos I took today. The beautiful little girl is my friend's daughter, Saylor (cutest name ever!).