Gabriella's 2nd Birthday Party

Gabriella had a wonderful second birthday party on Saturday, August 8th. Many great friends and some close family shared this special day with Gabriella. The party was Princess and Pirate themed and was held in the yard of our home.
Gabriella was dressed as a beautiful princess!:
We had a bouncy house and Gabriella and her friends enjoyed playing in it.:

After lunch, Jasmine, the princess from Aladdin, came to the party!

Gabriella does not do well without her late morning / early afternoon nap. We had tried to get Gabriella to nap earlier in the day prior to her party, but she would not go to sleep. So, during the party, Gabriella was very tired and missed most of the princess's visit because she was napping.

"It's my party and I'll nap if I want to...!: The princess sang with the children, made balloon creations, and painted a tattoo for each of the children.: I woke Gabriella up after about a thirty minute nap and she was able to get a heart tattoo on her arm.:

The princess led the group in singing "Happy Birthday" to Gabriella.:

We had three piñatas. Gabriella enjoyed picking through the loot after all of the piñatas had been opened.: The children also enjoyed making sand art.:

We also had a horse and a pony at the party and each of the children had the opportunity to have horse and pony rides. Gabriella loves horses! The horse and pony rides were probably her favorite part of the day.:

The kids also did their own face painting!: Gabriella did such a beautiful job with her make-up, several other "victims" let her do their make-up as well! She did my make-up, Grampy's make-up, ...:

...Ken's make-up, ...: ...and Aunt Kathy's make-up! Notice the look of concentration on Gabriella's face! Such masterful work requires deep concentration!: Gabriella and her friends also enjoyed many special food treats. We had a popcorn machine, a snow cone machine, and a cotton candy machine.:

Gabriella had a great time playing in the bouncy house, but especially loved playing in it at the end of the day with the adults after all of her friends had gone home!: After the party Gabriella enjoyed opening all of her birthday gifts. Ken's mother got Gabriella an Elmo nightgown and Gabriella could not wait to put it on! She had to put it on immediately after she opened it!:

The next morning Gabriella admired and played with all of her new birthday gifts!:

It was a fun day and such a special event for Gabriella.