Taylor's 2nd Birthday

After spending entirely too much time and money on Taylor's first birthday party (go big or go home, right?), I decided that this year was going to be less about everyone else and more about what she wanted. And right now, there are two things that Taylor absolutely loves: Mickey Mouse and playing outside. So when I found out that Disney on Ice would be in St. Louis the weekend of her birthday, I couldn't grab tickets fast enough. We invited my mom, sister, nieces, and nephew along for the ride and ended up making an entire day of it. And let me tell you, those two hours of nonstop entertainment made her happier than any party I could've ever thrown her. She was in heaven!

When the show began, she stared in complete disbelief at what was happening before her. Our seats were just five rows from the ice so I'm sure the music, lights, and constant movement were a lot for her to take in, but she sat completely still nearly the entire first half with her eyes glued on the characters.

When the tot wasn't glued to the action, she was busy snacking, of course. She made her way up and down the aisle helping herself to everyone's goodies but spent most of the time devouring Natalie's popcorn. This girl definitely lives life according to her stomach.

After the show, we made sure to stop at one of those over-priced kiosks and grab a stuffed Mickey Mouse for the birthday girl which she fell in love with instantly (and still sleeps with every night). Next, we were our way to the zoo only to find that literally everyone in a five county radius had also decided to go the zoo that day. So, we called a spade a spade and decided to head to the mall instead. The adults shopped, the kids ran wild at the play place, and we made approximately 15 trips to the bathroom. When it was time to head home, Taylor snuggled up in her car seat with Mickey and was out before we even hit the interstate.

The next day was Taylor's actual birthday which meant snuggles and cartoons in bed followed by birthday waffles! Tay's reaction when we lit the candles was absolutely priceless, but she quickly blew them out once she spotted the whipped cream. Before I could even remove the second candle, she was shoveling handfuls of it in her mouth!

Later that afternoon, we celebrated with a small get together at the park with close friends and family. While I had no intention of going to the same extremes I did last year, I couldn't bear the thought of her not having some sort of celebration on her actual birthday. So we hung a few decorations at one of the park pavilions, ordered some pizzas for lunch, and let the kids run wild at the playground for a few hours. She wasn't a huge fan of opening presents (and mostly just sat on the table eating her blue sucker while I opened everything), but her attitude quickly changed when she spotted two new pairs of play shoes and a Minnie Mouse outfit of her very own.

Overall, this girl had a wonderful 2nd birthday. Thank you to everyone for joining in the festivities, showering Taylor with gifts, and reminding us just how loved this little lady is. We are so very fortunate to call her ours!