16 Candles March 16, 2009

Yummy Ice Cream Cake! A few days before Alex's 16th birthday, he told me that he didn't want anything spectacular done for his birthday. No party. No celebration. No decorations. I was sad, of course, because birthdays are my favorite things! Then Friday, before his birthday, he told me that he guessed I could do whatever I wanted for him on his birthday (gee, thanks). Oh, and by the way, can a couple of friends come over Friday night? I'm ALWAYS okay with his friends hanging out. It doesn't happen often enough! I told him that he'd have to help me clean up the basement, but other than that, no problem.

After school, Alex came through the door with his friend Brent on his heels. It was a happy surprise to see Brent, especially because I had already cleaned the basement! Later we were discussing what time we had to go to Road Show practice the next morning. We decided on 8:30 am. Brent piped up and said that he had to be home by 8:30 too! OH! I didn't realize it was a sleepover. Next came Chazz to the door with present in hand! Impromptu party? Well, although I wasn't able to be involved in the planning of the party, I'm glad Alex threw a last minute party for himself! I quickly threw together some junk food and baked up a huge batch of chocolate chip cookies, and they had a great time playing wii and Halo.

On the actual day of his birth, he had breakfast and presents in bed. That night, we met the Buskas and the Leggs at Craigo's for a pizza party. Sarah shares Alex's birthday! We thankfully had a private room. It ended up being chaos with kids running around the room screaming and yelling. Alex got up and left and went out to the van for some peace and quiet. Next, Hannah got up and left, then Hunter, holding his ears, begged to also be allowed to sit in the quiet van.

Alex's favorite present was his retro yellow tweed guitar case. He also got a watch that stopped working and shoes that were too small. Ah, the memories!

I tried my hardest to get Alex to go on his first date on his birthday, but alas, he is not ready to date!

Happy Birthday to my sweet 16 year old!

March 2, 2009 Happy Birthday Dr. Suess!

Hunter is one cool Cat in the Hat!

Bear World 2009

Have you ever seen a baby bear cub?
We have!

We had the privilege of seeing the cutest little fella a couple of weeks ago. Yellowstone Bear World, here in Rexburg, ID, was hosting a "photo with a cub" event, so we packed up the van and headed that way!

Truthfully, I was expecting to see several cubs crawling around on the floor, but when we got there, just one little cub was being cradled in the keeper's arms. In order to have the full hands-on experience, we paid the $15 for the photo. I think it was well worth the money for this chance of a lifetime!

Emily stayed home sick, so we filled her spot in the van with Hannah's friend, Mikaela.

Hunter was the first to hold the little cub. Doesn't it look like a stuffed animal? I was so afraid that it would scratch him and he would drop it! It did scratch and claw him, but he held it firmly. The keepers must have been a little afraid too, because they took the bear and handed it to Mikaela for the actual photo.

Just look at that little face. It was so cute. The keeper's were pretty protective of the little cub. Everyone had to sanitize their hands before touching it, and the kids were only allowed to pet the bear as it was being held by the keeper (after the photos, of course).

Connor came up to me and asked if bears were afraid of sharks. I thought it was a strange question until I noticed his shirt. He didn't want to scare the cub with the photo of the shark on his shirt. He was very concerned. I thought the bear cub looked like a mole in this picture!

After the photo, Connor stayed on the bench. He had a pouty face because he hadn't gotten his turn to hold the cub for his own photo. The keeper was really good about it though and let Connor hold the cub by himself.

I was behind the video camera, and James was behind the camera, so we didn't get to feel the bear's fur. The kids said it was so fuzzy!

What a fun day!

The Crazy Life

Wow! I can't believe how long it's been since I have blogged! I've been very busy. We've been in and out of multiple dentist and doctor appointments, I did the craft show (flea market) and there is another one on the 28th, we're getting ready for a few birthdays, the road show is next Sat and our entire family is in it, and the list goes on and on! Hopefully I'll be posting lots of pictures and maybe even some video of the next several days soon. The camcorder which is only 2 years old got dropped this morning in our rush to get to the road show dress rehearsal. If it is ruined, it will have been a very costly rehearsal! I'm trying not to get too upset about it, because it is just a thing, after all (albeit a very expensive thing).

Wish me luck on this crazy month!

When Pre-Schoolers are Left Alone

Normally, I pride myself on how independent my children are. For instance, if I leave the house for a longish amount of time, let's say, like ,for a major grocery shopping trip, I have faith that their basic needs will be met . . . they will meet them themselves. Even the little boys are adept at PB&Js. But when I'm home, I just expect them to ask me for help--especially my pre-schooler.

Connor has always been a very independent child. He likes doing things for himself. So when he saw this awesome Disney camera offer on several boxes of cereal, he decided to cut out the tokens all by himself! He didn't realize that you are supposed to eat the cereal first (see the cut out holes under the R camera)!

Without opening the boxes, he carefully cut around the tokens. He also cut through the sealed cereal bag, exposing a mouse sized hole in each box.I followed a trail of cereal to the storage room and found about 15 boxes of cereal that had been opened or cut into. Connor also collected 5 lego race cars from several other boxes of cereal.

Connor was so proud of himself, that all I could do was laugh and grab the camera. We sat down together and filled out the form for the camera. We put in the tokens, sealed the envelope, and popped it into the mailbox. Now all he has to do is wait. That is the hardest part!

I think it was very resourceful for Connor to have done all of this by himself.

I don't know if I am ready for my "baby" to be growing up so fast. I'm realizing how quickly childhood passes and it's a great reminder for me to enjoy every single moment!