Thursday, February 02, 2012

Party at the Little House in the {Little} Woods

The sixteenth of December dawned brightly, sun peeking over the mountains and pouring down into the valley. There would be no snow this day, no maple sugar candy makin', but she popped out of bed with her blonde tresses a mass of rag curl bumps and proclaimed, I don't even care!


And only two invitations had been sent, one for sweet cousin who is her best friend, and one to the grandparents, who like to receive and delight in that sort of thing; but the day promised to be full of the marvelous gift of family, celebrating our girl.

I'd made two muffs to warm the hands of girls who would be wearing the gift of prairie dresses, made so lovingly by their auntie, and the roast was in the (not-so-Little-House-like) crockpot, the loaves of bread wrapped and resting, and peppermint pies chilling. We hadn't planned for too much structure to the day, for when two six-year-old girls (who see each other far less often than they'd like) would finally grasp hands and jump up and down for joy till they were breathless, the day would gallop away and hardly be reined in for a schedule, for goodness' sake.

There were dresses to be opened and tried on, a special lunch at the (one) local restaurant, the sewing of yo-yo's for some handwork (that ended up being a mama project, as two little girls had plans of their own...), a walk in the little woods, a simple family supper, followed by fiddlin' and dancin' with Papa, and sweet peppermint pie.

Join me for a stroll through the memories of that fine day?

Heartfelt thanks to my sisters, Maddie and Bethany, for all of the photographs...
The invitation. (template found here)

In the morning, cousin, aunties, and Nana arrived first- time to open the dresses!

Oh, yours is lovely! Let's put them on and go to the woods!

These two hardly stopped laughing and being silly as we explored the woods, the river, and our small town.


Although the sun was out, it was crisp- they were happy for their warm, chenille-lined muffs!

I can't tell you how many pictures there were like this- I only wish the camera had caught their mamas casting off for a good laugh at the same time!




The menu: Beef roast, graham bread, and creamed carrots, all from The Little House Cookbook, with a slight variation on the roast...







She could hardly believe it was true... The Three Gifts of Christmas, for her very own!


And she thought she might know what this gift was, from Aunt Maddie...

It is! It is! A bonnet to match!


And now, what do you suppose might be so captivating over there?

Of course- it's Papa, with the fiddle!


Eliana couldn't get enough of watching for Papa's finger to "pop" for Pop, Goes the Weasel!

Sprinkling crushed candy canes on the peppermint pies- I couldn't have made them without her!


Six. She's six.

13 fellow travelers shared:

Sarah said...

Love all these pics!! Little House in The Big Woods is my nightly read with the girls right now, we're half way through. What a great idea for her birthday! Who made the dresses? Where did you get the patterns?

Unknown said...

My birthday is coming up. Do you think I'm too old for a Little House party? ;) I think it's the sweetest thing ever. So innocent and refreshing in a land of over-the-top (in theme and expense) parties for children.

I've missed your posts about life and was delighted to see this one pop up. :)

~nanashouse~ said...

Can I cry now? I'm also fast forwarding them to another time and place (and story) as sweet cousing puts the last of the Queen Anne's Lace in Eliana's hair as they stand on the shore of the White Sands Hotel. What a life of wonderment and adventure you are creating for your children.

Phyllis said...

That is the most wonderful and sweet birthday party I have ever seen. Magical. If only I had little girls...

Bekki said...

Happy Birthday to a precious girl! XOXO

Carrie said...

Oh my, what a sweet party for a precious girl.

Blessings, my friend,
Carrie

Linda said...

Oh Elise, what a perfect party. Thank you so much for sharing your pictures. You made such precious memories that day.

Kelly T said...

Happy birthday to your sweet girl!!

Anonymous said...

Sweet and wonderful day! Full of lovely and good times. I enjoyed seeing this with my 2 girlies (oldest will be 6 this year). I'm so glad they are so fond of "Little House". warmly from Mary Brooke

Audrey said...

Can it realy be 6 years already? Beautiful, sweet smiles...loved all the pictures!

Adriana@ClassicalQuest said...

These pictures are so beautiful, they actually brought tears to my eyes.

Only people who love Laura and have daughters would totally get it. Laura made us feel like welcome guests in the intimacy of her loving home. Your post reflected the spirit of that love and warmth so well. Thank you for sharing.
Blessings:)

Leah said...

How precious! What wonderful memories!

Leah said...

How precious and what wonderful memories were made!

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