Yesterday our sweet Elise turned 5, so I wanted to write a quick post describing her special day. We lucked out with beautiful weather all weekend, and we’re glad to have Grandma Amy here to celebrate with us.
We started things off Friday night with a trip to our favorite Mexican restaurant. After obliterating every tortilla chip and bowl of bean dip in site, the kids each did well eating their dinner, so we all got to share an order of fried ice cream for dessert. You can imagine who got the lion’s share of that course.
After dinner we came home and Grandma took the kids for a short walk in the neighborhood. We decided to let Elise have a present, and we actually had one for Ava as well, so we gave them both a Hatchimal. Both of them have been asking for one of these dolls for several months, and Ava actually had a deal with us that if she learned all her kindergarten words, then she would get one. Well, Ava learned her words, and we felt like Elise deserved one for her birthday, so they got home from their walk and found the Hatchimals waiting for them. It was a big deal for both of them and they were super excited. The girls spent the rest of their night playing with their new dolls and getting excited for the big day to come.
Saturday morning the girls were up early, excited to open presents. Even though it’s Elise’s birthday, Ava was really charged up to see what all the presents were. Elise, being as sweet as she is, has been promising Ava for a while that she would give her one of her birthday presents. That just goes to show you what kind of kid she is, but then Ava has to try to manipulate things more in her favor by asking if she can pick the toy, or finding other more subtle ways to gain an advantage. Such a little deal maker that one is.
We were able to hold them off for a little bit, in order to get some more sleep, but soon enough it was presents time. I’m not up to speed on all the different dolls and characters they’re into, but I know we got the Hatchimals, and I know they’re really into LOL dolls, Pinky Pie Mermaid dolls, and Fingerlings. I feel ridiculous even talking about all this stuff but this is a good example of how becoming a parent changes you.
After doing presents we loaded up in the van and headed out to a home & garden store in Woodinville who was hosting a kids carnival as part of a fundraiser for the local YMCA. We played all kinds of games, bounced in the bouncy house, got arm paintings, specialty balloons, silly photos, and even got to enjoy some live music. It probably comes as no surprise that Elise LaFleur loves flowers, and this store had a ton of them, so she was just as happy to walk around comparing and smelling them.
It was Jessica’s idea to do something low key like this for the morning, then go home for some relaxing down time, because we knew we were in for a long night at the ballgame. The kids carnival ended up being the perfect way to spend our morning.
On Saturday evening, shortly after 5:00, we headed down to Everett Memorial stadium for the AquaSox game. Jessica did a good job coordinating so we were able to meet most of our group in the parking lot before heading into the ballpark. Uncle Butch and Aunt Carol were there waiting as we pulled up, the Palmer’s were already in line to enter, then Dana and family pulled up right as we were pulling our sleeping children out of the van.
We had a pretty good sized group for the event. For friends there were the Palmers (Jodi, Leon, & Miles), the O’Hairs (Solana, Josh, Ronin, & Finn), and the Weissmans (Laurel, Mark, & Sadie – happy birthday to Laurel as well). Then for family we had Kristy, Madi, and Gilberto, Butch and Carol, Dana & Brad, and my nephew and niece, Kallan and Anna.
We had access to a covered pavilion area before the game, which included unlimited food, so most of us were hanging around there to start. The kids, however, all had unlimited bouncy house access, so they were pretty much all down in that area jumping away to their heart’s content.
One of the most exciting parts of the evening for Elise was the fact that she got to throw out a pitch before the game. She didn’t really want to go out on the field alone, so I ran out with her as they announced “Celebrating her 5th birthday, Elise Pellegrini”. She threw a pitch that actually made it to the catcher, which was all I was hoping for. We’d been working on it in the yard leading up to this, so I was confident in her.
After throwing the pitch we got to pose for a quick photo with the catcher, while the announcer said “Nice job Elise”. It was a super cute moment and she was so happy, then she got to give one of the coaches a high five as we headed away. I don’t have the photo taken by their photographer yet, but will share it once I do.
Once the game got going we met up with our group and just hung out. It was a picture perfect evening with mountains in the backdrop. Everyone was enjoying the atmosphere, pulling for the AquaSox (who ended up winning 8-2 I think), and just having a good time. We had a group of seats that spanned 4 or 5 rows, so it was easy for people to bounce around to different seats and mingle.
It’s become a family tradition for us to go to these games every Summer. The kids love seeing Webbly (the mascot), and the whole atmosphere is really family friendly. Honestly, if I’m taking my family to a baseball game, I’ll take this over a Mariners game. It’s too much of a production when you have 3 little kids, so going to see the AquaSox is perfect for us, and it was actually Elise’s idea that we do this for her birthday. I wish Jessica or I could take credit for it, but we honestly can’t.
We lucked out because not only was the baseball game on Elise’s actual birthday, but it was also fireworks night, which is something they only do a few times per season. So after the Sox won the game, we all headed out to a field behind the stadium, laid on blankets in the grass, and watched a cool fireworks show. The kids were loving it and running around, rolling down grassy hills and freaking out over the biggest explosions. It was pretty much the perfect summer night.
We thought the kids would pass out on the way home because it was late by the time the fireworks were over, but no, they were too motivated to go home and open a present. So we did just that, one present, then had to basically force everyone into bed. Overall it was such a memorable day and Elise couldn’t have been sweeter or more gracious. She really is an awesome kid and we loved seeing her enjoy her special day. This is a big turning point for her because she’ll be entering Kindergarten soon. I feel like that’s the point where they start changing, maturing, and as a parent you have to accept the fact that they are not solely within your influence anymore. Now there are all these other outside influences coming in, but not quite yet. Not for a little bit longer. She’s still (and always will be) our thoughtful sweet girl that’s always looking out for her siblings, loves her family, and enjoys making people smile. Happy 5th birthday sweetheart, we love you more than you will ever know.
As it turned out, her birthday celebration had to spill into the next day because she was so fortunate to receive so many gifts that there would be no way to open them all after the game. So once again, the girls were up early, all charged up and ready to dig into all the beautiful pink party bags on our kitchen table.
All I can say is that everyone is far too generous and she was overwhelmed with all of the things she loved. Literally everything she said she wanted for her birthday had been accounted for, so we are obviously most appreciative of everyone’s kindness and generosity. Elise, Ava and Enzo have been playing together all day with all the new toys, and now they’re the cool kids on the block, as several of the neighbor kids were really excited to see all the new stuff.
We wanted to make sure they got some activity in, so this morning we all went to the outdoor pool at our gym for a couple hours. Grandma got in and had fun with the kids, and everyone had a blast. Even though it was pretty early, it was still 85 degrees out, so having access to the pool was perfect.
Now it’s time for the birthday weekend to come to an end, yet we’ve still got one more full day with Grandma Amy before she heads out of town. Once again, thank you so much to all of our friends and family who helped to make this such a special and memorable day for Elise. We appreciate it so much, and loved seeing her soaking it all up on her special day.
Here are a few of our favorite pics.
Starting things off right, with a flower balloon at the kids carnival
Enzo enjoying his dragonfly balloon, before popping it.
And Ava was our little Musketeer
We decided to make use of our new hair chalk before the game. Enzo was pissed about something.
Enjoying the pre-game festivities
Getting ready to throw out the pitch. These two are something else.
Madi was in her happy place holding and feeding baby Sadie
Of course we had to get a photo with our friend Webbly. Right after this Enzo punched him in the nuts.
I think he had finally recovered from Enzo’s attack, but was still getting laughed at by Kristy and co.
Elise was still going strong even at the end of the game
One of the better shots I got during the fireworks show
Happy 5th birthday Elise, we love you to the moon!!!