Leia Rose's Dinosaur/Pony State Fair Party

". . . Happy Birthday, dear Leia! Happy Birthday to you!" Here's the way Leia Rose looked while everyone sang to her at her party. We're still not sure why she sat like this. She's not really one to be shy, you know. : ) This side of the table held Sophia, Leia Rose, Shenandoah, and Heidi.

And on this side sat Price, Wilson, Daphne, and Jessie.
Ah, a cake truly fitting a Dinosaur/Pony party! (The figures are actually the favors.) Quite honestly, I can't believe that the cake made it. I had it in the back of the stroller, pushing it all the way across the fair. The frosting slid right down and two of the ponies fell off. I had to put the top ponies and the dinosaurs on when I got set up. And I brought the green spray-frosting to touch it up (thank goodness). It was too windy of a day to light the candle, and I had forgotten the lighter anyway. Ha! . . . and if you look very close, you just might see a finger swipe or two (courtesy of a hungry, and yet very patient Armelle). : )

Annie was such a good girl the whole day! Happily eating cake and sucking on a strap, but faced in the wrong direction to view the action. Mamma was having a hard time juggling it all.

Now for the present opening! Leia Rose got lots of fun things: a dinosaur felt activity set from Jessica, a Disney Jr. Monopoly from Shenan & Armelle, books & a dinosaur sandwich cutter from Mrs. Schnell, a pony movie from Sophia, a personalized dinosaur towel/pencilcase/pencils from Kevin, a ponyville playset from Jesse, a barbie movie from Daphne, a floam critter craft kit & bracelet from Heidi, a hatching dinosaur from Price, a pegasus pony from Wilson, (and some awesome hand-knitted princess crowns are coming from Mrs. McDowell)!
I love Price in these pictures, obviously so excited about the hatching dinosaur egg he had gotten Leia Rose for her birthday. : )
And it was just so funny to see how Leia Rose got so excited about all of her gifts! She got excited about each one in a different way. The one she insisted on opening/holding in the car on the way home was Wilson's pegasus pony, . . . but the first thing she wanted to play with when she got home from school was Jessica's felt playset. But she also didn't waste any time opening her new game, . . . although I had to put a heart sticker over Ursela's face. (That would be Leia for you.) And there was a big deal with Kevin's dinosaur towel, . . . which Leia Rose insists is a blanket and has used it on all of her dolls. : ) And, of course, the last thing she said to me before she went to bed tonight was "tomorrow, can I watch the pony and barbie shows"? (Can you guess my reply? "Sure! After you do your chores." : )
At one point, I just looked over and suddenly saw Annie happily participating in the party from the comfort of Mrs. Schnell's arms! Thank goodness for Mrs. Schnell holding Annie! Supposedly, Annie started fussing when she was done with her cake, kind of isolated in the stroller from the rest of the party. I understand. Annie wanted to be part of the action! As the party hostess, there wasn't much choice about what to do with Annie at the moment. I just couldn't do everything at once. I told Mrs. Schnell later that she is the only person, apart from immediate family, who has held a separation-anxiety Annie without a tear or even so much as a whimper, a testament to how good Jeannene is with children.

This is one point at Leia's party where things were running just as I imagined: . . .
. . . all of Leia Rose's friends on the bumper boats at the same time, . . .
. . . with Mrs. Schnell & Mrs. McDowell cheering them on!
And this is where Leia's (well-rested) friend Kevin joined the party! Karin and Kevin made such an effort to come (even when the party time really clashed with Kevin's schedule).
So we had to open another fun personalized dinosaur gift & Snow White card! : )
Girl kisses boy . . .

Boy really kisses girl! . . .
I love Leia's face in this picture, as if to say, "Ha! Did I just get a birthday kiss?!?"

It was extra special to have Shenandoah, Armelle, and Laura at the party. They drove all the way from Richmond, VA just for the party (starting out in the early morning and returning long after nightfall)! And Laura's Mom came as well, . . . all the way from Ohio!

If Annie could talk, she'd say, "Finally!!! Mamma gave me a cool drink after making me sip warm water all day! (Yuck!) Mmmm, what is this new concoction? Lemonade? I like it!"

A sad Kevin & a happy Leia checkin' out the cows.
Annie was thrilled to hear this goat actually say, "Naaaah!" : )

And now for a little State Fair sibling comparison:

Leia at the State Fair in 2003.
Annie at the State Fair in 2007.
Leia & Annie at the State Fair in 2007, . . .
. . . and the niblet picture of the year. : )

. . . Because it's just not the State Fair without the corn. : )

My thoughts on the party: Everyone had a real blast! There were times when I actually got to talk to a few parents and just visit. It was so fun to see the children deal with split-second decisions of with-whom-should-I-go-on-this-ride. Leia had told me this moring, "Get ready because I'm going on all the rides with Jessica!" When, once we got there and saw Shenandoah, . . . that was it. All the rides were with Shenandoah and Kevin. And Leia felt bad later that she hadn't gone on any with Jessica (even though they were really together and laughing a lot on the bumper boats). And I was so worried about children needing to potty. Ha! No one had an issue at all! : ) It was really fun, and the only things to worry about were from the party-planner perspective, . . . but there were two things that made it especially stressful. 1. Small children wandering amid the crowds. 2. Wanting everyone to wander together. : ) There were all sorts of glitches everywere: finding a table without people (and eventually making an old woman move), slow drivers in the caravan, people getting lost and therefore delaying the start to the party, lines on rides, the uncharacteristic heat, Leia Rose deviating from her own list of attractions. In short, the whole thing took twice as long as I thought it would. And by 4:30, we were all just finishing up the rides without seeing any animals yet. Therefore, there were people leaving because of time, heat, and animal viewing. I guess I thought we'd have the fair all to ourselves. Not so! My basic feeling is, . . . never again. A fabulous idea in theory, but just too many factors out of my control.