Baby Sprinkle/Amazing Weekend for Holland

It's been a busy few weeks!  Michael and I went on a quick getaway trip to Austin (separate blog post forthcoming) and my parents came down to visit last week.  The days and weeks are moving along at hyperspeed now and I'm trying not to blink.

This past weekend was pretty perfect.  I have some amazing friends who put together the sweetest sprinkle for Holland.  Two of them visited from North Carolina and Houston (with their daughters!) so we made it an all-girls weekend filled with fun activities.  I (politely) kicked Michael & Jude out of the house as of Friday evening but with as much giggling, shrieking, and all things pink experienced in this home I think I was doing them a huge favor.  :)

Lauren & Bryn flew in from North Carolina Friday morning and the little girls hit it off immediately. Bryn & Ryan are almost exactly one year older than Jude & Sloane and they have all heard about each other for at least three years.  It was clearly time for a proper introduction.  

Bryn gave Sloane two necklaces and from that moment on at least some aspect of their outfits either matched or coordinated.  Ryan and Stefanie came over with their twin boys so we had a crazy morning playdate with seven kiddos and four moms.  We stayed at the dining table the entire time to catch up and let the kids fend for themselves. It was great!  After nap time, my parents took Jude to Mimi & Papa's house for the rest of the weekend.

That evening we met up with Ann Marie and Erika for dinner at Gloria's.  They brought three of their four girls and we let them all sit at one side of the table while the moms sat at the other side.  (Are you noticing a pattern here?)  After dinner we walked next door for some ice cream.  It was so much fun seeing the girls interact with one another.  All of our minis spending time together - wonder if they'll still be chatting like their moms in 30 years? :)

Saturday morning was Holland's sprinkle and it was incredible.  The hostesses outdid themselves with decorations, food, coffee, and mimosas.  A few months ago Ann Marie mentioned the best idea I've ever heard: Guests could bring unwrapped gifts and put them on the dining table so I wouldn't have to open each gift in front of everyone.  YES.  I consider myself a decently social person but opening gifts in front of a group has always been my nightmare - to be able to skip that part and just spend time chatting with friends sounded lovely.  

It was such a special time and Holland's nursery floor is now covered with amazing gifts from incredible friends.  

The incredible hostesses!

Most of the guests!

Once the hostesses planned which weekend to come to town, we decided we'd take our girls to American Girl for a fun lunch.  When the sprinkle was over we drove to the AG Bistro and had a great time eating lunch with our girls and their dolls.  Sloane was in heaven.   The lunch lasted almost two hours and was right in the middle of nap time but the girls were all troopers and had a blast.  I think we all kept waiting for some sort of disaster and/or meltdown and it never happened.  Super proud of all of them!

After lunch we all relaxed for a bit.  Saturday night, Ryan, Stefanie, Erika, and Ann Marie came to my house in pajamas (sans kiddos) and we ate more Mexican food, drank some wine & cocktails (& water... sigh), and stayed up until midnight catching up on anything we hadn't already discussed the prior day.  

It really was the best weekend.  Sloane and I missed our boys but we had such a great time together and I know both of them enjoyed the one-on-one attention they received from mom and dad.  Sloane made a new friend and I loved watching it all unfold.  It was hard to say goodbye to Lauren & Bryn at the airport but I know a lot of memories were made that will stick with Sloane for a long time.

I took a two hour nap yesterday afternoon and another nap today!  I'm sure I'll go to bed early again tonight.  The weekend definitely wore me out and I know I wasn't able to be the hostess Lauren & Bryn deserved because I'm feeling so limited both in ability and energy. They pretended not to notice and were the sweetest house guests.

We're at 6.5 weeks until Holland arrives and everything is starting to feel more real.  As if carrying around 28 extra pounds and feeling her kick every three seconds isn't enough of a wakeup call, seeing her (almost) completed nursery along with tiny pajamas and diapers has definitely made me realize we're in the homestretch.  When I hugged my parents goodbye I realized the next time I see them will be a day or two before she arrives.  Eek!  I'm not sure you can ever truly prepare for a new baby so I'm just trying my hardest to appreciate the little moments leading up to it!