Birthday weekend...take two!

So, Sunday morning I got up at 4 am and put the brisket in the oven. I wanted it done by noon and I always cook it at least 8 hours. I was able to get back to sleep, but I was tired in the morning when Allison woke up nonetheless. Allie did take a brief morning nap from about 9 to 10 am, then it was time to dress up and head to the church for her dedication. It was nice to have all my family there. Mom, dad, Kara, Ben and his wife Leah, and their two kids Henry and Harrison. The only drama of the morning was that mom had a crock pot of baked beans in her trunk and they tipped over on their way to KC. She was not too happy about it, but I think it got cleaned up ok!! The dedication was nice. It was short, and consisted of our pastor asking us about our desire to raise Allison in the church and teach her what it means to love Christ and follow Him. She behaved up front, but when Pastor Dave took her to hold her and pray over her, she had a good time playing with is microphone. We all arrived back at the house and the two grandpas got busy and cut up the brisket. We had BBQ beef sandwiches, veggies and dip, apples and caramel apple dip, chips and dip, baked beans, and apple snicker salad. Of course it was time for cake after lunch!!

Allison wanted to dig into her big cake, but Jason talked me out of letting her have that one. We just gave her a cupcake! We sang happy birthday and let her dig in...only she wasn't super interested. By the end, she had picked the ears and eyes off, and thrown a lot of it on the ground.





She was pointing at the counter and getting upset, so I ended up giving her the carrot back that she was chewing on at lunch. Here she is surrounded by cake and all she wants is her carrot! I'm not so sure she's my child!! She was happy, and spent time just playing with her cousins. Most of the guests left fairly early. By 2:00 it was just my family and a few friends. Dustin and Katie gave Allison a big stuffed pig...ADORABLE!
Henry and Harrison went down for naps easily, but Allison just laid in her crib and talked for over an hour. She never napped again!!! My family stayed for dinner and I made asian pork ribs. Yum! The cousins played and we just hung out. Somehow Harrison ended up in his diaper and they were so cute together!





The ball pit was a big hit! This was a rare shot of all of them staying still.




It was a fun day. Leah and the boys stayed the night and the next day we went to Hallmark to do some 1/2 off shopping! Harrison wasn't feeling well though. He ended up with an ear infection. He was just a bit crabby!

I will say that it was a successful weekend. Allison did well, she wasn't fussy at all, even though she hadn't taken a nap Sunday afternoon. It was fun to have everyone together. I'm still waiting to catch up on sleep. Monday I spent with Leah and the boys, Tuesday I watched Liam all day (my friend's son...cutie!) then I worked Wednesday. I'm trying to just take it easy today. It's snowing out and is starting to actually look like Christmas. Maybe Jason and I will actually put our tree up this evening!!

This is a quick video of Allison eating her cake...sort of! You can see me take away her carrot at the very beginning. Then she just picks at the ears and eyes. I had to help her by breaking it in two! You can hear Harrison fussing in the background!


Thanks to everyone who came to the party. It was so much fun! Allison is getting so big and I'm so thankful for the year we've had together!!
~V~