Hiking with Daddy

A few weeks ago while I was away for the weekend, Kyle took the kids up to Multnomah Falls. We always talk about wanting to go hiking and exposing our children to the beautiful sites of the Northwest, but it seems like our weekends fill up and we never manage to get going. But, Kyle is awesome and loves to have fun activities to do with the kids, so he drove out towards the gorge and with Kennedy on his back and Carter at his side they hiked up the trail to the top of the falls. Carter nearly made it to the top but then got too tired, so Kyle ended up carrying another 40 pounds for the rest of the hike. Good thing he's in shape!

The kids in the back of the truck getting ready to set out...

I love that Kyle took such good pictures to document this day.

Birthday #4 - Celebrating at School

Carter's birthday festivities were capped off with a little celebration at school. He was welcomed with a birthday sign, got to wear a special birthday crown, brought in birthday treats (ice cream sandwiches and Capri suns - sugar overload? Perhaps) and got to do ALL the classroom jobs. That was a big deal.

What a fun way to end two weeks of birthday celebrations.

Take me out the ball game

We celebrated Carter's birthday with his friends on a much smaller scale this year. The guest list was smaller, the food simpler and everything was more relaxed. It was a baseball theme and I think all the kids really enjoyed themselves. I know it was the most fun that I have had at one of the kids' parties.

Carter was so excited for his friends to arrive...ooh the anticipation!

Nana was able to make it up to help us celebrate and Grandma partied with us too. As always, I was so thankful to have their help.

Pinata time!

This was one tough pinata. I think we made in through the line of kids about 6 times before Kyle helped them out and cut it a bit.

The sun was out and the kids had fun playing ball and being outside. Here are Carter and Andrew - they've been friends their entire lives and it's fun to capture pictures and compare them from years past. They've both grown so much.

Happy Birthday to you...

Making a wish

Post party glow. No nap on party day, he was too amped up to even think about sleeping.

Later in the afternoon, Carter opened all his presents from Nana and Pops. Can I just tell you how much he LOVES this Spiderman outfit. He wore it for three straight days and would have worn it more had I not confiscated it to wash. What a silly boy he is!

Happy 4th Birthday, Carter!

Kyle and I did our best to make sure that Carter's birthday was special - not only would he have four celebrations to celebrate his four years of life, but they would be great celebrations!

Carter awoke to a room filled with balloons on his actual birthday...and after making his way down the hall and into our room, he asks "Did my number change now? Am I really 4?" Age and being "big" have taken on new levels of importance around our house, so this was a huge day for him. Yes, sweet Carter, you are 4. I'm not quite sure how that happened, but there is not an ounce of baby left in you. You are big and fast, more daring than ever, so smart, independent, silly and occasionally sassy. Where does the time go? Makes my heart hurt just a little bit.

Johnny, Carter's good buddy, joined us for our birthday celebration, because he was going to be out of town for Carter's "friend" party. It was great having him along and the boys had so much fun together.

We started our day of fun with a stop at QFC for donuts. They all picked their favorites and gobbled them down. After all they would need their energy...

for Chuck E Cheese. Now, let me just tell you, the time to go to Chuck E Cheese is 10:00am on a Wednesday. There wasn't a soul in the place and the kids were able to play games and run free without their parents worrying a bit. We played and played and played some more and then cashed in our oodles of tickets for 3 little suckers and a few other cheap, plastic trinkets.

The boys taking Kennedy for a ride on their snowmobiles. I think they managed to play every game in the place. Some were better than others.

Giddy up!

We headed home and opened some presents before lunch.

A new baseball mitt

After nap, we headed to the park for some bike riding and play time. It was so great to have Daddy home midweek and celebrating with us.

Our last stop of the day was Red Robin for a (free) birthday dinner and the obligatory song and ice cream sundae. All Carter really cared about was that we went somewhere that the waiters would sing him "happy birthday". It was very cute to see him glow as they sang.

Our little girl can eat!

A little shy but oh so happy. A very happy birthday to my sweet boy!

Birthday - Take 1

With Stacy, Justin and Bennett in town for Easter, we decided to celebrate Carter's upcoming 4th birthday early with a little family party. We had a few balloons, a superhero cake, some great presents and Carter's favorite foods - steak and salmon - for dinner. It was a fun afternoon and Carter relished all the attention. It was so nice to be able to celebrate with family on a smaller, less frazzled scale and it also stretched out Carter's birthday celebration, which thrilled him.

Carter and his aunties

Riding around on his new scooter. Auntie Stacy and Uncle Justin always give the best gifts - he loves it!

B got in on the action and took his cousin's scooter for a little spin

Carter was over the moon about having a Spiderman party. He is mildly obsessed with superheros at the moment and this cake was a big deal.

Sneaking a little taste

Naked babies eating cake

Easter

He IS Risen! What a special day Easter is and how wonderful to celebrate with our family. The kids enjoyed an early morning Easter egg hunt, a trip to church, several baskets of goodies, some fun play time at Grandma and Papa's and a wonderfully delicious dinner.

So excited to find some eggs. It wasn't until later that morning that I realized I put both of the kids in Christmas pajamas - we've had a very cold start to spring! Carter asked a lot of very good questions during the Lenten season this year and was aware of the meaning of Easter. It's been so great to see him grow and experience the love of Christ.

LOVING it!

Hunting for eggs. This year the Easter bunny wised up and filled 1/2 of the eggs with coins instead of candy. We still had enough candy for a small country and this way the kids were able to deposit some money into their piggy banks.

Photo shoot #1

Trying desperately to capture some nice smiles.

All dressed up and ready to head off to church

Carter outside with Grandma's tulips

Mr. B (how cute is he in his Easter best?) and Uncle Kyle

Our attempt at a family photo

Cousins - Bennett 18 months, Carter almost 4, Kennedy 21 months

Easter Traditions

We had round #2 of dying Easter eggs...the kids loved it and had fun making quite a mess.

Finished product. We need to practice our patience next year, as the eggs were quite dull in color because they were in such a rush to pull them out of the dye and look at them.

You call this fun?

Oh how we love the Pacific Northwest. It's a beautiful place, really, but one of these years I'd love for the kids to enjoy a nice hunt for Easter eggs in the sun, wearing cute clothes that aren't covered with parkas or rain gear. Instead this year's hunt took place with nearly freezing temperatures and an impressive down pour. The kinds were shaking from the cold and by the end, Carter was crying. "I don't care about the prizes, I just want to go home." Really, and this was supposed to be a fun activity for our children. Here's hoping for brighter skies next year!

The rain held off until about two minutes before the hunt commenced. Carter was not loving it.

Clutching his hands and trying to move quickly to pick up some eggs. Carter was still with the toddlers, so he filled his basket quickly.

Kennedy's hands were red and her little rain coat soaked. But she seemed to enjoy herself and collected quite a few eggs in her basket.

Bundled up...somewhere under all those layers was a cute spring sweater :)

Super Hero Day

A few weekends ago the Children's Museum hosted a "super hero day" and Carter loved it! He was decked out in his cape and Superman t-shirt and was so excited to see Batman and some characters from Star Wars. He was a little timid about approaching the costumed characters at first, but he was in such a state of awe that he got over any fears rather quickly. It was a fun day that the kids and I spent together.

In all our trips to the museum, this was the first time that either one showed any interest in the face painting station. I cringed a bit and just let them have at it.

Kennedy kind of scribbled on her face. And her hands. She was a mess!

Carter and one of the Star Wars guys. He was in heaven - the trooper guys had big guns!

A little more timid with Batman. My camera was really on the fritz, so I apologize for the blurry pictures.

I love this expression on his face. You know he's stoked to be so close but it's a little overwhelming, too. He was a bit braver with Hans Solo.