Birthdays, Birthdays, Birthdays!

Now to tackle the birthdays.  Darren was first, turning 2 back on April 25th.  I kept things pretty low-key (I was actually pregnant and feeling pretty sick, although I miscarried two days later), but we had some family over for cake and ice cream.  Some of Darren's favorite gifts from the day were a Thomas a Tank Engine toy, his very own scripture case with scriptures, and a basketball hoop.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Darren is our crazy, energetic, lovable two-year-old.  He loves to make up words for his own songs (i.e. to tell us he has a dirty diaper, or needs to wash his hands, or just to be silly).  I have to be careful what songs are playing on the radio when he's in the car because he will sing back lines to me.  He loves being on the swingset "fwingin' on da fwings" outside and jumping on the trampoline, and he does not like to ever hold still.  He had had his big boy bed for less than an hour before bashing his head on the windowsill (and then going right back and doing it again).  Darren loves making messes, watching anything to do with construction ("a big digger!"), and trying to make us all laugh.  We love this little guy!


Next, on to our seven-year-old!  Adriana's birthday was on June 8th, and she was excited that her party this year actually got to be on her birthday.  Adriana wanted a flower-themed party, which was fairly easy to accommodate.  Party games included a scavenger hunt, painting flower scenes (to decorate the backyard and attract fairies, of course), each girl planted their own flower bulb to take home, and we took pictures of Adriana with each of her party guests, printed out the pictures, and had each girl decorate a flower-shaped frame to take home.  Adriana's big birthday present this year (and Miriam's) was tumbling lessons for the summer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Adriana continues to entertain us with her elaborate and creative games and creations (no cardboard box or roll of tape in our house is safe), she loves to read, says math is her favorite subject in school, and she continues to want to be a paleontologist who goes fossil hunting with her kids when she grows up.


Miriam turned 5 on July 18th.  She wanted a water-themed party.  With Dad at work that day and Grandma and Grandpa out of town, I kept things very simple (note the awesome cake - no cute fondant sea creatures this time, candy fish would have to do while I could barely keep anything down).  When her party actually started, we realized that every single one of her party guests was seven (she'd invited two little girls her same age, but they weren't able to come).  We'll have to see if she makes more friends her age once she starts kindergarten.  To entertain the kids we played in the sprinklers, and I made sidewalk paint and let them paint ocean scenes outside.  The most fun activity, though, was getting all the kids on a trampoline full of water balloons.  So much screaming!  Adriana took it upon herself to do all of the decorating.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's hard to believe that Miriam is already about to start kindergarten.  She has a definite opinion about everything and likes to be in charge (something that doesn't happen very often with her big sister).  She'll tell you that she gives the best hugs and is a really good cook (any time she helps make something she likes to tell the family that "it tastes even better because I made it!").  Miriam loves dolls, princesses and ponies, dressing up, "makeup" (nail polish and her chap sticks), swinging outside, and doing anything her big sister likes to do.

Kendall has the next birthday in our family, at the end of the month.  After that no more birthdays until the baby's the beginning of next year!