partying, parading and tailgating

Celebrating the boy's birthdays is so much fun since we get to do it at the same time. I'm sure there will be a time in the future when they might prefer not to share the spotlight, but for now they don't seem to mind. Since their birthdays are only 2 weeks apart, it just seems to make sense that we have one big party, instead of 2 parties back-to-back that would create a lot of unnecessary chaos!!

This year we actually did a "repeat" birthday party. We had this exact birthday party for Beckham when he turned 2 just days before Brenner joined us. It was such a great party and Beckham had so much fun we decided to do it again. (Who needs original when you can have familiar and easy, right?!)

This year I had a little more time and energy to plan this parade party since I wasn't huge and pregnant like the first go around. With A LOT of help from Marmie, and some from Berkley too, we were able to make stick horses to use as part of our invitation. Beckham and Brenner had a great time delivering the horses to all of their buddies.

The invitation that hung on the stick horse read:

Saddle up your horses and come on down
to the biggest and best parade that ever came to town!

That's right cowpokes - it's parade time again.
We're ready to celebrate our birthdays with friends.

Beckham is turning 4 and Brenner will be 2.
We've got lots of partying, parading and tailgating to do.

(All the specific details followed.)

We also attached a label sticker to the invitation that read:

This pony needs a name. What will it be?
We're giving a prize for the best entry!

All of the guests were instructed to name their new friend before the parade, to stick their label onto him/her, and "ride" their horse to the tailgate area the day of the party.

Here is Beckham showing off his new friend, "Thunder."
Decorating for this party was pretty simple. It involved parking a couple of trucks in the designated spot the night before to hold our place and tying some balloons onto those trucks. Brenner pretty much took care of that part! After all, he does LOVE balloons.It wasn't long before we had guests arriving for the party. Everyone was dressed in their best cowboy attire, but there was one rodeo princess who made a grand entrance. Beckham's friend, Avery, was looking precious as always!As soon as each guest arrived, Berkley was right there to greet them and record their pony's name. She was appointed as the judge of the "pony naming contest" along with a couple of her friends. She took her position VERY seriously!!!
We decided to sing "Happy Birthday" to the boys and cut our cookie cake before the parade began.
The boys waited patiently while we tried to get the candles lit. However, one of them did look a little suspicious! (I think he was possibly considering swiping a good lick of the frosting.)But luckily he went for his better judgement. He flashed another grin and waited patiently to get on with the good stuff. His friends were all waiting with him too!After what seemed like an eternity of waiting, I came to the sad conclusion that the candles were not going to stay lit. The breeze blowing around us was just strong enough to take the flame each time it began to glow. There are some things you just don't have any control over, and I was beginning to have to come to terms with that!!!
We sang a quick "Happy Birthday" to the boys with promises that they would have a chance to blow candles out later that day. They seemed okay with that, and they were even better when they got to grab their candles that didn't stay lit. Brenner seemed to think that was his treat I think. How is that waxy number 2?Not so sure...The parade finally began after MUCH anticipation and it was LOUD...

but it didn't seem to bother our spectators any. In fact, they seemed to think it was kind of funny.

As the parade went on, it seemed to get more and more exciting. Soon some of our friends were able to brave the loud noise and even begin sharing some waves.Before long, the excitement and amazement overtook the need to cover their ears.

Their own cheering began...and the parade took all of their attention.Brenner loved every minute of it too.The parade seemed to bring pure joy to his sweet face...and he couldn't stop smiling!!!Berkley didn't seem to be as impressed with the parade as the boys were...

but she finally flashed a smile too!Of course, I think she was more worried about her "job" as a judge. As soon as the parade ended, our "judges" met for some serious business. They had a big decision to make on announcing the horse with the best name.

After much consideration, the girl's chose the pony named "Sissy." She was "ridden" by Avery, our lil' rodeo princess. I wish I had a picture, because her pony truly fit her name. Sissy was even wearing a pretty pink bow. (Which might have won these "girlie" judges over!!!) As an added side note; Avery's precious little sister, Ainsley, named her pony "Bud." Too funny!!!

The boy's parade party was so much fun! Easy set-up, fantastic entertainment, and very little clean-up. I'm beginning to think this party could be a birthday tradition for the boys!?! After all, the West Texas Fair and Rodeo Parade is held in downtown Abilene every year on a date very close to these b's birthdays. Something to definitely ponder...