Thursday, December 30, 2010

Is Your Family THIS Awesome? Yeah, I Didn't Think So. :)

There's a cute little girl I know that just turned 8.
She looks a little something like this:

Turning 8 at our house is a very special thing for lots of reasons.
Of course the biggest deal is that she gets to be baptized.
But I think Olivia might think the biggest deal is that she gets a BIG birthday party! 
(something we only do every 4 years).

However, since we do them only every 4 years we go ALL out when we do them.

Unfortunately Olivia's Grandma Susan has been dying of cancer and at the beginning of this week was so sick that Olivia and I took a last minute trip to Utah to get a chance to say goodbye.  Luckily we did because she passed away this morning.  She and Olivia had a very special bond and I'm grateful for the chance we got to go.  I had just resolved that her party would be a little less "spectacular" and that was okay.

My mom and sisters, however, didn't think any such thing should happen.
They wanted Olivia's party to be even MORE spectacular!
So they stepped up and rocked her birthday world.

But before they could do that, I have to say I came home from our trip to Utah to a SPOTLESS house.  My sweet Shane made sure everything was clean...not clean to boy standards, but super clean!
I was SO impressed and grateful because I had no energy to do it.
He had also installed a quiet fill toilet kit in our bathroom and kept Morgan and Owen thoroughly entertained while we were gone.
Seriously, how did I get the best husband in the world?
(I don't like to do braggy husband posts, but I just couldn't help it. Sorry.)

Anyway, Olivia, being the girly-girl she is, decided she wanted a "spa party".  
So we called it "Olivia's Pamper Me Party" and went from there.

My mother made 10 spa robes so each of the girls could have one.  10!!!  I think it took her 2 solid days and they turned out so dang cute it's not even funny. 

She has some extra material so she decided, why not make them matching gift bags?
WOW!

But just in case that wasn't enough she also made matching eye masks too.  
Can you even stand it? 

My oldest sister Dana knows I love to do cakes for the kids' birthdays and offered to do this for me. 
I was just planning on buying some grocery store cake since I wouldn't have time to even think about making one but Dana wouldn't have it.

She made this masterpiece along with 10 giant cupcakes for each of the girls to take home. 

OH. MY. GOSH.
My family is amazing.
But it doesn't stop there.

After playing some games, each of the girls started their "Spa Experience".
They each got a facial, manicure and pedicure.
My mom, sisters Dana, Allyson & Jenny, along with my sis-in-law Lana and adopted sister Julie (who is Allyson's sis-in-law) all came to be our Spa Workers.
And they were FABULOUS!!!
I didn't make any assignments they just all jumped right in and started doing their thing.
I am so grateful for that.

Here is Olivia getting her facial from Julie.  Julie is a massage therapist so whoever got her was lucky because they got some lovely face massage as well. :) 

Don't even think we would forget the cucumbers.
Puffy eyes be gone! 

Pedicures were full out, performed by my mom and Lana.  
They included foot spa soaks, exfoliating foot rubs, foot and calf massage with lotion, and a nail polish of your choice.
Look at these girls relax!  They loved the "pampering". 

Manicures were done by Allyson and Dana, our resident nail experts.
Hand soaks, fingernail buffing, cuticle oil and fingernail trim/filing when needed.
Then they picked out their favorite color and also got some nail art stickers! 

After all the pampering we "beautified."
Julie is also a Mary Kay girl, so she had fun doing some make up on the girls.

Lana did hair and the rest of us tried to help with hair and make up when we could.  Jenny is actually really good at the hair and make up too.

Our final result was a bunch of beautiful and pampered 7-8 year old girls.

Aren't they adorable?
I don't know how Livy has so many pretty friends. 

It was the perfect day.
Livy loved her party, her robes and her beautiful cake.
She told me the party was even better than she thought it would be.
Me too Livy, me too.

Thank you so much to each of you wonderful ladies who went above and beyond my wildest dreams to make Olivia's birthday so special.  
We will never forget all you did for us at this crazy, emotional, hard, exciting time.
My family is truly the best.
We love you!

..........

And Morgan was happy because even though she wasn't invited to the party, Grandma Dian made her a robe & eye mask too. :)

11 comments:

Allyson & Jere said...

Well, i don't know why, but this made me all emotional. Sheesh!
It was a cute, wonderful party, and mom and Dana are awesome and came through in such a HUGE way. So glad Olivias day was all she hoped it would be. She was so cute about it all.

Shane Dixon said...

"I love our family!" (this quote from the Incredibles came to mind)

DianD said...

I think the Spa Helpers had as much fun (maybe more) as the Pampered Partiers! :) It was so fun and worth every second to see those beautiful girls and help Livy have the party she deserved in the midst of such a hard time in her life. Grandma Susan was such a special lady and had circumstances been different, I'm sure she would have been there to be a "Spa Helper" with the rest of us -- enjoying the cuteness of this special 8 year old and her friends that we did! Happy Birthday again to Livy -- Miss Olivia!

Summertime Designs said...

First of all, I am so sorry for your loss and so glad that you and Olivia got to make the trip to go say goodbye. Secondly, your family IS amazing...every single member, and yours is like glue...you are all stuck together. I love how they all pulled together to make sure Olivia had a special party, and you are right, you guys went all out. I love it! We have friends that do the 4 year thing and each year I ask myself why I am not doing that? Anywho, it was great to see you over Christmas break for that little moment. You look fabulous, and I loved talking with you about what's really important. You are awesome!

Mel said...

Dude, I'm not even family and this post made me teary-eyed. I'm so sorry that Susan passed away. I know how close you were to her. I love that you live close to family and that they came through for you and Olivia. Olivia is such a beautiful 8-year old. What a special day for her!

Crandell Fam said...

I LOVED the party and being a part of it! It was absolutely perfect, and our family IS amazing if I do say so myself. :) I often pinch myself wondering why I was lucky enough to be a part of it. So glad Livvy enjoyed her day, and that you were able to say your final goodbyes. Love you!

Lana said...

Great post. Seriously, those little girls are cuties! :) So much fun. I only hope that I can give Tatum such a fun-filled 8th birthday party. :)

MamaD said...

ADORABLE! I can't believe that it went so well under the circumstances - just more evidence of how awesome your family really is! So glad that it turned out better than you imagined. I wish I could have been there too - not sure how helpful I would have been though. You sure do go all out. You will have to give me some tips for Lucy - I think that I am going to adopt the 4-year party thing.

Bryson Jones said...

Seriously, Loved the post. Makes me remember my party days :) I mean really?? Who could ever top Legends of the Hidden Temple Party? I STILL to this day have friends tell me, "You remember that party of yours? That was the coolest thing ever!" So rest assured, those girls aren't going to forget that one soon. Love you guys! Our family rocks.

Jules said...

I just want to say THANK YOU!!! Thanks for letting me share in Livy's Big Day. It truely was my pleasure. When she said to me with wide eyes & HUGE smile on her face...Thank You Julie for being here today, it means alot to me. My reply...Oh my gosh Livy, I wouldn't have miss this! I don't get to see you that often. It was so much fun to see the girls giggle & being pampered like that. Then the tranformation & photo shoot...words cannot say how my heart was just overwhelmed. I was really blessed by everyone (yep even the kids) there. I'm so glad to be excepted/welcomed into such a great and loving family. I love you all so very much.

Unknown said...

People here are incredibly helpful in the comments for this blog just have a look at how they often visit this site and post some comments. Thanks for sharing some ideas, Dayton Corporate Lawyer .