Under the Sea:: Ruby's 5th Birthday Party

This weekend I had the opportunity to photograph Ruby's 5th birthday party with all her friends. The theme centered around all things mermaid/under the sea and the decor was ocean blues - shells, streamers, pom poms, fish-shaped sandwiches, and even a visit from Ariel herself, complete with face-painting, a treasure hunt, and - at the end - "loot pails" for each child.

I took pictures of Ruby's princess party last year and wrote a simple blog post about it. Ruby's mom - Jen - is fabulous with planning parties and is quite honestly the hostess with the mostess :-) Jen has launched a business out of her love for planning and is gearing up for some upcoming parties. Check out Jen's newly created blog for previous parties and those to come! I am so thankful we had the opportunity to meet a few years ago...I count it a blessing to have her as a friend and watch her love on her daughter.

But back to the party..... The day couldn't have been nicer - temps in the 70s - and a little girl so excited about her special party. Here's the birthday girl:

 Mom and Dad with Ruby.....

 Such a happy little 5-year old:

 Playing with the flowers....just love that "poof" of the skirt...

 A pic of the girls with Ariel in the middle...they were so excited when she came...

 Ariel's response when one of the girls asked her a question:

Ruby doing the "craft" -- painting shells...

Ariel did face-painting too...all the girls ran to line up....birthday girl got a little heart...

 Beaming as she listens to her friends sing "Happy Birthday".....

 The moms whose girls came to the party....they are a great bunch of really sweet women...

 The dining room, all set for lunch... Jen did a great job taking care of every last detail...

The cutest little holder for pink lemonade that the girls loved...and look at those cute straws....

 The wonderful hostess....and mom extraordinaire. Jen is so gifted...she's really so talented. She made so many of the decorations and food items you see in this picture:

the streamers hanging, the marshmallows on the left of the table, the pom pom hanging, 

and put thought into each and every thing that took place that day. 

Jen, thanks so much for allowing me to be a part of Ruby's special day. I am so glad I was able to capture the moments so you could enjoy watching it unfold. Your creativity is inspiring. It's amazing what a year does to little ones...Ruby is such a sweet young lady and it's wonderful to know your journey and have her be such an incredible blessing in your and Jeff's lives.

Absolutely superb party...can't wait to hear about next year's theme!!!

(Click here to see more pics)