lanier christmas party- sting

we've taken em to this party every year. mark lanier, a prominant attorney in houston, throws the biggest party i've ever seen each year, and it is always a blast. the musical guests are as amazing as his property is. miley cyrus was the entertainment em's first year, last year was

bon jovi, and this year was sting. i'm not even kidding.

here we are on the bus heading over to the party. yes, they charter everyone there. i think this year there were 9000 people.

em was in heaven as soon as we got there. her first stop? the porta potty. which was more like a half bath at someone's house. only it was in a trailer. em is obsessed with restrooms and asks if there is a restroom at any place we go to.
i could not love this picture (or these people) any more.

there were slides. she kicked off her boots before we even told her to.

and trains and animals (like a baby kangaroo. i know).

and the carosel with auntie and aaron.

our last stop was the ponies.

zonked. (dots baby got to come along, too).

also included that day was lots of food, cotton candy, popcorn, and hot chocolate. em had never had hot chocolate before and drank the entire cup without looking up. that evening, i asked her what her favorite part of the day was and she said, "um...the hot chocolate." (since then, she has asked for some each day. thanks to d's mom, our keurig coffee maker gets it ready for her in less than a minute!)

something that was not her favorite was the rockets' mascot. he was walking around and tapped em on the shoulder. when she turned around, she literally jumped and ran. poor thing had tears running down her face she was so scared. later she said, "i did not like that walking bear that touched me on the shoulder." pretty sure that won't stop her from going next year, though!