Parties – Page 2

Samantha & Amelia’s 3rd Birthday Princess Party

March 20, 2016 by Rebecca Whitehead

While I had so much fun choosing the themes and putting together the girls’ Baby Love and Dr. Seuss birthday parties the past two years, for this year’s birthday party, the girls were in charge! I initially thought I would need to present a few options of party themes so the girls could consult each other and agree upon one, but I should have known better. They instantly and unanimously chose a princess theme (DUH).

On the way to the party!

Months before Meredith joined our family, we booked their party at We Play Loud since I knew I wouldn’t want to be dealing with putting together a party with a newborn in the house. It was perfect having it somewhere where all the kids could be entertained and with very little set-up involved.

Kyle was our dedicated party host and helped with everything from unloading food and decorations from the car to setting up the tables and directing people where to go. He even brought the presents to the car afterwards. Thanks, Kyle!

Besides the initial rush of set-up, it was very low key and non-stress, especially compared to parties in the past. Chick-Fil-A even delivered the majority of the food for us, so I pretty much did nothing. Exactly as planned.

My only complaint with We Play Loud was that they only let us come to unload and set up a few minutes in advance. Thank you to my dad, and family and friends who jumped in to help set up. Thanks to my mom as well for staying at home to watch Meredith so I could focus on the girls.

The cupcake dress cakes from Cinderella Cakes turned out cute; although, based on taste, I’m mad I didn’t make them myself! Live and learn.

Let’s get this party started.

Prince Noah arrived and the party could officially begin.

Phil and the adorable Maya.

Lily and Samantha.

Lovely ladies: Phi, Sheela and Amy.

The twins had a blast tagging along with Kennedy.

Nate and Parker bouncing out all their energy.

Riding the octopus with Noah.

The Erpelding family knows how to party!

Last year, we had Cat in the Hat and Elmo come to play games with the kids and do face painting, and the girls still talk about it. When I asked the girls who they would like to come this year, Samantha specifically requested Princess Aurora from Sleeping Beauty. They haven’t seen the movie, but the book is a favorite of the twins’. Amelia just wanted a princess, but didn’t seem to have anyone particular in mind, so we went with Samantha’s choice.

When Aurora made her grand entrance to the party, Samantha wouldn’t have anything to do with her. I’M THREE, STUBBORN, AND MAY CHANGE MY MIND ON A WHIM.

Amelia wasn’t too quick to warm up either.

At least Amelia consented to get her face painted.

Amelia requested a Frozen-themed design. I asked Samantha several times throughout the party if she would like to change her mind and get her face painted, but she refused every time. Sigh.

At least the other kids were excited about Princess Aurora!

Sebastian the Spiderman.

Lily tried to convince Samantha to get a design, but no luck.

Owen’s turn.

Avery, the cute kitty.

Waiting in line.

We had quite the crowd. It was so cute seeing all the kids together and we loved hanging out with our friends, too!

Samantha had a great time showing Lily all the photos in the slideshow.

Time to eat.

Parker entertained the girls.

Princesses Maliyah and Allie chow down.

Interrupting their dinner with silliness. Just like at home.

Princess Jadyn.

Princess Kennedy.

Princesses Avery, Lily, Amelia and Samantha.

Proof I was there.

More shenanigans.

The moment the girls had been waiting for– cupcake time.

Samantha tolerated Sleeping Beauty for a photo… but only after being bribed with a cupcake.

Kyle lit the candles.

Happy birthday to you!

Young, wild and three!

Having their cake and eating it too.

In case you were wondering, that’s how princesses eat cupcakes.

The princesses received wands, tiaras, rings and princess tattoos in their goody bags while the princes went away with crowns, blow up swords and some Star Wars stickers. Good thing I had extra star wands on hand, because most of the boys wanted one of those too. Thanks for coming, Princess Olivia!

Bidding farewell to Princesses Camdyn and Addison.

Queen Amelia said goodbye to all the lords and ladies from the comfort of her throne.

Queen Samantha didn’t feel bad at all that she had snubbed Princess Aurora, even after the princess bestowed her with a little coloring book birthday present.

After-party comas.

As the line from their favorite Olivia book goes, “You tire me out. But I love you anyway!”

Thanks for giving us an excuse to throw a party and happy 3rd birthday, girls! We love you!

Lots of love,

Filed Under: Parties Tagged With: princess aurora, princess party, third birthday party, we play loud

Sarah’s Love is a Journey Bridal Shower

October 14, 2015 by Rebecca Whitehead

At the end of August, we threw Aunt Sarah a travel themed shower in honor of her upcoming wedding! Since Sarah has traveled all over Europe and to South America, Asia, the Middle East and dozens of other places, Samantha and Amelia figured the “Love is a Journey” theme would be particularly fitting.

Me and the bride to be!

A huge thank you to Cousins Allison, Zack and Baby Noah who graciously let me host the shower at their home, which is so perfect for parties! As always, they were game for pitching in with everything from hanging up banners to doing an ice run to figuring out the electrical configuration of the breakers so that the catering guys could set up. It’s always more work than they bargained for, I’m sure. A big thanks to Auntie Lynn and Allison for helping with the food on the buffet table, the drinks and games.

And thanks to my mom who drove out from Utah hauling a bunch of my sister’s photos of her trips to France and found some cute suitcases and other decor/favors for me. It was a team effort!

A huge thanks to Meredith who took pictures for me so that I didn’t have to worry about it. Sarah is usually the one photographing our events, but I wanted her to be able to sit back and enjoy her own bridal shower!

A big hug, kiss and thanks to Noah, Amelia and Samantha for being adorable. And especially to Noah for sharing his toys!

Amelia and Samantha with their favorite Auntie! This was obviously taken before any crepes/cupcakes made it to their bellies– let’s get this party started!

I found some vintage French postcards off Ebay and guests wrote their well wishes to the bride in lieu of a guest book.

Since Sarah has traveled to France several times, we decided on a French theme for the main course. I also selfishly was just really craving crepes! What can I say? What baby wants, baby gets.

Thank you to French Chefs, Chef Yuri and Chef Jean Jacques, and to Catering of Paris for creating a beautiful buffet table and braving the 90 degree heat to make crepes on demand for everyone. As an added bonus, it was entertaining to listen to Jake attempt to speak French to them with his Barcelona accent!

Everyone got to order unlimited crepes from a pre-selected menu I picked out beforehand. Savory crepe options were La Crepe Newport Beach (turkey sausage, onions, emmentaler cheese and crème fraîche) and La Louvre (chicken, tomatoes, spinach, mozzarella and basil pesto). Yum!

Chef JJ ready to go.

As if the savory crepes weren’t filling enough, the dessert crepes choices were La Pantheon (Grand Marnier, sugar and lemon) and La Sacre Coeur (Belgian chocolate ganache with crème fraîche, pine nuts and caramelized Anjou pears). I really can’t blame the baby for any of my weight gain the last week of August, due to crepe overload.

My crepe craving was definitely satisfied.

It was a little too hot outside to get a big flame going for a proper flambé, but we tried!

Chefs Yuri and JJ with the guest of honor.

The chefs also prepared a breakfast buffet table with french pastries, mini quiches, granola parfaits and fruit. Auntie Lynn put together a yummy salad and appetizer as well. Needless to say, we were all stuffed.

Thanks, Auntie Lynn, for putting together the colorful salad!

And for taking care of the mimosas!

It was crazy hot the morning of the shower, but I forced my preggo self (and other non-pregnant people) to sit outside since we had gone to the effort of decorating the outdoor tables. A big thanks to Zack and Jake for hanging up all the lanterns.

Photo bomb from Aunt Linda!

Meanwhile, Jake, Zack and the little munchkins worked up an appetite playing outside.

Noah desperately wanted a crepe.

Daddy-daughter workout sesh.

Noah’s swing was the girls’ favorite by far.

Samantha helps her sister.

Amelia wanted to know if she could stay and live at Noah’s house.

When is it my turn?

What are those hooligan twins doing out on my swing?

We may have gone a little overboard on the desserts since everyone was sugared out with the dessert crepes already, but what’s a shower without a dessert table? I had a hard time keeping S and A away from the table full of macarons, cupcakes and lemon bars, all conveniently within their reach.

Zack’s cousin, Sarit, made the amazing strawberry cupcakes for me. The fondant decorations were super cute and the cupcakes were moist and delicious. I wish she lived closer to the OC so I could always order from her.

A special diamond ring cupcake for the bride.

As if the sugar rush from the crepes and macarons wasn’t enough for Amelia…

Toddler approved!

For the games, Allison put together a funny Mr. and Mrs. Right passing the present game. I had interviewed Sarah and Michael beforehand and compiled some of their responses (questions like, What was the first thing you noticed when you first met your significant other? and Who keeps their car cleaner?) and did a He Said/She Said trivia game. Guests had to guess whether Sarah or Michael had said the quotes I read aloud. Sarah and Michael’s responses were cute and it was fun to see what the guests guessed.

Opening the presents.

More photos of everyone! The hostesses.

Sisters and mom.

Sarah and Aunt Linda.

Sarah with Aunt Annie and our other favorite set of twins, Eleri and Rhys.

Sarah with Hannah, Felice and Shelley.

Sarah and Lori.

Thanks Aunt Sarah, for getting married and giving us an excuse to have a party!

We love you!

Lots of love,

Filed Under: Parties Tagged With: bridal shower, crepes, Love is Journey, Sarah

Dr. Seuss 2nd Birthday Party: Part Three

March 19, 2015 by Rebecca Whitehead

Last party post, I promise! This one is basically all about the cake since it deserves its own post.

Part One here.

Part Two here.

Samantha and Amelia’s reactions to the party: Delicious tacos? Cool. Cat in the Hat and Elmo? Fun. Cake? WHY HAVEN’T WE BEEN EATING IT THIS ENTIRE TIME?!

Jennifer with Plumeria Cake Studio was a little late with the cake delivery, but I forgave her considering her cakes blew me away! I had sent her some ideas of what I was looking for and she made each cake ten times better than anything I had imagined. Even the darling cake stands she brought were perfect.

Seussical and whimsical– exactly what I wanted. The addition of the roses was her idea and added a super cute feminine touch. My favorite detail was the Thing 1 Thing 2 cake topper– I believe it was Samantha who eventually devoured it.

The writing of Thing 1 and Thing 2 and the girls’ names looked so Seussical too!

The week before the party, I was getting really nervous that we wouldn’t have enough cake (HA), so I threw in some cupcakes at the last second, which Marisa graciously helped me set up. We ended up having plenty for everyone.

I honestly didn’t want anyone to eat the cake. Cutting it just about killed me.

When no one was looking, my sister caught Kennedy on camera sampling one of the little fondant pearls off the cake! Who could blame her?

Samantha and Amelia weren’t alone. I think the cake was my favorite part of the day.

The moment the girls had been waiting for the entire time they were “suffering” through the rest of the party: Happy Birthday time!

Keeping the girls away from the cakes while we gathered everyone over and lit the candles was no easy task.

Calling in reinforcements– Grandma!

Let’s get this party started!

Amelia waited patiently while squirting yogurt all over her outfit.

A final wipe-down for Amelia.

Samantha wouldn’t budge from the cake with Amelia’s name on it, so we decided to roll with it and let them blow out each other’s cakes.

Amelia gleefully tried to blow out the candles on Samantha’s cake. The kids in the front row all helped out.

It was fun having the characters there to sing with us! Happy birthday, Amelia!

Happy birthday, Samantha!

Jake: attorney by day; professional cake slicer on the side. I made Jake watch several YouTube tutorials beforehand so that we wouldn’t ruin the cakes. They are way easier to slice if you first cut a circle in the middle and then cut out the wedges– I learned something new!

Chaos at the cake table.

Most of the kids opted for either a cupcake or a slice of the mini cakes, which were vanilla with Seussical red and blue stripes on the inside.

Finally!

I’m pretty sure the girls didn’t like the cake. AT ALL.

I think Samantha would agree that these were the best-tasting cakes ever! The vanilla was super moist and the two-tier cake was a super decadent chocolate-chocolate chip with chocolate mousse filling. Incredibly rich, moist and delectable.

Elmo who?

Can you grab us seconds, Grandma?

S and A felt so bad not being able to give Noah any cake. Maybe next year!

While everyone chowed down, we tried to get around to say hi to more friends, but sadly did not get pictures of everyone.

Perry and Elizabeth braved horrific traffic to attend the end of the party and we were over the moon to see our favorite infant twins– Romy and Sosie (and their parents, of course!) Getting out of the house and for a long car ride in the afternoon with 8-month old twins is no joke (BEEN THERE), and we were so grateful! It was a huge highlight to see those precious girls, compare notes and remember what life was like when S and A were that age.

Brian, Amber and little cuties, Violet and Luke, who were both hilarious interacting with Elmo.

The girls’ favorite playmates, Maliyah and Allie with Jodi and Jared.

Little Cash is only a few months older than the girls and is such a cutie! Rich and Aimee’s girls, Halle and Remy, were obsessed with the face painting.

Having fun with Sarah, Greg and sweet Sophie and Ashley, and of course, Michael, Phi and Parker.

That kid cracks me up.

It was hilarious watching Leighton interact with Elmo. We’re so glad he could come along with his brother, Liam, and our friends, Melissa and Dave.

The girls loved hanging with little Nate, Chris and Kim.

Ana has helped me out with housekeeping and babysitting the girls since they were just a few months old and is a total lifesaver. The girls just adore her and her daughters, Ashley and Amara, who were hiding during this picture.

Kudos to Crystal for braving the party solo without Brandon there to help wrangle the kids– not easy mingling, eating and watching all three kids! Thanks sweet Jayden, Kennedy and baby Quincy!

Can’t resist that little chubmiester!

Cake-induced oblivion.

Oh hi there!

Chowing down.

What to do after stuffing myself full of tacos and cake? Swing, of course!

Hmmmm…sister left to play on the swings with Aunt Sarah. I think I’ll just help myself…

Before making their exit, Cat in the Hat and Elmo gave the girls a little present and said goodbye. As cousin Allison said, the characters “Totally deserved a tip for not scaring our children!” Well, at least most of them.

Party favors! Bubbles for the babies and sand pails plus Dr. Seuss crayons, notebooks, tattoos, stickers and stamps for the big kids.

Sob.

Fondant-smeared face and exhaustion.

Today was good; today was fun! Thank you, thank you, everyone!

Lots of love,

Filed Under: Parties Tagged With: 2nd birthday

Dr. Seuss 2nd Birthday Party: Part Two

March 17, 2015 by Rebecca Whitehead

Party Post One ended with the arrival of Elmo and Cat in the Hat. After giving some time for people to eat and mingle, the girls’ favorite characters showed up in full force! It was hilarious to see kids from all over the park (some not at our party) look over in absolute disbelief and glee as the giant, furry, moving, talking Elmo and Cat in the Hat emerged on the scene.

Despite Elmo being the girls’ favorite character EVER (multiple requests per day to read Elmo books, watch their Elmo potty video, snuggle with Elmo stuffed animals, etc.), S and A took a few minutes to warm up to the real thing. I expected nothing less– he is, after all, a huge, furry, red monster who materialized out of nowhere. I wonder if the girls thought it was all some kind of crazy dream.

Kudos to Elmo and Cat in the Hat for staying COMPLETELY in character and using their “character” voices the entire time, even when I was talking to them about payment and logistics. “Elmo says cash is fine!”

While I had no doubt the girls would eventually warm up to their beloved Elmo, I was more apprehensive about Cat in the Hat. Am I the only one, or is the Cat in the Hat (at least in the book) kind of creepy?

The story behind hiring both Elmo and Cat in the Hat for the party was that I really, really wanted to have a Thing 1 Thing 2- themed party as it is the quintessential theme for twins. I figured this may be my last year to do it since the girls might want to start picking party themes in the near future. I had to do Thing 1 Thing 2 while I still could!

However, although the girls have a Cat in the Hat stuffed animal and like to read the book, it’s not necessarily their favorite character. I figured they would go nuts over Elmo, so instead of having another Dr. Seuss character come, I went with their red, furry friend. It turned out perfectly, even though I’m sure people were confused as to why Elmo showed up to a Dr. Seuss party.

Parker, Avery and Liliana loved Elmo!

Elmo and Rhys.

Baby Noah showed no fear.

Violet and Luke were fascinated.

Others…not so much. Poor Kennedy!

Maliyah kept her distance.

Grace shares the same birthday as the girls (March 11, 2013) and even came in matching party colors. She warmed up to Elmo eventually.

Samantha had her moments.

After Elmo and Cat in the Hat greeted the kids who weren’t absolutely terrified of them, Elmo did some bubble games with willing participants.

Parker and Leighton were over there in a flash.

After their fourth (fifth, sixth?) tacos, we finally coaxed the girls to go help Elmo with the bubbles, and they ended up having a blast.

Then it was just Parker and the girls for the longest time!

Just a regular old day blowing bubbles with Elmo.

While Elmo was doing games with the kids, Cat in the Hat was taking orders for face painting. Even though I assumed Cat in the Hat was a little bit more frightening (from my perspective, at least), there was constantly a line for face painting. I heard from my friends that she was great about going around and greeting the kids as well as asking them if they wanted a painting.

Amelia was very insistent about getting an owl on her arm.

Samantha loved her butterfly!

Cat in the Hat did an AH-mazing job with the face paints! Avery’s looked so pretty!

Remy and the Cat.

Halle’s face painting was so pretty.

Parker was reluctant to take photos, but his giraffe face was awesome!

While Cat in the Hat was working on face painting, the kids joined Elmo for some parachute games– the girls’ absolute favorite.

Notice Baby Noah in the background– he had the best view!

After the parachute, Elmo did some songs, dancing with musical instruments, ribbon play and a parade around the park with the kids. S and A alternated between hanging with Elmo and watching the face painting.

Jayden gets painted.

Leighton gives it a go.

In between getting their faces painted, gorging themselves on tacos, churros and snacks, and playing games with Elmo, the girls managed to mingle a little bit.

A hug for Ryan and Sebastian.

Amelia, Grace and Susan.

Elmo did a great job of mingling too!

Some of the kids never quite warmed up to Elmo or the Cat. It was fun to watch anyway!

Elmo tried his best with Shea. Fail. She was terrified.

Maliyah and Allie tolerated Elmo for a quick picture!

Luke wouldn’t leave Elmo’s side.

Noah was a huge fan.

High fives all around!

Obsessed!

It was pretty chaotic trying to make it around to see everyone, and with 84 people there, I regrettably did not get pictures with every friend. On the bright side, because Anthony the taco guy was taking care of the food, Jake and I were actually able to at least say hi to everyone and have some fun!

Originally, Phi and her family had a business trip scheduled that weekend, but ended up being able to make it to the party, which we were ecstatic about. The girls would have been devastated if their buddy, Parker, hadn’t been there!

We were thrilled that the girls’ mentor/life coach, Marisa, came all the way down from UCLA to celebrate, even though she was on the verge of finals week. A sweet surprise for the girls!