Under the Big Top

This year I did a joint birthday party for the kids.  It's one of the advantages of them having a birthday within one week of each other.  Last year, I found some circus themed party decorations on clearance at Target.  I decided then what the theme would be for this year.  I don't think that decision saved me any time or money because it took quite a bit of convincing (mostly Little Mister) that the theme would be fun and that it was ok for them to have it together.  In the end I think they both really liked it but I also had a separate play date for each of them and the Mister insisted on cupcakes with the theme of his choosing - which was really Ninja Turtles but we settled on Toy Story because that is what we found.  My days of choosing what kind of birthday parties to throw are quickly coming to an end :(

It ended up being quite a big party.  Being in the middle of summer and with vacations and all I figured maybe a little more than half of the invited guests would be able to attend.  Well, it turned out that all but a few made it.  And I'm really glad that so many people could come but it was a little stressful.  Luckily I had planned an outdoor sprinkler party that wasn't all circus related but it was fun, and easy and the decorations were circus so that was good enough.

I used a pinterest idea and used plastic tablecloths to fashion a "big top tent" under our deck.  Everyone got a clown nose to take home in addition to their goody bag.  Here are a few pictures of the event:

 

Decorations wise, this may have been my favorite party so far.  (The super-hero party from last year was probably my all time favorite because it was small and personal, and let's face it, adorable).  But somehow I think I over-do it and under-do it at the same time.  I'm not sure how that is possible, except that it is.  Had I been a better planner I would have had some games - but with 25 kids of varying ages it seemed nearly impossible to organize games that everyone would want to play and it seemed like a lot of work.  Or maybe a balloon artist.  And I probably went overboard on the food...we had popcorn and popsicles and candy and nachos for snacks, then sandwiches and wraps and fruit and veggies for lunch.  We had way too many leftovers. Anyway, I think the kids had a good time and really, that is all that matters. 

 

I love birthdays and making them a big deal.  And I love throwing birthday parties, both big ones and little ones, to let my babies know how special I think they are.

Summer Vacation Part II: Tablerock Lake

The real purpose for this pilgrimage back to the Midwest was to celebrate my parents 50th anniversary.  Would you believe that there was only ONE week out of the whole summer that worked for everyone due to camps and college and babies wanting to be born?  And still not everyone even made it - we were down one nephew and two nieces.  They were sorely missed.  BUT the other 26 or so of us (I lost count somewhere along the line) had a great time boating and swimming and mini golfing.  And apparently some of us have even been paying attention to the family history stories that have been passed around at various family gatherings.

I think one of my favorite things about these kinds of events is how well my older nieces and nephews take care of and play with my kids.  The Mister would disappear for hours with his cousin Brenden and Brian.  Baby Sister got her nails painted by Merinda and Mikaela.  And Saraiah is always good for on call babysitting :)  And they loved playing legos and other games with their little cousins.

I loved spending time on the lake.  The Mister took his first ride on a tube behind the boat.  He loved it.  Baby sister and I weren't so lucky...due to slow speed and improper placement on the tube we shortly started taking on water and rolled frontwards off of the tube.  I held onto her the whole time but she was not impressed and wanted to be done.  Also, I'm no good at wakeboarding.  Couldn't even get up this time.  Brad is quite good though.  We need a boat.  Maybe then I could actually learn.  Plus, Brad is cute driving a boat and even cuter on a wakeboard :)

No trip to Southwest Missouri would be complete without spending a day at Silver Dollar City.  As a kid I remember it as a place with mediocre rides and where old people would go to buy apple butter and make candles.  I must say, it has improved a lot.  There were tons of kid friendly rides and my kids absolutely loved it.  Brad and I got to ride on one rollercoaster - Outlaw - it was seriously intense!  But I was happy just spending time with my kids and doing the things that they wanted to do.

And some additional photos I took on the trip just because I think they are cute.

Summer Vacation Part I: KC, KS

The nice thing about Brad and I being from the same general area is that when we make a trip home we usually get to see both of our families.  This year my parents celebrated their 50th anniversary (well it was actually last November but we were all able to get together this summer).  So, before heading to Tablerock Lake for a week with my family, we drove to Kansas to visit with Brad's family.  His parents and his sister both still live there. I feel like we need to make these trips more often.  It's so much fun to watch our kids play with their cousins.


Cousins are reunited.  They roll down the hill in front of Grandma's house to pass the time :)

There is the coolest farm in Kansas City and it's free!  We paid extra to do some of the activities like pony rides and feeding the goats but it was so much fun for the kids.  This is where the Mister discovered his love for gem mining.  He has requested to do it three or four more times since.

We were invited to Brad's former college roommate's house for dinner.  He married a girl that Brad had known growing up and Tony and his wife subsequently moved back to Kansas City.  I met Tony the same summer I met Brad.  They were both up in Seattle painting houses for the summer.  The last time we all saw each other was probably at a BYU game and we were all childless.  Now we spend a lot more time running interference and keeping our kids from beating up other people's kids.  We were pretty successful except for one baseball bat to the head.  The Mister says it was on accident.  I didn't see the whole thing, but I'm pretty sure he is telling the truth.

Of course there was some time for swimming in the back yard.  Even Grandma got in one time!

 

And there were fireworks on the 4th of July...and the obligatory running around in a field before the fireworks.  Grandma was also nice enough to read to the kids in the back of the truck while they waited for the show to start.

June

Somehow I let three months pass without a single blog post.  I am trying to rectify that by posting condensed versions of what we have been up to for the last several months.

We went on a ward campout the first weekend of June.  I really had high hopes for this trip.  We got to use our new camp stove and our mostly new giant tent.  Friends were going to be there.  Brad bought giant marshmallows to roast.  It was actually quite fun except for two things: 1) It was fairly hot and humid that day so we opted to leave the rainfly off when we went to sleep since it was a clear, starry night.  We quickly regretted that decision when we were awoken by a brief rain shower.  Especially since the rainfly was in the car about 100 yards away.  By the time we got it on the rain had stopped and the tent just got hot. 2) The great thing about ward campouts is that our kids have lots of other kids to play with.  The bad thing about ward campouts is that even if your kids miraculously sleep well all the other crying kids around you will keep you up all night.  It has me seriously considering if I will ever do that again. 

 



The Mister had his last soccer game.  All the kids got a trophy and I FINALLY got a picture of all three boys together.

We went to the Columbia zoo with my college roommate and her kids.  It's sad how close we live to each other and how seldom we actually see each other.  I vow to do better.  I haven't been to that zoo since before I had kids.  It's a really great zoo and even more fun to watch them have fun.  I think my favorite part was feeding the giraffes.  Their favorite part was the pony rides and the slushies.