I love these two.  Wouldn’t they make the cutest couple?

And then they can get married and have some really pretty and really talented babies.  I also love that Zac can play the guitar…and SING!  Check out the “couple’s” appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show which included an impromptu duet.  They were on Ellen to promote their new animated movie, Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax, which opens in theatres on March 2nd.

Annabel wanted a pony at her birthday party this year so we started researching the option to bring a pony to our house.  I thought we could do another at-home celebration that would include pony rides for the kids around our backyard.  But when we drove out to the pony farm to meet with the owner, we knew we had to have the party THERE.

It was beautiful. The place not only had ponies to ride, but an adorable play area, a pony bounce house, miniature ponies to feed, a picnic table seating area, and just the complete serene farm feel.  It was such a cool discovery off a main road in Jacksonville. It’s called Hidden Fields.  Perfect.

We booked the party and Mama began the planning.  Thanks to Pinterest and Etsy, I had a blast looking for theme ideas.  I decided on a Shabby Chic Pony Party with lots of western elements.  And, of course, lots of pink for my baby girl.

We booked a catered BBQ lunch and the rest was up to me.  I had to plan the decorations, party favors, and of course, the birthday cake. Some of the items I copied directly from what I found on some amazing websites. Then I mixed in a little creativity.  There was a lot of stress toward the end (mainly because it was supposed to rain but, thank goodness!, the weather was perfect.)  All in all, the party was a huge success.  Mostly because Annabel’s eyes lit up when she saw everything.

There were 20 kids and their parents.  We were so happy that GG and Pop Pop could make it too.  All the kids rode ponies and went on a hay ride.  Annabel’s favorite thing was feeding the tiny ponies. She was taught to make an ice cream cone with the hay. The kids also spent time on the play area and the boys especially loved the bounce house.  Everyone filled their bellies with pulled pork, hot dogs, mac-n-cheese, baked beans, coleslaw, and salad.  The beverages were water, iced tea, and pink lemonade.  Then, we had the cutting of the cake and each child received a personal pink cupcake with a pony toy on top. I think some of the parents now plan to book their next party at the farm.  It was a great day. Yee Haw!

Here’s the party overview:

Annabel’s outfit:

-Dress: Gymboree

-Pink Cowboy Hat: Halloween Store

-Pink Cowboy Boots: Sheplers.com

-White Denim Jacket: Target

Decorations:

-Burlap and pink banner: Etsy shop Expressions In Design

-Metal treat cans with burlap ribbon: Jo-Ann Fabrics (bought ribbon separately)

-Small flower cans: Soup cans that I emptied, washed, and covered with a strip of scrapbook paper

-Pink bandana napkins: Oriental Trading

-Shabby chic frames for table signs: Homegoods

-Pony canvas art: Target

Favors:

-Treat bags: Walmart brown paper gift bags.  I glued on small doilies and then placed an initial sticker in the center.

-Bag tags: Jo-Ann Fabrics

-Chocolate horse lollipop: Etsy shop Mandies Candies

-Bandana, western necklace craft, horse bubble, and personalized crayon box: Oriental Trading

-Cowgirl and cowboy notepads and stickers: Celebration Express

-Kids western hats: Oriental Trading

Birthday Cake:

-Cake: Publix

-Cake pennant sign: Etsy shop Queen Bee Inspirations

-Cake plate: Local antique mart

-Cupcakes: Publix

-Wire cupcake stands: Michaels

-Pony cupcake toppers: Oriental Trading

Annabel turned four on February 15th and it’s been a whirlwind of fun.

First, she had her birthday party at home with her family. Then, this past Saturday, we had a pony farm celebration with all her friends. (More about the pony party tomorrow.)

This was a big year for my little girl.  She started preschool in the fall.  She is my social butterfly, but she is also very stubborn. Some mornings are met with an “I don’t want to go to school” attitude.  But as soon as she sees her classroom down the hall, she can’t stop herself from skipping all the way to her seat.  She knows her letters and numbers and has started writing her name.  She made some new friends and talks about them constantly.  While it felt like pulling teeth to get any school information out of her brother, Annabel jumps into my car and starts chatting about her day.  She loves to play with the boys on the playground.  She loves to color.  She loves books. But her passion is music.

She is constantly singing.  She sings songs (her favorites are “Party Rock Anthem” and “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer”), but she also sings stories.  I am amazed how she goes on and on with these awesome lyrics.  They always involve love and happiness and she always says, “I just made that up, Mama.”  When she’s playing alone with her room (instead of napping), all I hear is singing.

She is a sweetheart who loves to be in control and when she can’t, OH BOY, watch out. She is very headstrong.  It’s a bit tough to deal with at times, but I know she will always speak her mind.  She talks like a big kid and her favorite word right now is “actually.”  It’s hilarious.  She doesn’t always love to share.  It’s like the concept doesn’t make a lot of sense to her.  This is MY thing.  I’M playing with it. (Duh.) It makes me giggle because even her grumpy face is still so very cute.

Her face looks like a doll.  She is forever my tiny baby girl.  But she has grown so much this year. Her legs are long and lean.  She is the tallest girl in her class.  Her curly hair is growing and growing and I can’t even think about taking her to a hair salon to cut one single strand.  She hates when I have to brush it and detangle it every morning, but it’s her signature.  She is Annabel with the long, curly hair.

She still loves princesses and dress-up, but she also loves to play outside with her brother and all his friends.  She just got her first scooter so she can ride with the big kids.  She is very comfortable with the older crew and she will always speak her mind.  She is a tough girly-girl.  She is still passionate about pink.  She loves to make believe with all her dolls in her dollhouse.  She loves animals.  She wants to be an animal doctor when she grows up.

She is my little buddy.  We had our first pedicure together this year.  She loves to go with me for Starbucks treats.  She will help me clean the house. (Yay!)  But she’s becoming Daddy’s little girl more and more.  She can’t wait for him to come home so she can tell him all about school or just sit on his lap.

She can be shy and sweet, but also outgoing and demanding.  She is just a little mix of everything.  She’s a complicated little girl and we wouldn’t have it any other way.

Happy Fourth Birthday, Annabel Marie.  I love you.

I’m one of those suckers who loves Valentine’s Day.  I love the hearts.  I love the red, pink, and white.  I love flowers.  I love Hallmark cards and a big box of Godiva truffles.

My birthday is February 1st and my daughter’s birthday is February 15th, so I put up the Valentine’s Day decorations on January 31st.  We celebrate for the month, basically.  I love to look at all the hearts, “love” signs, and pictures my kids drew in school.  I just love…love.

Happy Valentine’s Day.

Whitney Houston passed away the day before the Grammy Awards at the age of 48. It’s so tragic when an unbelievably talented artist dies. It forces me to reexamine everything I loved about their music.  As soon as the news about Whitney’s death broke on TMZ and Twitter, my immediate thoughts went to her music.  And to all the memories. I remember watching the “How Will I Know” video on MTV and wishing I had that awesome hair bow.  ”Greatest Love of All” became my little “lift me up” anthem.  I first heard “I Will Always Love You” on the radio while I was studying in my college apartment.  I was stunned silent.  The song was so beautiful.  I haven’t really thought about Whitney much lately, but just like when Michael passed, she’s been front and center in my mind. She was a true talent with the most amazing voice.  It was all about the music.

It was fitting that Jennifer Hudson sang “I Will Always Love You” in Whitney’s honor last night at the Grammys in Los Angeles.  Jennifer has the voice that will do that song justice and she did not disappoint. It was all about the music.

The big winner of the night was the lovely Adele who is back from throat surgery and sounding better than ever.  She went six for six (!) which included Album, Song, and Record of the Year.   She won because she can sing.  She can sing alone in front of a microphone with no fireworks or set changes or fancy costumes.  It’s all about the music.

I also got a kick out of Bruno Mars and his fun set.  And, of course, I loved my girl, Taylor Swift.  She sang “Mean” and won a couple of awards too.  Katy Perry came out to kick some butt, and give some digs to her ex-husband Russell Brand, with her new song, “Part Of Me.”  Nicki Minaj gave me nightmares with her freaky deaky exorcism mini-operetta.  (I thought I was just getting old, but lots of Twitter folks didn’t get it either. )  Chris Brown was there and I just don’t understand the support he gets. (You should read this post by my fellow mom blogger, Mom-101.  You will be SHOCKED – or maybe you won’t be – by some of the Twitter comments she references from women defending Brown.)

I thought Rihanna did a great job lighting up the stage with her voice AND her dance moves and I even enjoyed the old school folks: The Beach Boys, Glen Campbell, Tony Bennett and Paul McCartney.  The Beach Boys, and especially the tributes from Maroon 5 and Foster the People, were a blast.  It’s amazing how Glen Campbell’s music has stayed with me all these years.  I remember being a little kid and my parents would play his records.  McCartney’s jam session at the end with Bruce Springsteen and Dave Grohl from Foo Fighters totally rocked.  I was surprised how much I enjoyed all the classic stuff.

But then I remembered.  It’s all about the music.

Getty Images

LMFAO is everywhere!  First, they made an appearance with Madonna during Sunday’s Super Bowl halftime show.  And last night their popular song “Sexy And I Know It” was performed on Fox’s Glee by the muy caliente, Ricky Martin. Ricky was making a special guest appearance as a community Spanish teacher.  He did an awesome job!  (Hopefully that means ANOTHER appearance??)

I had the pleasure of meeting Ricky many years ago and he was such a gentleman.  And EXTREMELY sexy.

I was so happy when Kelly Clarkson rocked the National Anthem at yesterday’s Super Bowl XLII extravaganza.  I had just met her Thursday night when she played a concert here in downtown Jacksonville.  It was my birthday present from my hubbie and Kelly was the cutest thing ever.  She was sporting her new bangs and I asked her about the Super Bowl. She said she was nervous and that she had been practicing A LOT.  Well, it paid off because she was flawless and did America proud.

What else happened at the Super Bowl?  Oh, yes.  The New York Giants beat the New England Patriots, 21 – 17.  It was a close game.  It was a good game.  My husband wanted the Giants to win, but the Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is just too cute not to root for.  And just look at this photo of heartbroken Brady being consoled by his supermodel wife Gisele Bundchen.  It was snapped right after he left the locker room.  I just think it’s a sweet moment.  (Next year, Tom!)

UPDATE:  Literally five minutes after I posted this “cute” photo, the video breaks showing Giselle saying some not-so-nice things about her husband’s teammates.  Oy.  Oh, and the PATRIOTS were favored to win, not the Giants.  I need to stop writing about sports, no?

Credit: Rob Carr/Getty

And then there was Madonna.  (Madonna.  Madonna. Madonna.  I just can’t stop.)  She put on an amazing halftime show which included her hits “Vogue,” “Music,” “Express Yourself,” and “Like A Prayer.”  She also performed her new song, “Give Me All Your Luvin” and I think I’m the only one in the universe who actually likes the song. Cee Lo Green came out and LMFAO performed  their enormously popular “Party Rock Anthem” with Madonna.  The whole thing was a lot of fun.

Photo: Timothy A. Clary/Getty Images

The commercials were just so-so this year.  The one that stands out is the only one I actually didn’t see.  (I was giving the kiddies a bath and I totally missed it.  And I could not convince Hubbie to hit the rewind button.)  Well, now I’ve seen it twenty times on YouTube.  It’s David Beckham for H&M.  They were introducing his new clothing/underwear/abs line?  I think I’ll end on this little advertisement.  You’re welcome.

On February 4th.  I like you, Florida.

Yay!  New Madonna music!  And a music video to go along with it! Is it 1985 again or what?

I’m really loving Madonna’s brand new single, “Give Me All Your Luvin.”  It’s so fun!  (And my son gives it two thumbs up.)  Madonna will perform “Give Me All Your Luvin” (and hopefully some of her mega hits) at this Sunday’s Super Bowl XLVI between the New York Giants and the New England Patriots.

“Give Me All Your Luvin” is available now on iTunes and you can check out the music video below.  I love the look.  It has some vintage 80s pop fun to it, but she keeps it current with rappers M.I.A. and Nicki Minaj as her loyal cheerleaders.  It’s the perfect football theme for Sunday’s game.  And Madonna looks amazing. I love the hot hairdos and the outfits.  Is she really 53 years old?

Annabel loves to sing.  She had such a blast in December because she would sing every single Christmas carol in the book. She loves to sing along to the radio or to the songs on her Hello Kitty keyboard.  Her favorite time with her GG is when they sing together from a songbook.  She will practice the songs from her preschool music class at home.

And now she has started singing conversations.  It’s the funniest thing.  I will ask her what she did in school and it turns into a song about playing with her friends.  She will draw a picture of a hippo and then walk around the room singing about it.  When she’s playing a board game with her brother, she will sing about every move she makes.  Every time she gets strapped into her car seat, she starts to sing about the last book she read or where we are going.  When we’re at Starbucks, she’ll sing about her love for chocolate milk and strawberry cake pops.

When we’re at home, these original songs will often be accompanied by a living room dance number.  But sometimes she’s just sitting on the couch and will get inspired by our search for a DVD.  She’s cute, that one.