Gabe is 5 years old!

We had Gabe's 5th birthday party on Saturday. We had a lot of family come over and we had a great time! Since he was turning five, I wanted to make this birthday extra special. I put a lot of planning into it and had a blast doing all the preparations.


A couple of weeks before the party, I ordered the Life's a Party Cricut cartridge so I could make decorations. The treasure map and treasure chest were a couple of my favorites. I also made skulls and crossbones. At Halloween, Gabe was a pirate. My sister was having Anna's pictures taken at Portrait Innovations, so I decided to take Gabe in his costume for some studio pictures. I'm so glad I did! He loves pirates and I'm glad I'll always have these!

Here's the birthday cake I made. I found out how to make a stacked cake on Pinterest and then I did my best with tools I had here to frost it. I wish it would've turned out smoother, but it did taste really great! And, it beats paying $50+ for a cute custom cake. I got the pirate candle on clearance at Hobby Lobby (yes!) and I made the little cake toppers with the Cricut machine. Behind the cake are letters that spell "ARGH". I bought the letters at Hobby Lobby and decoupaged scrapbooking paper on the front of them. There's also a little skull that I bought at Halloween.

I really loved how this looked! I got the little Ikea stones at a local thrift store as well as the treasure bowl. Always check out your thrift stores for cheap idea decor!! I had the 'jewels' and pirates' gold left over from Gabe's Christmas treasure chest.

These were so fun too! I found the paper straws at Crate & Barrel on clearance. The skeleton straws came from the Dollar Store at Halloween. I had a couple of bread crumb containers that I covered in scrapbooking paper and put a couple of stickers on to decorate them to hold the straws. I made the little food description cards on the Cricut and put them next to the food items.

These individual 7 layer dips were a big hit! I found the recipe on Pinterest and went with it! They were super easy and they look great too.

Greg made these cupcake stands for me. We went to the dollar store and found some plates and glasses, turned the glasses upside down, epoxied the plates to the glass base, and then spray painted them a pirate red. I love how they turned out! And, I can keep them to use at Christmastime too. I made the little cupcake toppers (the treasure chests and the skull and crossbones) on the Cricut. I bought the 'G' ones at Hobby Lobby on clearance.

This was my 365 picture for today... I love, love, love this umbrella from Abba Herrman! How sweet is this? Gabe got some great gifts... Lego sets he didn't have (that was a miracle!!) and a lot of really sharp clothes. He's gonna be a little studmuffin!

Little Dougie fell asleep on Aunt Lindsey... how sweet! The little bugger was so tired! He's so sweet too... he was all smiley. What a little joy! I get to babysit him Jan 29th and I'm excited to have some baby time!

Happy 5th birthday, my sweet little pirate. Your mom and dad love you more than anything in this entire world. 5 years ago, we brought you home and you changed our lives only for the better. You have made us a family. I know I went a little overboard on this birthday, but I wanted it to be so very special for you. I know you're starting to make memories... This Christmas was very special and so was this birthday. Dad and I want you to look back on days like these and not remember the presents, the decorations, or the other trappings, but to remember how many people love you and how your parents wanted you to feel special on your day. We love you, Gabe Douglas.