Ready... Set... Party!

It's about that time again. Mia will be turning two in a few days and we're throwing another combined birthday party for her and Alisi. This year we've decided to wait until it was closer to Mia's birthday to throw it. Alisi has been two for about a month now, and things haven't really changed. I think the terrible two's gradually hit around 18 months, or at least that's when it did for Mia and Alisi. Some close friends of mine keep telling me that if I think two is bad, wait until they hit three. If three is worse than two, I might be putting a toddler up for sale. Place your bids now, people!

This week will probably be filled with stress and chaos as we get ready for everyone to come over for the birthday party on Saturday. Not only do we have the inside of the house to worry about cleaning, we've got a jungle of a backyard to try to weed-whack out. We live on a lot and a half and absolutely nothing has been done to the backyard. It's pretty uneven and has railroad ties that hold up a portion of the different levels. If I could afford it, I'd hire someone with a backhoe to level it out and put in sod, but seeing as I don't have a few grand laying around (trust me, I've looked) I'm going to have to do it myself.

A few things I've got to do to get ready for the party:

Get a head count of everyone that's going to be there. I love how you send out email invitations and people reply that they might or might not come. Don't people RSVP anymore?

Clean every room in the house including (but not limited to): the laundry room, my bedroom, the daycare room and all three bathrooms (yes, the one in Nicole's room, too). The majority of people coming over haven't experienced the "grand tour" of the house, so they're going to want to see every room. Note to self, make sure ALL drawers are shut in your bedroom. Nosey people.

Price and purchase inexpensive decorations. We did a few balloons last year along with some matching table clothes that worked just fine. I think the balloons were a little pricey, though. If anyone knows of a good party store in Salt Lake, let me know!

Make sure that Mia's dad follows through with buying the cake. I know the guy means well, but seriously, when he says he's going to do something I have to constantly remind him to find time to actually follow through with it.

Don't freak out on Nicole. We're doing this together and we both know I'm a little obsessive when it comes to throwing things like this together. I freak out over the tiniest issue. This year, I'm not going to freak. Promise.

Breathe. I know that, come Saturday morning, I will have experienced a few stress migraines. We're having a low-key barbecue and party for the girls. The Queen of England isn't coming (and neither is my mother), so I just need to chill. Can anyone spare an extra Xanax? How about a bottle of Vodka? Raspberry flavored, please.

Hopefully things flow seamlessly this week leading up to the big day. I'll be sure to post some pics of the party after. Wish me luck!