Tractors and Tiaras Birthday Party

Last Sunday we had a combined birthday party for Collette and Trey.  We did this last year, too, and it worked out great.  Their birthdays are a month apart, but there are several other family members with Nov.-Dec. birthdays, plus Thanksgiving and the start of Christmas festivities, so a combined party works out great.  This year we decided to do a "Tractors and Tiaras" theme, because Collette has been wanting a princess party for months, and Trey adores tractors. 

Here is our invitation:

The party was lots of fun and lots of chaos.  :)  I didn't get as many pictures this year as I did last year-- I was too busy chasing kids, and so was everyone else!  Oh well. 

We did a few little decorations.  We had the photo books of the kids from the past year out for people to look at, and I got some party hats and noise makers, which Collette feels are the hallmark of a birthday party. :)

 

The Princess Table

 We made little princess wand Rice Krispy treats, and used her princess dolls as balloon anchors.

 

The Tractors Table

 

We made haystack treats for the farm table, and again used toys to anchor the balloons.

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Trey was pretty excited to find a combine with a balloon tied to it!

 

Collette invited her little friend Jordan from church.  She was soooo excited that he came!

 

 Cousins Tabby and Isaac showing off their party hats and blowers. (I did a quick applique shirt for Collette, who requested Cinderella and the number 4).

 

Cousin Autumn and the birthday girl!

 

I made a princess castle cake (from a shaped Bundt pan my mom found for me) for Collette:

 

And a combine cake for Trey (using the corn header from the toy combine, which was LL's toy growing up!)  Thank goodness for Pinterest... I never would have figured out how to make a combine cake on my own!

 

Collette requested Ariel and Belle for her cake, and was very pleased with the results.

 

Ready to blow out her candles!

 

Trey kept saying "Combine! Combine!"

 

 And totally snuck some candy corn from the cake while we were getting ready to sing to him. :)

 

Time for cake!

 

Second birthday, and cake is still messy. :)

 

 

Present time was total chaos.... all of the kids were excited to help open presents, and wrapping paper and bows were flying everywhere!

 

One of Collette's presents was a crib for her new baby, complete with bedding, a mobile, and pink bins to hold all of baby's items. She was beyond excited.

It seems like I have more pictures of Trey opening presents... perhaps he didn't have quite the speed of Collette? :)  (Oh... I appliqued him a shirt with a 2 and a tractor on it, too, so he didn't feel left out.)

 In any event, Trey got a fun birthday/Christmas present from Gram and Pap...

 

His very own tractor! He was over the moon excited! LL and his siblings had one almost identical to this when they were growing up.  This is actually a vintage, cast-iron model that is about 30 years old! His parents found it advertised in the Lancaster Farmer newspaper months ago and knew they had to have it. :)

 

Our only attempt at a family picture.  It's not great, but it is a good documentation that we were all there! :)

 

I can't believe Collette is 4 and Trey will be 2 in just a week!