Super Suh-WEET

What a week.

I've decided to work backwards and start my string of posts with the most recent occurrence:

Shilo's Super Sweet 16.

Before you get your hopes up that we celebrated in the obscenely extravagant way all soon-to-be-16 teenagers dream of, shown regularly on a TV station we no longer have access to (good riddance), know that we are on a budget around here... with our money AND our time.

Lucky for us, Shi did not have high expectations, just a few simple requests:

Clothes for EFY; mainly colored jeans - the rage around these parts 

(thanks to some thrifty shopping, she ended up with 5 pairs of pants and some sandals on her limited budget)

Dinner at Crave

Blue Bell Coconut Fudge Ice Cream

I had a few simple celebratory surprises up my sleeve, too.

Since Shi was returning from Youth Conference the day of her birthday, and since the entire group would be unloading and picked up by parents from our cul-de-sac, I thought I would make sure everyone knew it was her birthday with a custom made-with-love birthday banner.  The day before I did a quick search on Pinterest, just to get a few ideas, then I set to work making this little baby:

It took practically the whole day to complete, but with Mar's assistance, it turned out as lovely as I had hoped.  Then I put together a few of these darling balloon flowers:

(Idea and tutorial here... although I skipped a few steps and just eyeballed the balloon size.  Easy peasy and oh-so-cute.)

I baked up some cupcakes, figuring those youth returning from 3 days of camping might like a little treat.

(Not necessarily my best cupcake day, but it would have to do.)

Mar was determined to decorate Shi's bedroom, so she whipped together this little ensemble in under 15 minutes.  

She had asked, begged, pleaded with me to help her fill Shi's bedroom with balloons, but I was all ballooned out, so she came up with this brilliant idea moments before the first carloads of youth were dumped across the street.  Who knew you could make such an awesome display with one simple balloon and a stack of post-it notes?  She's a creative genius, that girl.

The happy campers, Shi and Chey.  Not pictured:  Lex and Bill.  Happy, too, btw.

That evening we headed to Crave, where Shi ordered a Popper.

We've been wanting to try this fairly new burger joint out for a while, and sampled fried pickles (good, but salty), a s'more milkshake (burned edges of marshmallows included... yum), and fried cheese on our burgers.  Other than the "hottest thing I've ever had in my mouth" jalapenos on Shi's burger (she removed them from the fried - yes, FRIED - cream cheese after she tasted the first one), I think we would give them a thumbs up.  Probably not a place I would frequent OFTEN (a bazillion calories in a single meal), but a fun place for an occasional binge.  Lex even said they were "almost" as good as Five Guys, her burger obsession.

By the time we arrived back home, we were all too full for cupcakes and ice cream, so we decided to wait a few hours.  Shi unwrapped her gifts,

and then Bill took a dozer while Shi, Chey and I (it rhymes) went for a practice drive test.

When we got back home, we STILL weren't hungry, but decided that we certainly must sing and do candles anyway.

FYI.  Sixteen candles can fit onto your average-sized cupcake.

(I know... I'm singing - if you can call it singing - awfully and loud.  Probably just trying to compensate for those not as enthusiastic about giving things a party atmosphere.  Can you tell we were all tired?)

The finale:  a Shilo sandwich.

Love you, girlie!