Two Princesses

This was one of my favorite episodes of all time because I now have a video record of my beautiful daughters' "Princesses LUV Puppies" party! That day was truly so special and so much fun! We were able to enjoy the whole family and share in so much joy with our friends and their wonderful kids who came to celebrate with us! It was such an unbelievable party, and I cannot think of one single thing I loved the most about the party. I know for a fact I could never have done that party on my own, Amanda at FantasyFloralDesigns.com made it a success!

My daughters begged for a princess-themed party (AGAIN, ugh!), but I made them promise me that next year -- no more princesses! HA! I know that won't happen.

What better way to start a princess's day than have the twins' hair and makeup done, since they always beg mommy for that when I'm in hair/makeup! Any other day I'm wiping it off of them, but this time I was adding it to the girls! It was the perfect opportunity, and that's why I made it a costume party!

Since last year we also had a smaller "princess" party in our home for the twins' third birthday, I knew I had to do something to spice it up a bit, so why not give back to the community and bring puppies available for adoption to the party? And guess what: FIVE puppies were adopted at the party, and THREE more in the weeks after! Now THAT makes for a successful party! Thank you CompassionforCanines.org, for bringing those scrumptious puppies!

And of course, a princess party is not a true princess party without Ariel and Rapunzel! Well, at least that's what Melania and Mackenna thought! Those were the two characters they wanted there, and thank goodness for Ariel and Rapunzel at CreativePartiesforKids.com who helped keep 25 four-year-old princesses busy!!

The horse-drawn carriage (from cindycinderellacarriages.com) was the grand finale of the day, and it made for a magical memory that we will always reminisce about. I had tears in my eyes watching that carriage ride replayed.

There were so many other elements to the day, including the amazing food catered by PlumsCafe.com. Our menu for the day included purple and pink heart shaped PB&J or turkey sandwiches for the kids, and crab puppies, mini filet, or salmon sliders for the adults. AMAZING! The detailing on the puppy cupcakes, um, can you get any cuter than that?? Yes, actually, the princess tower cake was breathtaking too! Thank you TheCupcakeStoreOnline.com for those special touches! And let's not forget how important it is to be tan for a princess party! LOL! I love my girl, Nina, from TropicalTanAirbrush.com because she's mobile so I could still run the show while getting my tan on! Truthfully, I don't seem to have the time to do any errands for myself anymore. . .my errands all involve groceries, school, baseball, and dance at this point so I'm very thankful to have Nina. Plus her solution does not smell at all, it's not sticky and it lasts seven to nine days!! It's perfect!

One of my favorite moments, after watching this day unfold, was when we're all in the carriage and Jim is talking to the girls about what a great princess day it's been -- my heart melted when I saw that!

But at the end of the day, it's not about the cake or the candles, the puppies or the princess dress-up --it's about celebrating the life of my children who I am so lucky to have. Like I said in my toast, all three of us are blessed to be here today to celebrate those little miracle girls. It was the most difficult time in my life, being hospitalized for five days, not knowing whether my unborn daughters would be able to survive all that was going on with their mom's body.

If you would have heard my entire and complete toast, you would have heard me say that this party was not about all the frill and fluff, it was about celebrating two amazingly strong, healthy princesses who had a very difficult entrance into this world. Not a single day goes by that I don't thank God for what he gave us. When I think about how easily we could have lost either one of our girls, or myself, it puts a lump in my throat. And not only did I not lose them, but they are healthy and truly growing into good-hearted people. I'm also grateful that the Lord shined his light on me as well during the time. I too may not have made it. It's not that uncommon to have a pulmonary embolism during a pregnancy of multiples, but that doesn't make it any less scary! Lo and behold, all three of us pulled through! Thank you God!

So it's safe to say I have a special bond with my girls, but how cute was little Knight James?!? He was a proud brother that day! There's nothing more heartwarming than watching the kids pitch in to make each other happy, and it makes me feel like Jim and I are doing a pretty good job at showing these munchkins how to be there for each other!

It was a fun, beautiful day, and I wouldn't change a single thing about it. . .except for maybe some puppy pee! LOL!

Speaking of the special bond between mothers and daughters, I was surprised to see how heated things got between Vicki and Briana. OUCH! Briana has her concerns about Vicki's relationship, and Vicki has her concerns about Briana's relationship. Both women are right to investigate their own feelings about the other, because that's what two people who love each other do. When it comes to family, many times the people we judge the most harshly or have the sharpest tongue with are the ones we love the most. My girls are little now, but I am not looking forward to a conversation like that, which I know are inevitable.

EVERY mom has a moment like that with their daughter, at least my mom and I have, just not about those subjects. I do worry when I see Vicki and Bri in that moment, but they are very different people and I can see that both of their concerns are coming from a place of love, so they will work it out.

Hope all of you mother's out there had a fabulous day! I spent the day at my sister-in-law's house watching the kids play the pool. . .couldn't have asked for a better day! My son potted a sunflower for me, which has already sprouted, and my daughters painted hearts with their hands, which are in my office! I'm the luckiest mom I know!

To honor all of you incredible moms out there, I'm offering free shipping throughout the month of May on both Alexis Couture and Alexis by Tal Sheyn on EverythingAlexis.com! You deserve to look your best while doing the toughest job ever!

I'm enjoying talking to all of you on Twitter @AlexisBellino, and you can follow me on Facebook at "Alexis Bellino Verified Profile." Have a blessed week!

Miracles do happen,
Alexis