noa's playdate party

noa and i arrived home safely last sunday. she was an angel on the plane ride home. i did, however, let her do pretty much whatever she wanted. i gave her cookies for the first and last time. i let her crawl all over the plane. she looked like a homeless kid by the time we arrived. naturally, i changed her clothes upon arrival for the sake of elad's health. we hurried home to watch the big game, and sadly our cardinals fell a little short. on tuesday, a snow storm greeted mimi's arrival to connecticut. she came to celebrate noa's first birthday and help with all the birthday preparations. after trips to stew leonards, costco, party depot, and a & p, everything was in place for a playdate party worthy of noa. i didnt want a perfect party, just the party little noa deserved. moran came to our place the day before to help with food preparation. the day before noa's party, i started acting a bit crazy, so i placed a 911 call to moran and she came through big. she made platters, salads, glutten free cupcakes, and a cake for noa. mimi made a few decadent deserts that were so successful, the girls asked her to make one again for the group party. we transformed the family room into a playroom, hung baloons, adorned the place with "big one" decorations and her "welcome to noa's party sign."abba was big help the day before and he even surprised noa during his lunch hour. in the end, all went well at the party. her friends, rylee, riley, sophia, layla, will, and pike and their moms attended the party. she loved it when everyone sang to her, and she was relieved when i gave her chocolate cake after disappointing her with an angel food cake with strawberry frosting. after she had her cake, we stripped the babies down to their diapers and set a hill of cupcakes in the middle. we thought it would be more fun for them. the girls (except for layla and noa a little bit) showed little interest, but the boys on the other hand dove in with both hands. so, her special day went really well, and it was great to have her mimi and aunt moran here to help and celebrate. the following day, our friends jo and simon came over to see noa and congratulate her. they came bearing too many gifts, but noa did not complain. on sunday, we went into the city for brunch and window shopping, and noa did so well. she slept in her stroller on the way in the train, and then took her afternoon nap in her stroller on the go in the city. two b-day celebrations down and two to go....