Henry's First Birthday (Party)

Because Henry and Isaac have birthdays only five days apart from each other, all the birthday party excuses I outlined in my last post about Isaac, also apply to Henry's birthday.  Henry just turned seven, and like Isaac, he's never had a birthday party either.

So a few weeks ago when I agreed to let Isaac have his first birthday party, I immediately knew I had signed up to throw a party for each of my kids this year.  Earlier in the week, when I saw that a perfect day had been forecasted for Saturday, I knew that that was the day to host Henry's party. Lucky for us, the forecasters were right, and Saturday was the most amazing day imaginable.

Henry had a hard time narrowing down his guest list, so we ended up having a party with 14 of the cutest seven-year-olds you have ever seen.  

Andrew and I (after perusing the internet thoroughly) thought up some fun games for the kids to play.  We had a game with a parachute and bouncy-balls.  There was an Orea eating competition.  There was a game in which the kids had to use a straw to make a face with M&Ms.  There was a race using a straw to blow a cup down the table and for the grand finale, there was a water balloon toss.

We assumed these games would take anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour to get through.  What we didn't take into account was the boy who just wanted to hang out in the tree house, or the girls who didn't want to compete against the boys or the boy who had a peanut allergy and couldn't take part in the M&Ms game.  

All I know is that we were somewhat shocked (and dismayed) when 20 minutes after the games started, the kids were done.  We still had an hour and half before the party ended and we had pretty much burned through all our tricks.   

Luckily for us, it was a hot day and all it took was turning on the hose to keep the kids entertained for the remainder of the party.  There was jumping on the tramp while someone sprayed them with the hose, filling up more water balloons, and then there was this hilarious girl who just kept filling up the silver bowl and dumping it on her head.  

We also had a raucous game of Red Rover.  Yes, as a family, we enjoy sponsoring games and activities that are banned by public schools everywhere.  

Finally it was time to open presents and eat brownie sundaes.  When Isaac saw how many presents Henry got from inviting fourteen friends, he was really disappointed with himself for having only invited five friends to his birthday party.  Live and learn, Isaac.

Andrew ate all the brownie edges before Henry even blew out the candles. 

Anyway, it was a fun afternoon.  Henry invited such a cute group of kids and we loved having them all at our house.  

Most of all, we love our Henry.  He brings so much joy and laughter to our family.  The day before his birthday, his hair was getting shaggy and I asked if I could please trim it a little.  Well, one thing led to another and given my poor haircutting skills, poor Henry ended up with a buzz (which he had specifically said he DID NOT want.)  I felt really bad, but Henry took it all in stride and forgave me for ruining his long locks of hair.

Henry is a great boy.  He works hard in school and is learning Spanish so well.  He loves to sing and has some great dance moves.  He has so many friends (as evidenced in the picture above) and his siblings adore him.  Everyday, I am grateful that this boy is part of our family.

Happy Birthday Henry-boy!  You will always be my Minnesota Sun, and I love you!

Isaac's First Birthday (Party)

So here's a question for you: what kind of mother would make her child wait until his 9th birthday before he finally got a birthday party?

Oh wait,  that would be me.

Before I continue,  let me outline the valid reasons, lame excuses for why, up until now, Isaac has never had a birthday party.

1. Spring Break:  Isaac's birthday has fallen over spring break several times.  So, lest you feel too sorry for him, let me remind you that he has spent one birthday in Mexico and three birthdays at the beach in California.  Not too shabby if you ask me.

Isaac's First Birthday in Puerto Vallarta

2. Pregnancy: all of my children were born in the spring, in the days and weeks following Isaac's birthday.  That means, that for three of Isaac's birthdays, I have been in the final weeks of pregnancy.  And let me be honest here; in the final weeks of pregnancy, I have a hard enough time getting dressed in the morning, let alone hosting any kind of birthday party.

Isaac's 2nd Birthday when I was four days away from delivering 10 lbs 6 oz of Henry.  

Isaac later told me, "You was fat - like a horse." (Best line ever!)

Well, a few weeks ago, when Isaac came to me with his big blue eyes and asked with his most gentle and sincere voice if he could have a birthday party this year, I didn't have a single excuse for him.  There was nothing I could say, except "Let's have a party!"

Isaac was thrilled and fortunately for me, he knew exactly what he wanted to do.

He wanted to have a Star Wars party and invite a few of his friends to go see "The Phantom Menace" in 3-D in the theater.  Because I have no interest in or appreciation for anything relating to Star Wars, I knew this was the perfect job for Andrew.  I would feed the kids dinner - and he could take them to the movie.  Perfect!

Abby was excited to help me get ready for the party.  Together, we hung streamers and balloons.  We made clever name cards identifying the food and Abby made a poster welcoming the guests to the party.

Abby's sign welcoming Isaac's friends

Not the best photography skills, but you get the idea.

In any case, Isaac's friends came.  They ate pizza.  They had a burping contest.  They were fascinated by the candles on the cupcakes and wanted to spend the next 20 minutes playing with fire.   They were mildly obnoxious, but they were cute, typical, nine-year-old boys and Isaac loved having his friends over for his first birthday party!

When it came time for the boys to leave to go to the movie, Abby was totally worn out and exasperated.  She  was so incensed that not one of those nine-year-olds had commented on her sign or the decorations or the clever names we had for the food.  She was delighted when they left and she could recover from the stress of the party.

So, it was a good day for both Abby and Isaac.  Isaac had his first party and felt loved and celebrated by his parents and his friends.  He went to see Phantom Menace and opened presents and loved every minute of his day.  

And for Abby, she learned one of the fundamental differences between boys and girls: girls are all about the cute and clever details, and the boys are just there for the food.  Get used to it.

My tired boy on the morning of his birthday.

Happy Birthday dearest Isaac.  We love you beyond words.  And if you want, you can start planning now for your next party - nine years from now when you turn 18.

What Lucy Loves...

On Sunday morning, during the usual rush to get ready for church, we were five minutes away from walking out the door, when suddenly Lucy started throwing-up.  

Naturally, she was already dressed for church and she got vomit all over her dress, all over her shoes,  and all over the kitchen floor.  It just kept coming and coming, poor girl.

It turned out to be the first of several bouts she would have with barf that day.  It was a miserable day for Lucy and I felt so sorry for my poor baby.

That night, when it was all over and I was getting her to bed, I snuggled and rocked her and told her how sorry I was that she had been sick that day.  Lucy looked up at me with her big brown eyes and with thoughtful and sincere contemplation said, 

"I don't like throwing-up.  I like binkies, princess dresses, and jammies."

Oh Lucy-girl, what a perfect summation of everything you love right now.  I couldn't have said it better myself.

Easter

After a perfect trip to the beach for spring break, followed by a long, long drive, we got home at midnight the night before Easter.  The kids were all exhausted and I was worn out as we all fell into bed shortly after arriving home.

The next morning, the kids woke up and came running out to see if the Easter Bunny had come.  Andrew and I looked at each other and realized, that in fact, no, the Easter Bunny had not come. Hmmmm.

"I guess he'll come while we're in church," we said.

Sure enough, when we got home from church at 3:30 in the afternoon, the Easter Bunny had finally come and had hid Easter baskets all over the yard.  It was a gorgeous Sunday afternoon and the kids had a great time searching for their baskets.

My two girls... Pretty in Pink

My Isaac - as sweet as can be, wearing the tie he tied himself.

Peter seems happy with the sidewalk chalk he got in his Easter basket.

Lucy holding a chocolate carrot, poised for disaster.

Moments after this picture was taken, that chocolate carrot ended up all down the front of Lucy's brand new Easter dress.  I generally try to stay calm in such situations, but in this case, the photo shoot was cut short and within minutes I had that dress off of her and in the laundry, hoping to save it from a life covered in stains. 

Poor Henry who was searching diligently for his Easter basket, was left out of any Easter pics.  Luckily, later in the day, Abby took this picture of Henry so at least we know he was around that day.

Isn't he cute? Henry is in the process of losing several teeth all at once.  

You can see that one dangling just begging to be yanked!

Anyway, thanks to my quick actions and serious laundry skills, Lucy's dress was saved and all was well, but poor Lucy spent the rest of the Easter egg hunt and the afternoon dressed like this:

Later in the day, Peter, who likes to understand how everything works came to me to talk about the Easter Bunny.  It was obvious, he'd been pondering all day, wondering why the Easter Bunny hadn't come in the morning.   

"I think I get it. " he said.  "Either the Easter Bunny is real, or else the people who don't go to church on Easter just come and hide the baskets while we're at church."  

I guess that is a logical explanation - and I couldn't really argue with him.

Every year I feel like it's a struggle to teach my kids and testify to them about the real meaning of Easter -  why we celebrate it and why it is the most beautiful of all holidays.  I hope that somewhere in the midst of bunnies and baskets and chocolate and stained Easter dresses, they understand the hope and the blessing of the Atonement and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.  

"One of the great consolations of this Easter season is that because Jesus walked such a long, lonely path utterly alone, we do not have to do so.... Trumpeted from the summit of Calvary is the truth that we will never be left alone nor unaided, even if sometimes we may feel that we are.  Truly the Redeemer of us all said: "I will not leave you comfortless: (My Father and) I will come to you and abide with you."

Jeffrey R. Holland

"None Were With Him"

Family Ski Day

When I was young, I was a pretty avid skier.  There were many years of my youth, that during the winter months, I was skiing almost every Saturday.  I was never a phenomenal skier, but I could definitely keep up with the best of them and there wasn't much of anything I couldn't get down.

As I've gotten older, I've become much more selective about when I'll ski.  I have zero interest in skiing on cold, gloomy days - no matter how good the snow conditions may be.  In fact, the only time I want to ski is in the spring - when the sky is blue, the snow is slushy and I can ski in short sleeves.  That is my kind of ski day!

So, a few weeks ago, on a gorgeous spring day, we pulled the kids out school early and hit the slopes for a Family Ski Day.  It couldn't have been more perfect!

Peter, Henry, Abby, Isaac and I pose for a picture.

Isaac and Henry ready to head the down the hill.

Peter has mastered the snowplow.  Look at that blue sky!

Lucy spent most her day eating snow while riding on Andrew's back.  She couldn't have been happier!

And Andrew couldn't have been happier having his whole family on the ski slopes.

Skiing with my girl.  I can barely keep up with her!

T-shirts and shades: my kind of ski day!

Andrew wishes every Saturday could be a family ski day, but with all the demands of life and busy schedules, I am pretty bad about making that happen.  Even still, it was an amazing day skiing with my favorite people and enjoying the beautiful spring weather.  It really was pretty close to heaven!