Lainey Bug

This precious little Lainey bug turned one!

And we found the perfect wooden, ladybug scooter by Lionheart. It won all kinds of toy awards and I was thrilled to discover it came in the party theme!

An August birthday was sure to be hot, but Marianne transformed the backyard into a magnificent waterpark for all the kids. Who needs Schlitterbahn when you can get wet 'n' wild with the Hortons?

Everyone made it out to celebrate the bronze beauty! A crowd fit to honor such a sweet lady on such a special day.

Lainey and her amazing mommy and daddy have completely won over our hearts!  "Nainee" was one of our first friends for Liam to name. And who could blame him?

When it was time for cake, Lainey shared center stage with the most adorable pink frosted ladybug cake. It was almost too perfect to eat... almost!

And while she enjoyed her cake, custom dipped cake pops in several flavors were passed to the crowd. This is totally going to be banked in my party-planning memory. Not only were they precious, pot flower decorations... they were the perfect bite size party pleaser for every age!

The backyard was filled with laughter, great families and friends.

If there was an award for the "most attractive," Marianne's dad was sure to win. He "attracted" all the kids with his charm. Each one of them paid him a visit! Is he available to rent for our next party?

Another favorite attraction was the ice filled wheel barrow.

Marianne's creativity was definitely a party highlight! No detail was missed from the party sign, to the cakes, to the food labels, to the party favors... the perfect first birthday theme.

The ladybug is a special symbol in our house as my room always carried hundreds of them growing up in Corsicana. In fact, we thought they had disappeared once I left for college, but the night before Bill and I were to be married, my mom carefully hung my three-tiered veil in my room and when I woke up, I discovered hundreds and hundreds of them in my veil. It was truly amazing! Needless to say I do believe they are pretty lucky, and as the legend goes:

"In most cultures, the Ladybug is considered Lucky or to bring Good Luck. And stories vary about how this legend began. The most popular began in Europe during the Middle Ages when swarms of insects were destroying the crops. The farmers prayed to the Virgin Mary for help. Soon thereafter the Ladybugs came, devouring the plant-destroying insects and saving the crops. The farmers called these beautiful insects 'The Beetles of Our Lady' which over time became 'Lady Beetles' or 'Lady Bugs'. The red wings were said to represent the Virgin's cloak and the black spots were symbolic of both her joys and her sorrows."

Happy Birthday sweet Lainey Bug! I hope that the next years are full of joy and your first birthday brings you lots of 'luck'!