Bday Dinner at Chuck E Cheese

Learning Skee-Ball with Uncle Todd

These shots were taken in one of those picture booths...I had to share them. Too cute!

The day before G's bday, we asked him where he wanted to eat dinner. As he was thinking, D-struction piped up and said, "How about Chuck E Cheese?"
G-Money just beamed and said, "D, that is the best idea! You gave me the best idea! That's where I want to go eat!"

Now, unless you know the history behind our Chuck E Cheese experience, you really can't fully appreciate this story.
The first time we ever went was with Nana and Papa in SC. You can picture the mayhem that CEC is...well, all of a sudden, we hear a child SCREAMING at the top of his lungs. Guess who?
D was running across the restaurant at full speed, making a break for the exit, screaming
"I NO LIKE DAT MICKEY MOUSE!!"
This was when we discovered that he has a fear of people in costume.

We aren't quite sure why he suggested that we go again for G's birthday, but I think it has to do with the fact that he can drive a car while he's there. Apparently the morning of the birthday he started having second thoughts. He said, "Mommy, I don't think Chuck E Cheese is the BEST idea. Maybe we should just stay home." It was pretty cute.
Mercifully, Chuck E did not make an appearance that night.

Aunt Shinny and the cousins came to play!

The Flaming Finger ROCKS. I think if you hold your tongue a certain way it does work...;)

Birthday Boy

We really can't believe G-Money is 5!

Since he is all about trains, he picked a train birthday cake...complete with a BNSF engine and a stacked cargo car. The coal car wouldn't normally be with a stacked cargo car, but on this cake it is allowed. (Anyone seen Extreme Trains? It has changed his life. Oh my...)

After preschool we headed over to the local "train museum". It's really a street car museum at the old Rock Island Roundhouse, but they have some trains there AND they have a whole boxcar full of Rock Island stuff. This feeds another obsession--the Rock Island Line. That line used to run just down the street from our house and when you throw in a Johnny Cash song about the Rock Island Line, then the picture is complete. He loves it.
He also walks just like his daddy...that picture is killing me! I just noticed how they both walk and talk with their hands in their pockets. I love it!

And, we got to play on the train cars that were at the roundhouse. Pretty cool...

To the Train Station

Oma and Pops came last week and we had a great time with them. One afternoon we went down to see the trains and ate at the restaurant there. We all had a great time, but as you can tell from the pictures, one little boy was in HEAVEN. He is officially obsessed with trains "with no faces." Have you seen the History Channel's Extreme Trains? It's his new favorite show!

Merry Christmas!

We had a wonderful, busy day yesterday at our house. We fell into bed last night and said to each other, "What a crazy way to celebrate the incarnation." Christmas is just so different with little people in the house! Nana and Papa were here and we had a blast with them. Here are a few shots from my NEW Christmas present!! :) Maybe now I'll be better about blogging...ha!

Thank you, Nana, for the cute Christmas pjs!!

Could be her new favorite...she spent quite a bit of time feeding her new baby yesterday!

These planes were quite the hit with all three of my boys. :)

Nutty Berry

This is our friend "Nutty Berry." G-Money named him last summer when he started coming around. I know it seems stupid to blog about this creature...I mean, REALLY. I shouldn't even give him the attention he so craves.

We came home from the store one day and found a little hole nibbled out of G's pumpkin. Well, we caught him. He is UNASHAMED. Needless to say, the pumpkin is completely gone now and we have one fat squirrel hanging out in our tree. He's begs and "talks" to me when I come outside. It's hard to ignore him, but I'm afraid he'll invite himself in if I give him too much attention.

Seriously, the squirrels out here are a different breed.

Out of the mouths...

G: "Mommy, do you know what a 'sophia' is?"
E: "Do you mean the girl's name, like mommy's jewelry?"
G: "No...a SPEARA."
E: "I'm sorry, I don't understand what you are saying."
G: more emphatically: "A SPEARA"
E: completely confused: "No. I don't know what that is. What is a Speara?"
G: "A ball."
E: ?!? realization: "OH...a Sphere. Where did you learn about that?!"
G: "From school."

PreK isn't what it used to be, folks.

G: "Mommy, I think I'm going to pull for two teams. The Gamecocks AND Georgia."
E: "WHAT?! Why, sweetie?"
G: "Because I'm a George."

I guess that makes sense when you are four.

sharing

"I think I'd like a bite of that, G."

"He left me!"

She knows how to work them, doesn't she?!

G-Money is in School!!

Two posts in one week...i know you are impressed. :)

G-Money started PreK this fall. He was so excited to go and has grown up SO MUCH in the last few months. It's amazing, and I'm so proud of how well he is doing. Parent-teacher conferences are next week, so we'll see how things are really going, but so far, so good.

My Birthday!

We celebrated my birthday on Friday and it was such a FUN day! I really wanted to go see the aspens, so we drove to Mueller State Park and went for a short hike. The kids loved being outside (aside from the bees) and we loved watching them run. We then drove down to Cripple Creek to see the steam engine (a HUGE hit!) and then home to have dinner at Red Robin. It was a kids dream...and mommy was happy too. It's funny how your perspective changes when you are a mom. It's so fun watching your kids just enjoy life.

June

Happy Birthday C-Love!

We are so thankful for you, sweet girl!!!

May 31, 2008

More May...

A little baseball action...

the head cheerleader!