Birthday Spread

We weren't sure if the weather was going to hold off...either too hot or a rain storm...plus our house is too small for 16 people to sit comfortably, so we set up the garage for the party. We have a lot of stuff stored in the garage, but it's not too dirty or smelly and it has good ventilation (plus we set up 3 fans).

Since "monkey" was our theme we wanted to have all finger food...especially things that Camden loves. Another of Camden's favorite eating options is dip, so we wanted to have lots of dips.

Our main dish was grilled chicken tenders. To go with it, I made homemade honey mustard, barbeque, blue cheese, thai peanut butter, and balsalmic apricot dips.

We also had corn on the cob from our garden with butter and various spices to sprinkle on top.

The potato chips, tortilla chips, and pretzels were served with homemade french onion and pico de gallo dips as well as store bought hummus (a last minute addition to meet a milk-free diet requirement of one of the guests). The pico was made with tomatoes and jalapenos from our garden, too.

We had cucumbers, tomatoes, and zucchini sticks from our garden, as well as carrots, celery, and snap peas on the veggie tray. I made ranch and spinach dips to accompany it.

Finally on the fruit tray of grapes, canteloupe, kiwi, strawberrys, and fresh pineapple, we had cream cheese-marshmellow fluff and brown sugar sour cream dips.

Gaga and Haliana enjoyed watching everyone fill their plates.

It was a yummy spread...with lots of options for everyone. It also was great because I could prep everything on Saturday and all we had to do before the party was put everything on trays and grill the chicken and boil the corn.

Invitation to Party

Camden's party was on Sunday. To invite everyone, I made the following invitations. As I frequently say, she is a little monkey...and loves to wear her monkey pants pajamas and play with her stuffed monkey, so that became our theme.

Front of the card:

Inside of the card:

Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes

Camden wanted to celebrate her birthday with her friends at school. Since she loves ice cream cones, but they are impossible to send for a treat, I made ice cream cone cupcakes. It's also easier for the teacher not to have to mess with wrappers for 8 little 1 and 2 year olds. Because they have small hands, I used the kiddie cones instead of the regular size cones. They are really tiny, so I sent enough for every kid to have 2.

They turned out very cute. I was a little disappointed that the little cones get chewy just like the big ones do. Although I don't think the toddlers minded too much!

Happy Birthday, Camden!

She's officially 2. What a marvelous little girl she has become. Our lives are so full of joy because of our baby girl.

We love you, Camden Raye Haile!

On A Hot, Hot Summer Day

You can tell it was a hot day by the steam on the camera lens and baby girl's red face (unfortunately she took after me on that one).

But she had fun while Kevin cleaned the garage...getting ready for her big party on Sunday!

I'm Too Old For This...

Have I mentioned before that we have a very active little girl? Have I mentioned before that she is a daredevil? In the last two weeks, Camden has managed to fall out of a shopping cart (on her head...scaring both her parents and herself to no end) and run off the curb into a very busy intersection when leaving the fair. Thankfully she was fine from the fall (and now happily sits in the cart seat with a buckle on) and ReeRee and Uncle Ric weres quick to grab her again before she made more than a few steps. ***Sigh****

Last night Camden had been going into the kitchen and getting into things, so Kevin put the gate up. When he moved it from against the wall, he found Camden's latest art project.

We have no idea when she created it...she's rarely out of our sight in the house. Fortunately, the washable crayons came off instantly with a Magic Eraser.

A short time later, I noticed she was being awful quiet while she played in her room by herself. Kevin peeked his head around the corner and quickly motioned for me to come look (as he laughs). Camden had not only scattered every toy around her room (no biggie), but she had created a staircase out of her dresser drawers and was sitting on her changing table playing with her hair accessories.

She thinks she's hilarious. I'm just grateful she didn't topple off the top or bring the whole thing down on herself. Our words didn't convince her that she shouldn't be up there, so she tried to climb up again.

We finally had to shut the door and make her room off limits the rest of the evening. Tomorrow we're going to the store to get more drawer locks (like we have in the kitchen) to attach to her dresser. The little monkey...

An Evening at the Fair

I've been going to the Tippecanoe County 4-H Fair since I was a kid. I love the tradition...especially the pork sandwiches and elephant ears!

Camden was active as usual. After sharing a pork sandwich and an ear of corn for dinner, we went to check out cousin ReeRee's reserve champion photography poster. Whoo Hoo...great job!

Next we went through the barns to see horses, cows, pigs, and sheep. I think Camden's favorite were the pigs.

Then we made fair food stops. The three of us split a corn dog (which I'd never gotten before at the fair - shocker!) and an elephant ear.

We took a stroll through the vender tents and Camden had a little bit of popcorn...that she enjoyed from her new firefighter hat while watching the 4-Hers ride their horses in competition.

She really liked when the tractors came out to level the arena again.

Finally, Uncle Ric and ReeRee showed up and hung out with us for a bit. Camden (and the rest of us) had a great evening at the fair.