cade's {super bowl sunday} 4th birthday party!

This past Saturday we threw Cade a football themed party, on Super Bowl Sunday. Not going to lie...ever since he was born on Feb 3rd 2012, I have envisioned having a big birthday party on Super Bowl Sunday. I mean helloooooo...why not? Perfect timing. 

This was his first birthday in the new house (even though we've been here nearly a year) and I did want to throw one big bash for all of his friends to come over. Winter birthdays are hard. We never had enough room at our old house and for his second birthday, for instance, we rented a place because you could never plan to be outside because of the weather. This year we knew we since we now have a garage it was an easy place to put heaters and tables and huddle up if the weather was bad, but thank goodness it was an absolutely gorgeous sunny {somewhat warm} day aaaand I may or may not have used the "garage" idea as an excuse to get Chad to clean it out. HA! Cade's only request when asked what he wanted for his birthday or what he wanted to do for his birthday was always a "bouncy house". So that's exactly what we did. Here's a little recap of the fun afternoon...

"When your seven month old brother is as big as you are..."

basically.

my heart right here y'all...

outfits are from Kelly's Kids

Some of these pics were taken before everything was out on the food table. I really re-used a lot I already had for Sugar's gameday store windows and then I got some really inexpensive items at Oriental Trading and on sale last Fall AFTER football season was over. Always thinking ahead!

Cade's shirt: monogrammed by his Aunt "Monk" // rug I randomly had from Ikea // note: Chad's high school football jersey name patch used as decor. haha He played football from the time he was old enough TO play football. Mr. MVP.

Had to throw in some Panthers balloons {major cheap from Amazon}

These cute suckers were leftover from a gameday party we had at Sugar, so were the pom poms and the inflatable footballs {Oriental Trading}. 

my mom made this adorable "chicken ball football". Cade's cake was made by Aly Smith!

Can't believe my little booger is FOUR...

Again, this was the must have and the best part of the party. Instead of gifts the grandparents (and us) went in together to rent this sports themed obstacle course/slide and it. was. awesome. Jumping Jax actually brought it the night before and so when Cade woke up Sunday morning he was THRILLED and literally played on it all. day. Definitely got our money's worth and I would definitely recommend Jumping Jax of Greenwood. Great customer service and great variety of rentals!

one of our friends can cut out anything and made me this football that I later painted (at the last minute) for the garage door.

adorable oh-so-yummy cookies {close up pic on my last post} also by Aly Smith along with football decor I already had around the house. 

More {cheap} Oriental Trading goodness...

Aunt Coco and Charlie

noooo...he's not spoiled at all....

The littlest is loved by so many, including his "Auntie Bef"

but he best prefers naps on his Papa Josh. Oh the sweetness...

time for cake & ice cream...

quick pic with the birthday boy. I'm so sad we didn't get a pic of all four of us!

after cake & ice cream it was back to more sliding...

So much fun...

Throwing a big party is always exhausting, a wee bit stressful, and let's be honest...never really "cheap", no matter how hard you try. However, I will say that having your four year old look up at your husband and say "Daddy this is the BEST BIRTHDAY EVER!!" absolutely makes every extra strand of gray hair on my head worth it.

Last year we just had a small party at The Children's Museum in Greenville since I was pregnant with Charlie, so it was really a lot of fun to have ALL of his friends this year. He had a grand time and I actually love kids birthday parties. Granted next year we may just revert back to going somewhere fun, even if just our little family of four, but for now this past Sunday was one for the books...and whether a trip, a party, or just playing with friends at home...making memories is what it's all about. Hope Cade always remembers that above everything else! 

After the party a few friends hung around and we had buffalo chicken sliders, more apps and watched the big game. Bummed to see the Panthers lose, but I do love Peyton Manning and what an awesome awesome win for him. 

Big thank you to everyone who came out to have fun with us. Warms my heart to know how loved our little fella is and we are certainly blessed with the BEST friends and family EVA!! Love you all and love our future little QB, our sweet Cade :)