Pink Lemonade Party!

We set our alarms for later than usual today, but still didn’t “sleep in” too much. We had some breakfast at home, packed up a bunch of stuff, and then split up to divide and conquer. Emerson and I started the day running errands to do Amazon returns, pick up party supplies and the cake, and we also went by Tallahassee Nurseries to try out a new-ish coffee trailer parked there.

The vibes/aesthetics of the place are perfect, but both of us said our drinks were… fine. (Pun intended, of course.) They have a very small menu, and only a few flavors, all of which are a little unique. Like, instead of just vanilla, it’s caramelized vanilla & orange blossom. Which is fine, but it’s honestly just a bit too unique. I also love a sweet coffee, and even though I asked for them to add extra sweetener, it still wasn’t too sweet. It was a fun little adventure, and a very cute cart, but there are plenty of other places in town I like way better.

We did however love taking our ice cold drinks and strolling through the greenhouse before heading out.

And then we headed up to my parents’ house to get everything set up for Emerson’s pink lemonade themed ninth birthday party! She came up with this cute little idea, and it turned out so good! It was perfect for the summer-time, and it all came together perfectly.

We did a simple little pink lemonade bar, with frozen strawberries, sliced lemons, and sprite if you wanted a bit of bubbles in your lemonade. And this was a HIT. I got 50 of those pink cups, and they were practically gone in like half the party time.

This was the biggest party we’ve ever had, with 11 friends, and 5 cousins! (By this point, two of the girls had to leave early.) But they all played really well together, and the pool was big enough for everyone. I got 8 new pool floats for the party, and everyone shared them really well too.

And just look at this absolutely beautiful cake Publix did for us! My mom told them what color icing Emmie wanted, and told them we wanted cute lemons, and it was stunning! Emmie also requested a strawberry fruit filling between the layers, and that was so pretty and very delicious.

Baby sister was rocking the pink strawberries to be on theme for the party.

And obviously big sister was perfect in her lemon bathing suit!

After the party ended and all the friends headed home, the whole giant family stayed for a big giant birthday meal together. Mom made taco-seasoned chicken in the crockpot, and made some rice, and we had all the toppings and fixings to make burrito bowls. Loved Hayden folding his hands for prayer time!

All of her friends brought her cute, homemade cards that are always so sweet, and sometimes funny too. And with a $5 bill from each of them, I’ll have to take her shopping one day to spend some of that, before it burns a hole in her pocket. And she got lots of great gifts from the family, like plenty of clothes, a harmonica (which she’s already obsessed with) a book sleeve & book marks, duffel bag, and some more things I can’t remember…

And mommy and daddy got her a new Kindle Fire tablet, to replace the one we got her six years ago before her heart surgery. That thing was battered and bruised and cracked, was stuffed to the gills with no more storage, and had seen better days. So clearly it was past time for this upgrade!

She had a great birthday party, with friends coming from school, church, and summer camp, and all getting along together well. Then we had a yummy family dinner, and she got great gifts! Truly, a great day together 🩷🍋 This sweet girl is easy to celebrate, and I’m so glad she had such a happy day today, surrounded by family and friends and plenty of pink lemonade for all!