Birthday week

Yes, it was almost a full week of celebrating for the boys 4th birthday. We had the boys actual party the Sunday before the birthday, with their birthday falling on a Wednesday we wanted to do it on the closest weekend day before the day. The party was great and loosely Cars themed. We are still doing family only for the party, maybe next year will start inviting friends.
We ate pizza, the boys opened their gifts. They each got some action figures, a Spiderman each. Andrew got Superman, Nicholas got Green Lantern and Parker got Batman. They also were given capes and masks so they could be super heroes. The are loving their new scooters and cedar playhouse. The boys have loved their scooters and getting good zooming around on the sidewalk. We’ve spent a lot of time in the back yard while the boys played in their playhouse.  Some random photos from the party.

Parker, Nicholas, Andrew

I made the boys their own cakes and decorated them with Lightning McQueen and Tow Mater.

In an attempt to get caught up (started this post 3 days ago) I’ll have to finish the birthday fun tomorrow.

Our weekend in camera phone pictures

Like most weekends we were busy, Cody has been at a work conference all week and Saturday was a team builder day of snowboarding for those that wanted to go. Of course Cody wanted to go, the boys and I had plans at Home Depot to make bird feeders. Thank goodness our friend Amy came with her boys so we had an extra set of hands.

Bird feeders were built and painted, I hung them up today. These workshops are so much fun and the boys really got into the painting this time. They almost didn’t want to help build the feeders because they were to excited to paint.
After we left Home Depot we had to run to the store to exchange some pajamas for the correct size (I can’t believe we’re in mediums) before lunch and naptime.
After nap I took the boys to the peace gardens for the first time to let them run around. They had a blast running around, climbing everything and rolling down the hills. They even cooperate for a couple pictures.

We saw a lot of photographers roaming around doing family, engagement or bridal shoots. The boys were interested in some of them. Nicholas wanted to know where their lights were, all were natural light only shoots. Parker kept referring to the bride as a princess and Andrew kept repeating “girls are princesses, boys are just boys.” They even sat down to watch one of the photographers work. I kept them far enough back to be out of way and the couple got a kick out of them.

We stopped for dinner and the boys were exhausted when we got home. Cody made it home just in time to go in for goodnight hugs.

Sunday Cody went snowboading again, so the boys and I had a fairly lazy morning before going out for bagels and then driving up to Snowbird so the boys could see their Daddy snowboarding. They were so excited to see him on the mountain, waving and jumping up and down.

The boys each took a turn standing on his board (with him holding it up) and talked about learning to snowboard so they could go down the mountain with Daddy. Sounds like it’s time to get them some lessons!
After nap we headed for the park with Cody’s RC truck to play until dinner time. One of the boys favorite things to do is set up plastic cones and have Cody crash into them, so while he was driving around the tennis court they decided they were the cones.

They lined up over and over again cheering to be crashed.

It was a long and exhausting weekend. I think the boys are actually getting a little easier as the get older, I can’t believe we are just weeks from their birthday.

More Easter

We stayed up way too late the night before Easter, so when the boys woke us on Easter morning we quickly got the boys dressed and headed to the backyard. This year we didn’t dye eggs, it seems like we just ran out of time and I wasn’t looking forward to dye being all over the house. Beyond not having to clean up egg mess, it also meant not having to eat hard boiled eggs for a week. I’m the only one in the house right now that will eat them.

There each had 16 candy filled eggs to find. I learned that an early Easter makes egg hiding much more challenging, our yard is nearly flat with out any good hiding spots. The boys made quick work of the yard, finding the obvious eggs then working together to make sure they had all of them.

The eggs were found and we managed to bribe them for some photos, it’s very hard to bribe your kids when they are holding a basket full of chocolate.

Photos over the candy-fest began.

It’s a good thing Easter is only once a year, the boys were on an all day sugar high.

We managed to get some real food into the boys before heading to Cody’s parents for another egg hunt with the rest of the family. The Easter bunny at Grandma’s house hides eggs of different colors for each kid to find, the older the child the more difficult they are to find.

Andrew was after the yellow eggs, Parker the orange and Nicholas the green

Luckily not all of the eggs had candy in them, everyone received some small toys to play with. The slinkies were a huge hit as were the slap bracelets. We missed nap time, so after just a few hours the boys were so done. We came home and put them straight to bed.

Easter egg hunt number one

I can’t believe I haven’t blogged anything for over 2 months now. I just seemed to get out of the habit and we have been sticking to the same routine each week. For Easter we were invited to go to a big egg hunt Saturday afternoon in Salem. It was a long drive but we were rewarded with the sight of hundreds of people walking to or from the annual Holi Festival of Colors. The boys loved seeing all of the colorful people.
This was by far the largest egg hunt I’ve ever seen at a persons home. The hunt was separated by age groups, between my boys and our friend’s son they made up the majority of the 5 and under group. Each child was told to find 10 to 15 eggs and a bucket in the designated area.
It was very interesting to see the boys different approaches to the hunt. Parker went straight for the largest eggs available, Nicholas picked up a few eggs and opened them before deciding if he wanted them or not. Andrew found an old Hotwheel in the sandbox and was done.

I dressed the boys in their ‘gymnastic shirts’ since we would be meeting a lot of new people and it makes it easier for everyone. In addition to the egg hunt the yard also had some very cool toys. There was a bike for 5 that would be awesome to have in any back yard, but out of our price range. The boys had to be redirected multiple times to keep searching for eggs because the bike was just to much fun.

Along with the bike the boys also had a great time on the teeter totter. It was nice to get some photos of genuine smiles, we have entered the odd 3 to 5 year old smile stage that is all squinty and cheesy.

After the egg hunt all of the kids had a chance to play on the playground and some of the other outside toys. Of course the boys found the Lightning McQueen and were even willing to share it. They took turns with who was driving, who was the passenger and who was sitting on the back of the car. I took a fair number of photos, but this is my favorite.

Maybe a glimpse into the teenage years? The boys had a blast, got a bunch of candy, small toys and a stuffed animal that they sleep with every night and insist on taking in the car on the drive to daycare everyday.We spent about 3 hours there and then it took over 2 hours to drive home due to all of the traffic from the festival. Sadly no one fell asleep on the drive until we were only 20 minutes away from home.
In addition to being the day before Easter it was also TableTop Day, so we had plans to play board games with friends. Complete with miniature trophy presentation. We played Zombie Dice, Pandemic, and Dixit as usual I didn’t win a single game and Pandemic beat us. It was a long day, but we all had a great time.

Bowling playdate

Last Friday we braved the snow, we had over a foot and a half fall between Thursday afternoon and early Sunday morning, to meet some friends at a local bowling alley. It was me and the boys and two friends with their triplets and one infant. In total it we had 10 kids 4 and under with just 3 adults. All of the kids did surprisingly well staying focused and interested in bowling for the first 8 frames.
My boys were just fascinated with the ball return and left it only to have their turns.

I tried to get a group photo, with minimal success.

They used bumpers and ball launchers to make it a lot easier. Everyone had a great time and most of the kids were happily playing until about the 8th frame when they were very ready for lunch. It only took a few frames for the boys to understand that they had to wait their turn and that they got to roll two balls on that turn. Parker and Andrew each got a strike which I thought was great, but it meant they only got to roll one ball causing a mini meltdown.
The boys got really into lining up the shot, especially Nicholas.

We had the entire bowling alley to ourselves for the first hour and a half before a couple of league games started at the far end of the lanes. We ate lunch after finishing our game and watched as the crowds started to arrive. By 2 pm the place was filling up and we were happy to be on our way out. Next time we plan to arrive a little earlier to beat the crowds and bowl 5 frames before lunch then finish after eating to keep the kids interested.
I was so happy to get the boys out to play, I feel like we been trapped at home with the cold and being sick for the last two months. They are still talking about all of their friends and how much fun bowling is nearly a week later.

Christmas

The flu hit our family (well everyone but me) this week so I’m still trying to catch up. We had a very nice Christmas this year, the boys were very excited that Santa was coming. Since we had a late night on Christmas Eve we set the boys clock to get them up at 8:15. We bought a new clock for their bedroom a few weeks ago to stop the boys from getting up at 6:15 on weekends. At night it glows yellow and works as a night light, but at a set time the clock turns green. The boys know that when it’s yellow “stay in our bed and be quiet” but when it’s green they can get out of bed. While they haven’t done so great at the staying quiet part, they do stay in their beds and keep it to a dull roar until at least 7:30.
With the boys staying in bed until a reasonable hour, Cody and I had time to get up and ready for the day before getting them up. We let them know Santa had come and they rushed downstairs. Nicholas made it to the pile of gifts first trying to figure out which one was his.

Santa brought Andrew his requested cement truck, Parker his red race car and Nicholas a school bus. Their stockings were stuffed with a plush transforming triplet (from Brave) some candy, and a small coin bank. Everyone got a color changing Hotwheels and a giant Pixar activity/coloring book. To share the opened some Disney figures, Hotwheels and racing ramp. While the boys were playing with their new toys Cody and I opened our gifts. Cody got a camera lens from Santa and I got a new purse and some books, the boys were happy that Santa brought us each what we asked for.

We let the boys play with the new toys for a little while before getting dressed and heading out to our first stop.

They really just wanted to stay and color.

First stop was visiting my uncle two of my cousins also came over to visit. They boys had a blast playing with the trucks their great uncle gave them and talking to their second cousins.

At one point my cousins were trying to convince the boys to go home with them, Parker was all for it and Andrew was persuaded by the promise of lots of toys to play with. Nicholas was very against the idea and was trying to pull his brothers out of their laps telling them that he and his brothers need to stay with Mommy and Daddy. It was adorable how insistent he was about staying with his brothers. They all agreed that they we should all go play with the Lightning McQueen toys together.
When we left the boys were so ready for a nap and we had some time to burn before our next stop. We took a nice long drive and grabbed some lunch. Since we knew we would have another late night it was a good thing the boys zonked out in the car.

The last stop for the day was at Cody’s parents, everyone ate and we exchanged gifts. The boys each received a camera from Grandma and Grandpa. The boys opening their presents from Grandma and Grandpa, there were a little excited.

They also received a bunch of trucks, a really cool Imaginext Cars playset that has been played with almost constantly since it was assembled.

We really didn’t take a ton of photos on Christmas, we were to busy talking and playing with the kids. This was from a few days later when the boys were taking pictures.

Overall Christmas was a lot of fun, the boys were much more into it this year than last. I’m already looking forward to this years holidays since we can do more activities and the boys can help make decorations.

Catching up and Christmas Eve

I’m so behind on posting I’m not going to try to catch up. We’ve been busy with life and holiday stuff and I’ve been spending my evenings working on holiday gifts instead of at the computer. Since I last posted anything it was determined that Parker did in fact have a broken arm, he only had to wear a cast for two weeks. Just long enough for the novelty to wear off and he was very ready to have it removed. As soon as we arrived at the doctor’s office he told the nurse he needed to get his cast taken off and he climbed up on the exam table.

No tears, no complaints just a happy little boy who was excited to get a sucker and a sticker when the doctor was done. With his cast off he was completely back to normal, but still undecided if he is going to be left or right handed. We spent the weekend before the holiday running errands and doing some baking and decorating for the holiday. I had bought a gingerbread decorate kit with a giant gingerbread for each of the boys to decorate.
Cody did the icing while the boys added the candy, they had a lot of fun and I was amazed that they didn’t try to eat any of the candy. They loved sticking it on the men.

We had a family party the Sunday before Christmas with Cody’s extended family, this year it was held at a rec center. The kids had free run of the gym and various balls to play with.
Christmas Eve I had to work, but Cody was off and spent the morning with the boys. I had to pick up a final gift (next year we are going to be prepared) and the store was crazy. I made it home just in time to get ready to go to dinner. We had a great dinner with Cody’s family. The boys ate so well, I was shocked at the amount of steak they managed finagle from Grandpa and actually eat.
We did the traditional gift on Christmas eve for the boys. As I was getting ready to leave that night the boys announced that the gift was for them because there were three of them.

Surprise! Pajamas, they are not yet old enough to understand that they’ll be getting pajamas every Christmas eve.

Parker, Nicholas, Andrew

We made it home and put the boys straight to bed so Santa could visit and so Cody and I could have the annual wrapping party (yup procrastinating), we made it to bed by 1 am and were very grateful that we’d set the boys clock change color to signal the wake up time to 8:15 instead of the usual time.