Star Wars Episode 6 and 9

The boys have been into a Star Wars kick.  They had a couple of books that they read over and over, and a friend let us borrow the oldest movies and then they were hooked.

So Star Wars it was for their birthday this year.  I was celebrating only having to do one party.

I even found a few party supplies here!

Easy sandwiches, chips, sliced veggies, grape light sabers and jello. 

A big hit with all the kids

We played a few games.  The boys had received a BB8 that operates with a remote control thanks to their Aunt and Uncle.

This was a hit.

Jedi Training

More training

Then it was cake time.

Calvin chose BB8

Micah wanted a Chewbacca cake

 

A few of the party goers

BB8

 Captain Phasma

 Finn

 And Princess Leia

And we wrapped up the training with some Lego Star Wars.

 A fantastic way to celebrate turning 6 and 9!

Judah's 3rd birthday party

Judah is a sports lover and the kid has some amazing coordination.  So despite having a ball party for his 2nd party we repeated the theme and threw in a few more of his beloved sports.

Here we are setting up for the party.  A baseball table

And a football table.  And some baseball décor.

 An Allstar party would not be complete without a concession stand.

We played a few games outside.

First up we did a little target practice for points

 A round of putt putt, made more challenging by our less than smooth surface.

 Beach towel volleyball, and hammer throw of our hippity hop. It was a great time.

 Once this guy found that the golf club was no longer being used it was in his hands the rest of the game time.

 Our little All Star loved all the fun.

We are so thankful we got to share his birthday with dear friends.

4 Years Sweeter

This is the closest we've ever been to Seth's grave on his birthday, so we seized the opportunity and decorated his stone.  We arrived back home on his birthday and a sweet friend had a cake waiting for us, but didn't discover it until after Marvin ran to the store to get a cake.

Regardless of where we are on his birthday, it's a day we treasure the blessings the Lord's given to us.  I've realized that it will never be how I want to spend the day but I soak up the Lord's goodness and comfort especially every June 1st.

One Year Old Drew

How quickly a year goes by.  It's mind boggling how the days....and nights feel so long when you are in it, but then suddenly a year has passed.

Drew is such a delightful baby.  Super snuggler, which warms his mama's heart.  But he's really a daddy's boy.

He finally took off walking at 11 months.  He took his first steps around 10 months but he's a cautious one and wouldn't take off on his own until he felt fully confident in his new skill.

Eating has been a challenge and nurses more than the average 1 year old but it's nourishing him, and he's growing.  He'll eat yogurt, cheerios and bananas, apple sauce and occasionally bread.  An area he needs to grow in this coming year.

Sleeping is still another area that he's still working on.  He naps like a champ, twice a day and he's ready for those but he's still waking up twice a night to nurse.  I'm hoping once he embraces solids that will change.  We moved him to the living room to see if he'll start sleeping better, so he's officially out of our room half the night.

He's making me an early riser, and loves his quiet play time with just Mommy at 5:00 a.m.  I'm grateful for the time and memories of our early mornings.

He loves his big brothers.  He's developed a special bond with each of them, but we like to call Micah the baby whisperer, and Drew especially loves the attention Micah gives him.

He tolerates books, I'm hoping this will grow more this next year, but loves balls, and enjoys swinging on the playground.

He's really an easy going guy and it's an incredible honor to be his mama and for all these memories we have made his first year of life.

Last First Birthday

I love creating special parties for my boys and this one left me with a little lump in my throat, as it will be the last 1st birthday I ever get to plan.  So I wanted it to be sweet.  And found the Wild One theme and ran with it.

This year I decided to make a small smash cake and cupcakes and cookies, since I found the cutest little cupcake toppers at Hobby Lobby.

Smash Cake

Loved the Cupcake toppers

A few little hedgehog cake balls

I made a few feathers for decorations and printed several fun prints I found for decoration.

Even made a little hedgehog cheese ball.

Party food.  Simple and perfect!

We played a couple of games, one was identifying the sound of the baby forest animals.

My happy Little Wild One

Year 2: Drew

This guy has truly been the sweetest little one.  He's such a flexible guy, he truly rolls with our crazy schedule most of the time.  We are so thankful for that.

His personality has really shone through this year.  He's got quite a goofy side to him.  His favorite way to get a laugh is saying "shake your booty." It first started with "booty, booty".  (This is thanks to a singing card one of the boys got for the birthday that was well loved and well played.)

He's quite obsessed with balls and rocks or anything he can throw.  He can kick a ball for hours and be the happiest kid in the world.  His feet prefer to be on the ground, but after a lot of encouragement he also enjoys the slide.

A cautious one for sure.  This is new territory for us, as we've never had a child who knew fear.

He finally started sleeping through the night right as we went to the states, and dropped down to one nap a day.  He needed a few nights to cry it out, and we didn't think our neighbors would enjoy noise also in the middle of the night.

I am thankful for a full night of sleep it feels so good to sleep all night long.  He still loves his thumb, especially as he gets tired.

He loves to curl up with a book, and follow Judah around, he's figured out how to play with the big boys, so you'll often find him with a sword or Nerf gun in his hand.

Thankfully his eating habits have improved, and he's increased the number of foods he will eat, but at times he's still pretty finicky.  At two his favorites are: lunch meat, cheese, cucumbers, yogurt, and he loves almost all fruit.  What turns him into crazy toddler is candy and juice, so we make sure they are far from him.  To avoid any meltdowns.

One thing Drew dislikes is when his hands get dirty, it paralyzes him,  Seriously.  Breakfast is a test of my patience, if a drop of yogurt gets on his hand or even the table he'll screech until it's wiped up.

Even with a few of his quirks, I am so grateful for this 5th blessing in our lives.  He's a sweet, sweet gift from the Lord and I rejoice in how he was made and look forward to seeing what this year holds.

Dusting off this Page

Life has been a wee bit overwhelming in the last few years.  Apparently having a baby and a high energy toddler and two school age children might have something to do with this crazy little stage of life.  So this little space has been very neglected, but I have missed it.

My little space on the internet to record and process where life has taken us.

So be ready, for a bunch of posts to come at you. I have a lot of catching up to do.  So that one day I can print this little blog of mine into a nice little family history book.  One day…..baby steps.

Peek-a-Who? Drew is TWO!

In honor of Drew's favorite book.  Peek-a-who by Nina Laden.  I had a little fun creating a his second birthday party.

A bit of décor.

A Little Food inspired by each page of the book:

Peek-a-Who:  Owl Veggie Tray

Peek-a-Boo: Barbe-boo sandwiches

Peek-a-Moo: Grilled Cheese Sandwiches (birthday boy favorite)

Peek-a-Zoo:  Animal crackers

Peek-a-choo choo:  train around salad

Peek-a-Drew loves chips!

Birthday boy enjoying his dinner.

I couldn't resist making a photo prop.

I couldn't resist making a photo prop.

One game of the day Peek-a-who? They had to guess who was under the picture.

Then Dessert!

As I went to make this cake the night before our power went out. So I abandoned that project and had a little 3 year old helper right beside me, who heard "Don't touch mommy's arms"  the whole time I decorated this cake.

Oreo frosting for the win!

Someone got a little shy when we started to sing happy birthday.

Big Bro came in for a little candle blowing assistance.

It is such an honor to get to celebrate each of our boy's birthdays.