These were all taken by a friend of mine, Lisa, during a sightseeing morning with my mom and aunt. We went up the cable car up to Monserrate, then headed to Plaza Simon Bolivar and the Presidential Palace before a visit to the emerald district in La Candelaria. I rarely hand my camera over to other (cause I'm a control freak), but I'm so glad I did because Lisa did a great job AND I'M ACTUALLY IN SOME PICTURES. I didn't even remember to take the camera out of manual!
And Andrew? He loooooved feeding the pigeons. I thought he'd freak out with them clamouring all over us, but he couldn't get enough. We'll definitely be taking all three boys back before we leave Colombia.
...where it rained most of our stay. And was cold.
Of course.
Good thing there was a heated indoor pool.
And check out Simon's ribs in a few of those jumping shots... I swear we do feed the kid!
(I know these photos won't win any awards, but being in the pool was such a huge part of this particular trip. With the crummy weather, it gave us something fun to do with the boys... and totally wore them out so they slept like little logs. Win-win.)
Those who've been reading my blog for a while will likely remember the series I did on the Star Wars Lego party we threw for Liam's 6th birthday. Although that series -aptly entitled "How to Host a Star Wars Party in 5 Excruciatingly, Painstakingly Detailed Steps"- has much more detailed how-to information, here's the nitty gritty:
My initial plan involved creating themed invitations, making pool noodle lightsabers, a Death Star pinata, kicking around a Death Star beach ball, and giving out Clone Wars kites in lieu of goodie bags, as well as letting each child take home a lightsaber. That summer, there was Clone Wars merchandise all over the place, so that made things easier.
Step 2: The Invitation
By taking and merging several screen shots from the Lego.com site, I was able to put together a truly awesome invitation, that I'm just now realizing was hosted on a photo site that I let lapse. Oops. But trust me, it was AWESOME.
Truly a labour of love, these lightsabers took me hours to complete. Each was different. Each was super detailed. Each involved painstakingly cutting out tiny strips and squares of electricians tape and duct tape. But they, too, were awesome.
This cake required fondant to decorate properly. It was my first try making marshmallow fondant and I loved not only the process, but also the result. It's much easier than it looks, and each subsequent attempt became easier and the result more impressive. Plus, you can't go wrong with kids and taking sugar (the marshmallows), adding more sugar and then covering a sugar-filled cake... AND THEN SENDING THEM HOME.
Part 5: The Cake
For a full step-by-step of how I constructed this cake, you'll have to click on the link above. For now, a few pictures will have to suffice.
next to my then 4 1/2 month old
Part 6: The Pinata
For the Pinata, we simply made a (wonky shaped) ball by covering a balloon with papier mache. We probably put seven or eight layers of paper on it, each time letting it dry hanging on the clothes line. I was most worried about how we would hang it and how to make it strong enough to let the kids all have a few whacks at it. In the end, it was plenty strong enough. We painted it with two shades of grey paint, then let Liam do the final detail. I love how it turned out!
In the end, it was a lot of work beforehand, but the day of the party was relatively stress-free and it was all worth it in the end. All of the guest had a super fun time and the birthday boy was made to feel love and special and celebrated.
Need some party supplies? Want to make your own pool noodle lightsabers? Check these links below and have it all delivered to your door. If you find any of these links are broken or sold out, let me know and I'll find some new sources. Wouldn't the minifigure ice cube trays be fun? They could be used for ice (obviously), chocolate, or even to make Lego man crayons!
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