Capturing our adventures one photo at a time...
We had a room full of girls and they all had fun! There was LOTS of bracelet making going 0n (and the bracelets were a HUGE success thanks to GJ’s work organizing words into little bags and pre-cutting elastic!)…
some nail painting…
some Bingo games…
lots of singing and dancing…
I love seeing her giggling and laughing!
But most importantly, there were lots of friends!
Make a wish birthday girls!
The best birth-TAY par-TAY for my favorite Taylor Swift fans!!
Happy birthday Samantha and Frances!
A few things that just can’t be beat:
1. having a birthday one day apart from your BFF
2. having a birthday party on your actual birthday
3. have that party be all things T. Swift!
We did all that and more on the morning of Samantha’s birthday. She and Frances had the ultimate Pajama Par-Tay-Tay!
I got the club all set up for the party with different stations – complete with appropriate lyrics! We had a Taylor bingo game, face gems, bracelet making, and nail painting.
We also had a DJ station complete with microphone….
and some really excited DJs! haha!
They were actually great, did a fantastic job, and were super helpful! Couldn’t have done it without them!
The birthday girls!
And my favorite Swiftie loving 9 year old!
We even had a special appearance by #87 at the party! Yay Robert!
More party fun tomorrow!
Took the boys for their annual checkup last week and they are healthy, strong, and growing!
Maxwell is 5 feet and 1/2 inch and weighs 89 lbs. That means he grew 1.5 inches since last year and gained 8 lbs. He’s around the 25th % for height and 20th % for weight.
Spencer is just over 4’10 and 83 lbs. He grew just over 2 inches last year and gained 9 lbs. Spencer is 70th % for height and 50th % for weight. At age 11, Maxwell was just over 4’9 and 72 lbs so Spencer continues to track bigger than his brother.
Thankful both of these boys are strong and growing! Spencer had to get 3 shots and handled them like a champ.
Neither were in the mood for a picture…honestly we all really miss Dr. Walley.
Always thankful for good doctor reports!
On the first day of 2024 we got up, put on our crimson and headed to the Rose Bowl! Roll Tide!
We ended up taking the light rail out to Pasadena and then hopping on a shuttle bus to actually get to the stadium. It worked great!
Everyone was excited to see the stadium and we took lots and lots of pictures!
We had great seats and the sun really warmed everyone up – and made it a little hard to see but we managed!
It was a great game – lots of highs and plenty of lows.
While the game didn’t end the way we wanted, I’m so glad we went. Robert checked off that bucket list item and we all got to see what ended up being Saban’s last game. We were there for the end of an era and that’s pretty cool.
Sometimes you just have to say “yes” to crazy ideas and this is one I’m so glad we said “yes” to! We flew home the next day landing in Birmingham at about 10:30pm. It was a rude awakening for school the next morning but definitely worth it. Roll Tide!
After walking up and down Rodeo, the boys really wanted to venture over to some sneaker stores so we headed to Melrose Avenue to check out Cool Kicks. It was…cool.
And look what they had! The reverse grinches! In Spencer’s size too!
We then walked up and down the area – lots of vintage stores.
Samantha’s face here tells you what you need to know about the musty smell!
I can’t say I loved seeing this display of “vintage” New Kids shirts considering this was my first concert and I definitely had that Jordan shirt. Guess I’m vintage now!
This was cool though!
We then made it back to the hotel for a little coke break…
before getting dressed up for an early bird NYE dinner!
We had dinner at Mastro’s Steakhouse and it was excellent! Like I said, Maxwell thoroughly enjoyed his meal – which consisted of a Japanese A5 Wagyu steak! He ate every single bite!
Samantha had – what else? – mac & cheese!
Spencer had steak and then somehow ended up with an entire bowl of whipped cream in front of him for dessert. He wasn’t complaining – and no one was complaining about the butter cake!
After dinner, Robert and Spencer figured out they won their fantasy league! Woohoo!
Icing on the cake to end a fantastic meal! We then wandered back to the hotel taking in the sights along the way.
A fantastic end to a fantastic 2023! We made the most of the year and cannot wait to see what 2024 brings!!