Gender Reveal Party

Soon after we shared the news of our pregnancy with friends, I started thinking about having a gender reveal party. We've never had a birthday party for Elle, because July in Florida is not a great time to have a party outside and we don't have room to host an indoor one at the condo, so a February party would be ideal. I don't expect to have a shower for this baby, so I wanted to celebrate him in some way. Tim hates parties and is definitely not the social person in this relationship, so he didn't see the point, but he let me have my way once I assured him it was going to be low-key and I would do all of the work :) I told him it was a long over-due gathering of friends, with a purpose. I don't know if he bought it, but oh well!

We decided to have it the party on the Saturday after our ultrasound. I considered moving the ultrasound back in the week so we wouldn't have to keep the gender a secret for five days but decided against it when my mom managed to fly in for the ultrasound. I didn't really want to wait to find out, either. We worried that Elle might spill the beans, but in typical two-year-old form, she kept everyone on their toes, anyway. She told one of the party attendees that she was having a baby sister ... named Wesley. I assured Tim that even if Elle *did* tell everyone that it was a boy, the word of a toddler could not be trusted.

I wanted our parents and siblings (in Ohio and Colorado) to know the news before we went social media public, so we called them all on Friday night. Elle got confused as she told my brother the news - I was coaching her, and she was hyper, so her delivery went a little something like this: "Is it a boy? (whispers) It's a boy? (louder) No, it's a girl! A girl!" It was an amusing evening, and I'm glad we told everyone the news prior to the party without too much time for anyone to accidentally spill the beans.

For the party, we reserved a pavilion at a local park - it's right next to a playground, so we knew the kids in attendance would be entertained. I did a Facebook invite just to keep everything simple, and I just asked that everyone bring a dish to share. We provided sandwiches, drinks and cupcakes. I requested that people dress in blue or pink to cast their votes, and although not everyone "voted," most showed up in some form of blue attire. After about 45 minutes of socializing and eating, Tim, Elle and I lifted up the lid on my "storage container of mystery" and revealed BLUE balloons! We were able to share the news with about two dozen of our Florida friends. When we had cleaned everything up and I got home (right after the rain started and right before someone's nap time), I posted the news on Facebook/Twitter/Instagram.

The weather was extremely windy and chilly for Florida, and if I had known exactly how windy it was going to be I would have skipped the tablecloths and probably most of the balloons, too. I kept the decorations pretty minimal, anyway, and had a few special Pinterest touches, but other than that, everything was very low-maintenance. Elle and many other of the little people loved the balloons, so apparently food+playground+helium=home run for them.

Some of my favorite photos/scene-setters are below:

Random randomness: Baby edition

Mouth full o' watermelon. But closed!

At least she has manners: Elle shoves huge pieces of food in her mouth. It's kind of ridiculous, but it's what she does. Sometimes I'll watch her eat and just see her little eyes start to water because she realizes she's bitten off, literally, more than she can chew. Five minutes later, she'll be ready for more food. But we went out to eat with a friend the other night, and Elle crammed half a banana in her mouth. And then just stared at us while she worked on it. She looked like a monkey, and my friend and I laughed at her - and she just kept chewing, mouth closed. The next day, I had a few friends over, and Elle did the same thing with a pepperoni roll. My friends all noted how polite she was, though - she always chewed with her mouth closed!

Not the norm: We're not having a big first birthday bash for Elle. I have deep, mixed feelings about this and could go on and on for days, but it boils down to this: I desperately want to plan the party, I just don't want to have a party. My friends (the ones who commented on Elle's impeccable manners) noted that this isn't how most people feel - most people want to have a party but dread the planning part.

Makes sense: I've recently realized why Elle doesn't like going to the pediatrician's office, aside from the obvious (shots). In the last 10 months, the doctor has called her head big and deemed her "lazy." It's kind of cute, although I'm sure Elle doesn't see it that way - Dr. P. asks about milestones that baby's Elle's age should be hitting. Elle has almost always met them ... or shown signs of being close. The most recent example is a month or so ago when I told the doctor Elle didn't seem really interested in walking. Dr. P. asked if she was at least pulling up or standing up, and I said "Kind of, but she really doesn't seem to like putting her full weight on her legs." The doctor's response is always (in a Puerto Rican accent): "That's OK, she's just lazy. She can do it, she's just a little bit lazy and will get around to it eventually." If someone called my head big and told me I was lazy, I'd be a little miffed, too. 

Twangy: Elle has an accent. Yes, she only says about half a dozen words, but when she says "No" it comes out "Naw." An example of her using the new word: She heard me telling the cats "no" the other morning and repeated "Naw. Naw. Naw, naw, naw." It's cute, but I have no idea why she has an accent as an infant :)

Stealth pooper: You know how most babies have a tell-tale "poop face"? Yeah, not our baby. Tim, the babysitter and I have joked that Elle is a stealth pooper - she almost never makes a face or shows any sign of "going #2" ... which means we're often surprised when we change her diaper and find that we've gotten more than we bargained for. It kinda stinks (literally, but ...) - I'd love to change her ASAP after she poops. But when you don't know that it's happened, it's hard to remedy right away. Sure, sometimes the smell gives it away, but not always. When she *does* make what we think is a poop face, she's usually just farted. Classy.

Eye Heart This Baby: Elle can now identify our eyes. This involves getting close to our faces, violently jabbing at gently touching the outside corner of our eyes and saying, "Eye. Eye." I'm trying to work on identifying a body part that doesn't leave me flinching and fearing for my sight every time she gets near me, like nose, ear or belly.

Simple humor: The easiest way to make Elle laugh is to turn her upside down. It's our "thing" :)

Craft party

Last fall, a group of girls at work decided we should all get together and share our quirky hobbies. At first, it started as a sewing group - many of us sewed, others were interested, others could care less but were interested in any kind of social gathering. We decided to meet the third Saturday of every month for a few hours before some of us went to work and others went about their weekends. At the first meeting, a lot of people suggested other crafts they like or were interested in - beading, knitting, scrapbooking, etc. We take turns hosting the gathering, and the food is usually just as anticipated as the craft. Lisa, one of the craftiest people I know, and I basically organize where and when each meeting will be held. After that, the group members take turns suggesting and leading crafts. We've had great success when there is no designated craft and the meeting is just a laidback afternoon to catch up on a current craft and silly stories. I love to just catch up on cross-stitching or watch other people knit. Yes, I am cool like that.

In November, we missed a meeting because the third Saturday of the month was our wedding and no one else really organized the gathering. In December, we canceled the meeting because Lisa's father unexpectedly passed away days before the meeting. But in January, we were back, and we had started to get members from outside of the paper. I tried a new paper craft (above) and LOVE it - I just used a butterfly paper punch, scrapbooking paper I had already and some three-dimensional doublesided dots. I finished what could easily be a nursery decoration (not for me yet, sillies!) or just unique hanging in less than three hours. And it was easy and fairly cheap (total cost of supplies was around $12, including the frame).

In February, we tried a baking craft. Mallary, one of our newest members, suggested these
and hosted. They. Are. So. Good. Essentially, you take a baked cake, mix it with a tub of frosting, roll that in to a ball and dip the ball in to melted chocolate. Then, to ensure a diabetic coma, you dip the ball in sprinkles. Here are some of the finished cakeballs (they did NOT last long).

At this month's gathering - I call them "parties" - we're going to discuss entering a few craft fairs around the holidays - we figure if we start now, we can make enough stuff to sell by November or December. And if we all chip in to reserve a booth or table, we won't lose a bunch of money, and we'll have company.

And we'll probably HAVE to eat cakeballs.