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We had a big birthday here yesterday! Brandon is now a teenager!

He had a great day! It started with a breakfast out and a trip to Barnes and Noble with Kristen. Such a fun "big kid" morning :) They specifically went for The Son of Neptune, the second in the new Percy Jackson series, which was Kristen's gift to him, but they also just enjoyed the book store together for a while without Mom saying, "Keep an eye on your little brother and sister for a minute." ;)

Todd came home for lunch and we let Brandon open the rest of his presents then. We new he'd need the rest of the day to enjoy his new stuff ;)

Nick and Megan went first, gifting Brandon with a new Bengals jersey and hat.

 This box arrived at the end of last week with instructions to wait until his birthday ;) Oh boy did he ever want to open that early! So yesterday, he could hardly wait to see what was inside:

 Wii Party! Let me just say, this game is a big hit! (see pics below ;))

 Shaking his present from Todd and I:

 Yes, there was only one....

 A Nook Color! As these kids get bigger, their stuff cooler....and pricier ;)

 Now everyone wants one ;) (including me!!)

Lemon cake...of course!

Nick snapped this one; I know it's blurry, but it's the only one I have with the birthday boy so it's also precious :)

 Then Megan wanted one too ;)

After dinner and cake, we hit the family room for some "partying" hehehe

 One of the many games that had us laughing our heads off!

The kids played Brandon's new Wii game for most of the afternoon plus the time we all played last night. I think it's a hit! We ended the night with a tent in the family room, a "sleep-over", and a great movie (The Mummy 2). The kids were up until around midnight, very, very late for our gang, but it was worth the bleary eyes we all have today. It was a wonderful way to celebrate our newest teenager :)

The Birthdays

My birthday is in April and it was great! It started the week before my actual birthday with lunch with Russ and Judy. We had so much fun and the food was delicious! 

Russ and Judy, thank you for coming up to take me to lunch! We had a great time!

April isn't just my birthday though but tons of my extended family including my mom whose birthday is only a few days before mine! So we had another lunch when my dad came up to take me to his favorite restaurant for my birthday. Yes, you read that right...his favorite ;) Crackerbarrel is our tradition and I love that we go there on my birthday :)

My mom joined us and we celebrated both our birthdays at the same time. Efficiency at it's finest! I was able to capture some really sweet moments :

 My dad and Megan:

Missing from all these birthday pictures is Kristen. It stinks having a kid in college. She misses out on so much now that she doesn't get to enjoy the flexible home-schooly schedule any more. Rest assured though that she lavished me with birthday wishes and an adorable picture frame that I can't wait to fill! :)

It was a wonderful birthday :)

Happy Birthday Nicholas!

Today, our little Nicky turns eight! We had planned a little party for him, but when Todd came down with strep throat, we had to cancel. Nicholas took it well though. He told me that it was ok because he'd get more time with his family ;) So sweet!

He's enjoyed his day so far starting with building with Legos: (his shark)

Then some video games:

He did this while Megan and Brandon were at VBS this morning.

He chose pizza for lunch and then he opened presents. One of his favorites was this Lego board game, Minotaur. I love the expression on his face :)

After cake they had to play that Minotaur game!

They're now checking out his new video games. It was a great birthday for that little guy :)

A Party for the Birthday Boy

We were finally able to have a few friends and family over to celebrate Brandon's birthday. He was really anxious to get everyone outside for a game of capture the flag and because of the mud, we did all the indoor stuff first ;)

Poor, little Megan was the only girl at the party...
We don't drink soda, but we wanted to serve the kids something besides...water ;) While shopping, I remembered a friend of mine had put Izze on her blog and that it was all natural so I picked up a couple of cartons to try. They were a big hit! Thank you, Angi!

As far as the kids' cakes go, I bake and Todd decorates. Brandon chose a football this year:
I didn't go outside to take any pictures of him running around with his friends. I also forgot to get a picture of Brandon with his grandparents. SHEESH! I'm really slipping in the picture area lately...

Even though the weather could've been better, he really had a great time! Better late than never!

The Actual Birthday Day :)

Eleven years ago today, we had a little, baby boy. He almost didn't happen (another story) but I'm so very glad he did! I spent time this morning thanking God for the gift of this boy.

He still enjoys hearing the bedtime stories and being snuggled. He loves all sorts of outdoor stuff; walks, fishing, camping all of it! He loves having special time with his family like game/movie night and he's generally pretty even tempered. He loves Jesus and I look forward to seeing how God chooses to use him in this world.

I have so enjoyed watching him grow and I'm so glad I get to for a while longer yet :)

Now for the party stuff!

The celebration continued today for Brandon's actual birthday! Todd and I still had presents to give him and so did Kristen and we had to have some cupcakes :) My mom popped in later this afternoon to gift him and wish him a happy birthday too :) I wasn't very good with the camera today so I missed alot of things but here's a few of the birthday boy:
Yes it's another Bionicle :)

And a new dart tag game to add to the other one:
A new bike! (he had way outgrown his old one)
Yummy!
From Grandma Diana:
Legos, of course :) My guys could never have enough of these!

After we filled ourselves with chocolate, we settled in to watch our beloved Bengals play some football! The games have been super exciting this year, keeping us on the edge of our seats right up til the end. Today was no exception! The Bengals won at the very end of a full fourteen minute overtime! They played five quarters! It was a very exciting game and the fact that they beat the Browns on his birthday made Brandon one happy, little fan :)

A Birthday Weekend

Today was Brandon's birthday! Our oldest boy is now eleven! That really is just amazing to me. It seems impossible that he's that big. He's almost as tall as I am!

We had planned a little party Friday evening with just a few friends, but Todd came down with a horrible cold so we decided to postpone. I decided that instead, I would just make the day as special as possible! It started with NO SCHOOL! That got him smiling :) Then he got to pick the place for lunch out. He chose California Pizza. And I know why ;) It's right across from the Lego store! So, of course, we stopped in for a little browsing after lunch. And, of course, we came home with a few things ;)

Nicholas and Megan had already told me what they wanted to get Brandon for his birthday. Since they wanted to get him the same thing and the item was a little pricey, I suggested that they could go together to get it. We made Brandon wait right outside the doors while we made out purchase. Then I made them all wait outside while I bought "goody bag" gifts for his guests (Megan and Nicholas!). Once we got home, I quickly wrapped them and allowed them a small gift exchange.

Here's their little gift exchange:
Of course it was a Bionicle :)

The goody bag gifts for Megan and Nicholas were Bionicles too ;)
I had to help Megan build hers but she loves it. Yes, even Megan. I feel like the whole house has been taken over...
For supper, we had hamburgers and veggies also a request from the birthday boy. Then they all watched a movie...in the tent! Yep, I put the tent up for them in the family room so they could have a little movie night sleep over :) We watch the new Bionicle movie! (bet you didn't see that coming ;)) I had Megan lay down and go to sleep after that. She's been coughing a bit and I didn't want her to be up late. The boys were allowed to pick another movie so they picked "National Treasure 2". Nick was asleep soon after it started, but the Brandon stayed up until the end. He's such a night owl!

All in all, I think for a botched birthday party day, he had a very good day...and it wasn't even his birthday!

Happy Birthday, Nicholas!

My littlest guy turned 7 today! I can't believe it! Although it seems like yesterday that I brought his little 9lb 9oz self (he was my second smallest baby) home, it also seems like he's always been here. I can't imagine one day of my life not knowing him.

He is funny, shy, and snuggly. He sometimes crawls in my bed very early for some snuggle time. He's like a little heater :) He builds all kinds of things that baffle me. He's so smart. And handsome! He looks like his dad :) He loves to do crazy things...not dangerous really, he's actually kind of conservative...just crazy. He cracks us up!

He's also stubborn; especially about food. And school. He hates to hear the word "no".

He takes awhile to warm up to things. He doesn't like "switching gears" so to speak. Maybe he gets that lovely trait from me as I hate change.

We had just a very small party for him today to celebrate his day. Just us and my mom. He picked our meal (not healthy of course) and told his dad what he wanted for a cake. I'm the cake baker and Todd is the cake decorator.
Our monkey picked a monkey cake for the second year in a row ;)
Opening presents:
Loving his new Crystal King:
Brandon helped him get it together ASAP!

A birthday hug from Meemaw:
Little hands:
Happy Birthday my sweet, little guy :)