Cole's 8th Birthday!

Cole wanted a party with just family for his 8th birthday. He picked Moe's for dinner, than cupcakes and ice cream at home. We all had fun spending the evening with just us. The best presents were the Lego Hogwarts castle from Harry Potter. (The gift certificate and money from the grandparents were used to buy...more legos!)

Birthday Karate Kids

February is always a busy month with Cole's birthday on the 22nd and Jay's on the 23rd. Each boy picks a restaurant for us to go to on his special day. Cole picked Moe's (a casual tex-mex place) and Jay chose "The Pirate Restaurant" (otherwise known as Queen Anne's Revenge--a very cool place decorated with all kinds of pirate loot, weapons, and pictures). Here they are standing at the window that looks into the kitchen at QAR.
This year we had a party at Carolina Karate, where the boys take classes. Karate has been a great experience for them. We started last October and their balance, coordination, and focus have improved dramatically since then. Everyone had a blast learning ninja jumps, ducks, punches, and kicks. Notice in the picture below that Orange the monkey and the Puppies even got to participate!

The best part was cutting the cake with a sword! Thank goodness they got a little help. I made the cakes in the shape of karate jackets.

It was a fun few days, although I can't believe Cole is 6 and Jay is 4.

"I'm Four!"

After his friend Tyson had his fourth birthday in September, Jay insisted he also turned four and ignored any attempts to correct him.

One day a neighbor asked how old he was. He held up four fingers and said:

"I'm four, but my grown-ups think I'm three."

(Now that his birthday is a couple months away and talk of his own party has started, he's decided to be three again.)

Jay's 3rd Birthday

Scrolling through the blog tonight, I noticed a terrible oversight. I haven't posted pictures from Jay's 3rd birthday party!

We had a small party with friends from preschool and gymboree in the backyard. When I first asked him who he wanted to invite, he listed all of Cole's friends and classmates. It's no wonder he considers them his best friends, he's been around them his entire life--tagging along on playdates, going to all the birthday parties, running around the preschool courtyard after class. He's spent his entire life keeping up with the big boys. No wonder he thinks the 2 and 3 year olds are boring.

The kids spent the first part of the party playing in the backyard on the swingset, in the jumpcastle, and with all the toys. Then we went inside for pizza and cupcakes (the ubiquitous birthday party menu). Because it was a small group, we opened presents after eating. All in all, it was a nice, simple party--perfect for a new three-year old!

Catching Bubbles

Playing on the deck

Yummy! Frosting!

Let the Fun Erupt!

Happy 5th Birthday, Cole!This picture is from Cole's party at school. I wasn't going to have a party there because the whole class was invited to our house, but as his birthday grew closer, he told everyone that at school he's going to get cupcakes and a balloon tied to his chair. He had no idea that the parents arrange and pay for it. I didn't have the heart to deny him his balloon. He had just said, "I'm the king!" when I snapped the picture.

For the party at home, Cole knew he wanted a science party, but we couldn't decide on a theme. Then, one day, he said very seriously, "I've been thinking a lot about volcanoes lately." So there it was: a volcano party.

Since true volcanologists wear protective eye gear, I handed out safety goggles when the kids arrived. They were a huge hit. I later heard stories of kids refusing to take them off for bed, baths, and church.

Of course, there must be eruptions at a volcano party! We buried bottles half-filled with baking soda in mounds of dirt. When we poured in vinegar and the mixture bubbled over, the kids practically erupted themselves. I couldn't have choreographed a better response! I'm glad we made multiple volcanoes because their reactions didn't dimish. After the third or fourth eruption, a girl got up the courage to touch the bubbly mixture and everyone gasped. When we said they could touch it, the braves ones tentatively stuck their fingers in the foam. I love the excitement and wonder children have!

Later, we tried the Mentos experiment. Apparently if you drop a pack of Mentos into soda, the chemical reaction makes a tremendous eruption. It looked great online and several sites warned to do it in a wide open area, so I expected an impressive blast. Instead we got some fizz, but no more than the vinegar-baking soda combination caused. We tried it twice with the same result. I'm still not sure why it didn't work. We have a few packs of Mentos left over so we'll have to try again.

The volcano cake was a disaster that actually turned out great. I wish I had pictures to chonicle the whole experience. The finished cake pictures are on Mom's camera. I'll post a few when I get them--they're definitely good for a laugh!

My idea was to bake the circles for a layer cake, then cut the edges off to make the yellow cake into a pyramid/mountain shape. It looked great until I tried to frost it with cholcolate frosting. I never knew that you can't frost cut cake. It crumbles and shreds and cake pieces mix into the frosting and look entirely unappetizing. The whole thing was a wreck.

I quickly dashed to Publix for more frosting and a back-up cake that I fully expected to use. At home I tried to glop more frosting on top of crumbled pieces of cake to cover up the mess, but it actually looked worse. In desperation, I scraped off the bits and pieces and was able to salvage two complete circles. After I frosted them, I had a puny, little, lopsided layer cake that I would have been embarrassed to serve.

In frustration, I started glopping the shredded cake on top and around the layer cake. To my amazement, it actually started to look like a dirt and rock covered volcano. I made rivers of lava flowing down the sides with a tube of red frosting then stuck a little glass candle holder (minus the candle) into the top for the volcanoes opening. Before singing Happy Birthday we wet dry ice in the candle holder and carried out a smoking, fiery five-candle volcano.

I'll never be a professional cake decorator, but I have to say, it looked pretty cool, especially to a bunch of 5-year-old scientists.

I still can't believe that Cole is 5 and will be in kindergarten next year. I actually tear up when I think of him in school all day. But then I console myself with the thought of spending more one-on-one time with Jay. Although he is going to be lost without Cole as well.

My Birthday Drawing

For my birthday, I asked Cole to draw a picture of us.

His explanation: We have lollipop heads and our sticks are going into the ground so we don't fall over. The dots and border are just designs, while the dots with lines going through them are fireworks. I love it!

His drawings are always very involved and have lots of designs and details. Here is a delivery truck (with packages inside, a headlight, and engine under the cab).

And here's an oldie but goodie from 2006 that I just scanned. In case it is hard to read the caption (it seems Color Wonder markers fade), it is titled "Mommy and Daddy Holding Hands."

Cole's 4th Outer Space Birthday Party

Whenever anyone asked Cole what he wanted for his birthday, the only thing he said was "a real rocket ship that I can sit in and steer." Not quite something we could pick up at Toys 'R Us. So Rob went to Lowe's hoping to get a refrigerator box. However, refrigerators don't come in boxes anymore, so we were out of luck. But the grandfatherly guy working asked Rob why he needed a box and got a bit misty-eyed when Rob told him he wanted to build a rocket for his son's birthday. He gave Rob the biggest heavy-duty sheet of cardboard I've ever seen. Within an hour, we had a brand new rocket in our backyard.

Going with the rocket idea, we held an outer space party at our house. The rocket was a huge hit with both the kids and parents. Poor Rob was on repair duty all afternoon with the duct tape and spray paint. The guy wires were added after a handful of kids crowded inside the rocket and knocked it over, giggling hysterically the whole time. Once the sun started going down it got a little chilly outside, so the kids designed space scenes with foam pieces until the pizza arrived.

The rocket cake was a hit also, but I wish I had been more careful with the frosting. Some things shouldn't be done at the last minute. Note the kid in the red shirt sitting next to Cole with his eyes on the cake. He managed to blow out a candle before we even finished singing Happy Birthday. I was proud of the way Cole handled it. He just waited patiently while we relit the candle then blew them all out.

My little guy is turning into big boy.

Jay's 2nd Birthday Party at Gymboree

Finally, the pics from Jay's Gymboree Party. The birthday boy had a blast, as did all his friends. He was so enthusiastic about everything--bubbles, maracas, balls, and especially the cake. As we sang Happy Birthday, Jay leaned in to get closer to the cake and about fell in it. Everyone sighed with relief as he regained his balance, especially the Gymboree girl, who had a look of sheer panic cross her face at the thought of wearing the cake. All in all, it was a great way to bring in the Terrific Twos!

Happy 18-month Birthday, Jay!

The Party--Thomas the Train Birthday Express

Train tracks led to the front door.



Everyone had fun playing outside.

Eating pizza.
Cole loved his Thomas cake so much that he cried when we passed out pieces. The party momentarily stopped as he sobbed, "I want to put it back together." When we told him we would open presents next, he decided it was ok.

Jay thought his cake was wonderful too. But when it was time to eat it, he also cried. We finally figured out he wanted more pizza, not cake. Next year we may have to make a Birthday Pizza!

Cole tore into a present before we were ready. When we told him to wait, he said "But it has my name on it." We really couldn't argue with that, so we quickly got ready. All the friends helped Jay unwrap his gifts. The boys got some great new toys.

A Thomas pinata ended the party. It had strings to pull instead 0f hitting it with a stick. When it opened the kids had a blast finding all the toys. A Thomas train whistle was included, which was a big hit (with the kids, NOT the parents).

When Cole finally settled down to take a nap, it was a record 5 1/2 hours long. We probably should have woken him up earlier because he was then up until 10:30, long after we wanted to go to bed! Jay never did take an afternoon nap. It was a great day!

February 23--Jay's 1st Birthday

February 22--Cole's 3rd Birthday