Balloon Magic

Every year over Labor Day weekend, there is a hot air balloon festival. Kevin, Brynnlee, and I went to the park where we saw the balloons come to life and float away. It was an incredible sight!

The Giant Cupcake

Ahhh the first birthday cake. My mom brought an awesome cake pan that makes a giant cupcake. I made Brynnlee's birthday cake using this. The cake isn't perfect....but I think it is very {cute}. When we put the cake in front of Brynnlee, she was a little hesitant at first. She didn't know what to do and kept looking at us. I showed her that she could grab the cake with her hands. Once she knew it was okay to eat the cake, she had at it. She loved it and was so cute as she ate her first birthday cake!

Spoiled Little Girl

After we had our fun at the zoo, we decided to PARTY! Okay...we had Brynnlee open her birthday presents. She really LOVED opening them. And she loved what was inside too! Mom and Dad gave her a huge bag of balls--100 to be exact. Dad chose this one and was really excited. We also gave her a shopping cart with little plastic foods. She loves to fill it up and walk around the living room. She is becoming quite the little walker these days. Grandma and Grandpa Ball sent a really cute outfit, darling pjs, and a baby animal book--which she has been "reading" over and over all ready. Aunt Lisa and Uncle Jake sent an adorable heart-covered jacket and a baby doll. She likes to give the doll great big {HUGS}. Aunt Jackie, Uncle Jeff, Hallie, Hannah, Aunt Rylie, and Grandma and Grandpa Eames gave her a Tinkerbelle four-wheeler. It even moves when she presses on a button. We keep it unplugged most of the time, but she loves to get on it and laugh. The little dare-devil even stands up on the seat. Grandma and Grandpa Eames also gave Brynnlee {A LOT} of new clothes. Combined with the Hallie and Hannah clothes Aunt Jackie all ready gave, she should be set for the winter and into the spring. Nice! Thanks so much for all the great gifts. We are grateful for your KINDNESS!

More Zoo Pictures

My sister, Rylie, took some really great pictures at the zoo. Here are some of the great animals.

Giraffes and Tigers and Bears...Oh My!

On September 5th, we celebrated Brynnlee's first birthday. My parents and sister Rylie came to Colorado Springs for the BIG day. We decided to take Brynnlee to the zoo. We went to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo here in the Springs. What a great place! We started by stopping by the Giraffe's home. At this zoo, visitors are able to feed the giraffes. It was so great. The giraffes have really long tongues they use to grab the crackers. Brynnlee loved the giraffes! We saw a lot of great animals at the zoo. Kevin went crazy taking pictures, but I don't think many of you are interested in seeing ten pictures of meerkats!

We also stopped off to visit the tigers. As we stood by the big tiger window, suddenly one of the tigers came running towards us! My heart skipped a beat. I forgot for a minute that we were separated. We got a great picture of Brynnlee and the tiger! She loved it. The bears were also a fun place to stop. You can get really close to the window where they live. They were busy playing and trying to grab the grapes being thrown at them. While Kevin and Rylie were on the sky ride over the zoo, I took Brynnlee on the carousel. It was her first experience on one. I was so excited because I thought she would love it. The ride started, and it went so fast, she almost fell off the horse. I thought it would never end. But I think maybe she liked it a little bit---well at least sitting on the horse!

What a great day! The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is fantastic and fun. I still can't believe my baby is ONE!