Grampa celebrates 80 years today!
We took him to a little Irish pub in Franklin, McCreary's, for an early supper, then we came back to our house for some delicious home-made carrot cake (courtesy of Aunt Patty) and presents!
Happy Birthday, Dad.
Aidan turned 7 this week, and the parties seemed to be never ending.. it was more a birthday festival than a singular event. We had a little gathering on the 31st to commemorate his actual birthday.. but the real celebration didn't kick off until the weekend.. first with a visit to Chuck E. Cheese with his good friend Jake and Uncle Ross on Friday..
Playing some skee-ball..
Playing the Firefighter videogame...
Then the big Superman Pool Party bash with all the neighbor and school friends on Saturday..
We had a little party for him-- the bigger parties will be this weekend-- but wanted to squeeze in this shot of Aidan with his HUGE new basketball hoop!
Yeah, Daddy will be working on setting that one up for a few hours tomorrow!
1) has it really been 4 years since he arrived, that bundled little mass of squawking, chirping, squinting little (dark haired!) baby?
2) is he really only 4? sometimes he seems so much like he's older.. picking up from his older brother, no doubt.
So today's the day, anyway. So I took off early from work and picked up Aidan from school a little early (it's that time of year at school where, after lunch they're pretty much done for the day anyway) and we met Mom and Bryce at a nearby Chuck E. Cheese. This has become like a little family tradition the last year or two. And let me tell you, there's no time like mid-day on a Thursday for going to Chuck E. Cheese.. normally, on weekend afternoons, the place is a mosh-pit of whack-a-mole-crazed toddlers. But on Thursdays at 1pm.. not too bad.
From us.. a Webkinz Tiger Snake..
And from Aidan.....
oh, this is going to be good...
Iron Man!
Mask and Repulsor Gauntlet..
The kids always know the good toys...
So, when we left our heros, Aidan was opening his presents as his friends all looked on with great anticipation.
There were many great gifts to be had... but when it was all said and done, at the end of the afternoon, one gift had clearly won the day...
The Hot Wheels racing set, for the win... yes!
Not that we're in the practice of making endorsements here, but it can't go without saying that this thing held the attention of about a half-dozen boys, two girls, and no fewer than three adults for a solid 90 minutes. There was much conversation about the configuration of the track, interpretations, and re-interpretation of the instructions, and experimentation with a variety of different cars, sending them hurtling along the track-- waiting, watching, wondering.. would the cars crash? or would the track come apart.. who knew what might happen next?
Let the record speak for itself:
Aidan's birthday celebration, Part 2:
We celebrated Aidan's birthday with a bunch of his friends this morning at our house..
Yes, this morning-- because here lately, anytime after noon has been ridiculously hot outside...
So we started with an hour's frolic at the pool..
Meanwhile, Mom got everything prepared for cake and presents back at the house...
A pool party calls for a 'pool' cake..
And eat pizza..
And then...
Everything got a little blurry when the cake came out...
And then.. two words: pre-sents!
And then... once all the gifts were opened...
.... to be continued.....
Gramma, Grampa, and Aunts Patty and Laura (and don't forget Ellie May!) came to the house yesterday to help celebrate Aidan's 6th Birthday with us...
Well, as you can imagine, Aidan woke up this morning in an exceptionally good mood!
He came running into our room at about 6:50 this morning with a beaming smile and saying "I'm six!" over and over again.
Other activities of the morning:
1) snuggle with Mama, still beaming and saying "I'm six!"
2) run back into his room, where his giraffe tape-measure wall hanging is, "to see how tall I am now." Unofficial results: 45 inches.
3) "Since it's my birthday, can I pick what I want for breakfast?" Result: the standard Waffles and blueberries.
4) "Since it's my birthday, can I pick what Bryce has for breakfast?"
On the Birthday Boy's docket for the rest of the day:
1) visit with friends Jake and Zoe
2) three words: Chuck E. Cheese
3) probably an evening by the pool or else play in the cul-de-sac with our neighbor friends
