Morgie Turns 3

For Morgan's third birthday (yes, this post is a little late :) we decided to throw a party at one of his favorite places, Clark's Elioak Farm in Ellicott City, MD. We invited his future preschool class to join us as we thought this would be a great opportunity for everyone to meet each other before the school year started.

The farm is truly a magical place as it houses several classic childhood storybook characters that were rescued from the Ellicott City's famous Enchanted Forrest. It reminds me of going to StoryLand in Glen, NH as a kid, but in a much smaller, more intimate setting.

Although they have birthday packages available, we were going to have a small enough party that I thought it would be easier to go a la carte and just wing it. Prices at the farm are extremely reasonable so as party favors we paid for admission, provided feed for the petting farm and had tickets for everyone to enjoy the various rides.

Morgan loves riding the ponies!

The Cow Train is always a hit!

It was 105 that day, making food transportation from Silver Spring a logistical nightmare, so we had the local Pizza Hut deliver fresh pizza right to our reserved table. One of our little guests had egg and peanut allergies so I picked up some delicious vegan and nut-free cupcakes from Sticky Fingers in DC. I wish I had a better picture of the cupcakes, but after warning Scott several times to make sure the soft cooler stayed upright so dessert wouldn't get smushed, I tipped them over.

Now the type A in me cringed at the idea that the cupcakes looked less than perfect for the presentation but the type B in me prevailed knowing that the kids didn't care what they looked like they just wanted to dig in... and they did :)

Morgan devoured his Sticky Fingers Cupcake

Reese's Peanut Butter Ice Cream Cake from Giant

Life is all about balance. Last year a lot of culinary effort went into Morgie's 2nd birthday so this year it was all about keeping it simple. It was such a hit that Scott would prefer to continue this trend until Morgan is 18 :)

If you live in the DC or Baltimore area I highly recommend getting a family membership pass for the farm. Although we live 10 minutes from the National Zoo (and are FONZ members), I much prefer making the 30 minute drive to the farm during the summer because it's not nearly as crowded and we always get hands on time with the animals. During the fall they have a pumpkin patch, small pumpkins are only $2.75 and parking is still free. The Castle Store sells locally grown grass fed beef, pastured pork, naturally raised lamb, fresh eggs and there is a small produce stand adjacent to the main parking lot.