Double Digits

It's hard to believe, but Natalie has officially entered the world of double digits.  Yes, today she turned TEN!  1 - 0.  Unbelievable.  It seems like just yesterday that I was packing a bag, huge belly in tow, eating one last meal (at Arby's, ha!), and heading to the hospital to have my sweet firstborn.  Today, she's independent, quick witted, loves the outdoors, and laughs all the time.

To celebrate her birthday, Natalie had two wishes.  She wanted our whole family to be together to share dinner, cake, and a movie...and she wanted a horse.  Unfortunately the horse was not an option this year, but her other wish was one I could make happen!  Nathaniel reads to the kids every single night before bed.  They have recently finished reading The Hobbit, so of course, Natalie wanted her evening to have a Hobbit theme.  No problem, baby girl!

Here are some pictures of the decorations and the food.  I gathered some earthy decor and spread it around the tables, as well as some gold coins (to represent the dragon's treasure), and of course, the ring (or a whole bunch of rings...peach rings, that is! ha!).

 

 

One tray holds the peach "rings" and the other the dragon's treasure "golden coins".  I also printed out a map of Middle Earth, and typed up some quotes from the book!

This was the food table.  I printed out a banner that a fellow blogger created for me.  Loved it!  We ate like Hobbits...beef stew, lots of bread, cheeses, some fruit, and a veggie tray.  It was truly a treat since we are typically really low carb around here...all of that bread!  MMMM!  I also used the books as decor...why not?

Another couple of shots of the food table.  Nathaniel enjoyed trying out the panoramic photo feature on his phone!

 This was the table for the cake and gifts.  I included a bow and arrow, knife/dagger, and a shield, as well as more applicable quotes!  We made her cake to look like Bilbo's cake in the movie, the cake he enjoyed for his eleventy-first birthday!  Special thanks to my mom for making the cake.  It was perfect! 

Here is the birthday girl in her Hobbit attire.  She was adorable! :)

Opening gifts was such fun.  The gifts from us were wrapped in brown paper with twine...to go with the theme of course.  Here she is showing off an adorable outfit my parents gave to her.  She got a matching one for her American Girl doll.

 

  

Here it looks like my brother-in-law Jonathan is telling her a secret before she opens the next gift.  Wonder what he said?

 

Here is Natalie sporting her new scarf in school colors for Baylor...what fun to support the university where daddy works.  We are hoping soon we can make it to a game so we can wear 

our colors...Go Bears!  Sic 'Em!

Unfortunately I don't have other pictures of the rest of the party, or the rest of the family, but we were all there.  My parents, my sister, my brother-in-law...the whole crazy crew!  We were too busy enjoying each others company!  It is such a huge blessing for us to live so close to family.  We are able to share our lives and show how much we love and appreciate each other every day.  We spend lots of time together, just as it should be!  We really LOVE each other, and I'm so thankful that we are such a close-knit group!   It is a HUGE blessing that my children can experience multi-generational family living...they learn so much from being around family as we do life together.   It was awesome that we could all be together to celebrate Natalie!  What a blessing she is!

We love you Natalie...we pray God's blessings on your life, today and forever!