So yeah ... it has been a while. A very long while. I need to work on that. In the meantime, it seems everyone cleaned their closets over Labor Day, including me! I have lots of hardly worn, many new with tags, boys and girls outfits and accessories ... simply follow @happinessiscloset on Instagram and happy browsing! Thanks to Leslie for this link up!

Happy Mardi Gras from New Orleans! I feel about Mardi Gras the way I know most people feel about Christmas: I can't wait for it to get here, I love everything about the season and then I'm sad when it's over. It was even more fun this year since Thatcher kind of got it and was really into everything, especially king cake. I wrote a post about the five life lessons we can teach our children through Mardi Gras, and it really made me glad that we have the chance to expose our children to such a unique and fun tradition.


I already can't wait for next year. While Mardi Gras is definitely different with kids, it's also just so much fun to see it through their eyes.

We celebrated Thatcher's birthday last weekend since this weekend is Mardi Gras. He absolutely loved his party, and it didn't take a ton of time or effort from me - win win! The girls at Sweet Birdie's Nest helped me with the invitation, and from there the rest just kind of took shape!


We went with a Mardi Gras Elmo theme, which ended up being perfect since Thatcher is really into Mardi Gras. He says "Happy Mardi Gras" and keeps asking to go catch beads, so I think he "gets" it as much as he can at this point. I did a more thorough recap over here, but I wanted to share some pictures from the party. There's a really sweet mom here who is just getting her photography business started, so she's doing pictures for free right now. It was so fun to get some shots from his party that we otherwise wouldn't have gotten. I think she did a really good job (any pictures that aren't watermarked are ones that I took).








Even though I knew Christie was taking pictures, I couldn't help take some myself, too! Thatcher really had such a fun time, and it was cute to see how excited he was about all of the Sesame Street stuff in one place. He also had a blast playing at the playground with all of his friends, and I honestly don't see a reason to ever pay for a birthday party venue. Every last kid was thrilled to run around outside and play with the balloons!








Sunday is his actual birthday, which we'll be celebrating on the parade route!

Several of you have asked me how the transition from 1 to 2 has gone, and I shared my thoughts on that earlier today over on the New Orleans Moms Blog. It can be summed up with two words: it's hard.

In fact, time is flying like crazy because we just don't have time to stop! Hadley had her 2 month check up on Monday, and I was so nervous about her weight since Thatcher had issues in the early months. Girl knows how to put on the pounds, though! She was up to 10 pounds, 3 ounces, so we're hoping she can keep this up!



Here's the obligatory comparison shot of Thatcher. It's funny because I think they still bear some resemblance to one another but are also starting to look pretty different! The husband claims he doesn't think they look alike at all, but I still see some similarities.





Hadley is wearing size 1 diapers, smiling a lot and sleeping sporadically. She definitely makes her presence known and doesn't like to be left alone for too long. She's got a set of lungs on her! I keep telling myself it will serve her well later in life...right?!?

This past weekend we decided to take the kids to a parade after a friend's birthday party. I was pretty nervous about taking Hadley since she detests the car seat and stroller, but we decided to go for it. I can only stay away from Mardi Gras for so long! Thatcher had a blast, though one parade was all Hadley could handle!



We'll probably leave Hadley home during Mardi Gras weekend itself, but I'm glad that she's experienced her first parade! Thatcher was only a few weeks old during his first Mardi Gras - we start them young!