a butterfly birthday.

our mabel is now 3!

yesterday we had such a fun day celebrating

at the discovery kids museum @ the gateway.

we also joined up with anna, kate & abby

for waffles @ the yummiest waffle place, bruges.

try the waffle monster. it's delicious.

later we celebrated again with her birthday bud, anna

and ate cake, ice cream & strawberries. yummy.

and, today, mabel invited her 4 girl cousins

over for a butterfly tea.

we had tons of fun doing girly things

{nail painting, tutus, stick-on earrings, and butterfly eyes}

and eating girly things

{butterfly pb&j's, raspberries, strawberries,

butterfly cheeses and flower meats}.

with butterflies everywhere,

it was quite magical.

waiting for her guests to arrive.

mabel's birthday crown.

the whole crew.

and elsie woke up just in time for a family photo.

silly kids.

oh, to be a kid again!

playing at the playground.

skipping monkey bars.

doing cart wheels and somersaults.

rolling down the hill.

grass in the hair.

giggling all the way.

not to mention a little or a lot of whip cream on the face!

st. patty's day.

these 3 crack me up.

this was pretty hilarious,

at least one of them was moving all the time.

i think it's pretty cute and shows their big personalities.

happy st. patrick's day.

hope the leprechaun found you.

he found us.

and, per mabel's request, did not come inside our house,

but left treasure on the doorstep.

success.

our mabel has now entered the "big girl" stage officially.

good-bye diapers, hello big girl pants!

all i can say is, hallelujah!

{cute apron courtesy of becky!}