Pirate Party

Saturday we celebrated one last time with Coleman's friends. He chose a pirate theme for his pool party this year. We had lots of fun with the planning, and I think he and his friends had a blast at the party. Friday night was cake night, so here are the bigger boys seeing the cake for the first time after I finished it. They were pretty excited!


If it weren't for the internet, we would have plain cakes around here. Our boys would have the same choices we used to on flavor and shape (round or square), but that's about it. Thankfully, other people share their creative ideas online for me to copy. The cake was chocolate with candles in the cannons and had Rolos for gold on deck guarded by two scurvy pirates.


We pulled out the pirate ship for one last hurrah this summer. And boy was it a hit!


Brent did a great job making sure everyone had a good time and everyone got a turn. It was no small feat keeping those rowdy pirates in line on board!

After they swam for a while, we ate a pizza lunch in the cabana.


Then Coleman opened his gifts.


He (and Andrew) blew out his candles, and then everyone enjoyed the slightly melty cake.


Finally it was time to hunt for treasure! We passed out bandanas, eye patches, and "Booty Bags" for everyone and set off.


They had to find the red Xes with clues to where the treasure was hidden.


At last they discovered a chest in the bushes!

They did a great job dividing up the booty.

There were spy glasses, hooks, jewels (mardi gras beads and rings), ring pops, and bags of gold (rolos and reese's cups) for everyone. They did a super job making sure everyone got their fair share of the fun.


And Jonathan was right there in the middle of it all. He even knows that a pirate says, "Aaaaarrrrgh!"
It was a great day, and we were so glad our friends could celebrate with Coleman.

School Party and Family Party

The day after Coleman's birthday, Andrew and I took cupcakes to his class to celebrate. We got there just as they were finishing lunch. You can see Coleman wore his "4" shirt that day.



He can make the goofiest faces.

On the Sunday before his birthday, we celebrated with our family. Gigi and Papack, Granny and Grandaddy, Nana and Pop-O, and Uncle Steve and Aunt Lola all came for a birthday supper and cookie cake. I didn't get pictures of people this time, but here's what I did get.





Most of his presents were wrapped in big boxes, so we stacked them up and made a picture. It's not very often that your presents are taller than you are!



Gigi and Papack gave him a Buzz Lightyear costume. When he opened it, he said, "Oh Man! Man! Man!" He was just a little excited.



Nana and Pop-O got him a stormtrooper helmet that he's been asking for since Christmas.

He also got a super fun gun from his cousins, a new Batman backpack and lunchbox, and some spending money. As much fun as all that was, the biggest fun was yet to come. Tomorrow we'll see about his Pirate Party!

First Field Trip

Our first field trip with The Academy was on August 10. We packed a lunch and headed to our children's museum for some fun. I think most of the pictures are self-explanatory. We hadn't been to the museum in quite a while, so it was a lot of fun for all three boys.











Our next field trip is coming up on Labor Day, and we are so excited!

Turning Four

Tuesday we celebrated Coleman all day long. Tuesday is Brent's off day, so we really enjoyed having him home to party with us! We started the day with Coleman's requested breakfast of blueberry pancakes on the red plate.
Then, we got everyone dressed and headed out for some fun. We tried out a new-to-us jumping place in Dawsonville. It was great! We were the only people there, so we had a private party.


They also had some toddler toys around the room, which was great for Jonathan. It always tickles me how the boys love a train table when we're out and they see one, even though we have one at home.
Big fun!


Coleman picked McDonald's for his birthday lunch.

Then we came home and did school during the afternoon. Coleman helped make pirate cupcakes for his class the next day.
I forgot to make a picture of his birthday supper, but he requested macaroni and cheese, fried chicken, and green beans. What a great pick! Then we sang to him over the cupcakes he helped make.

Jonathan was so funny eating his cupcake. He ate it from the top down. Every time I tried to get a picture of him eating it, he turned and looked at me and said, "Cheee!"


After baths, we let Coleman open his presents. You can see Jonathan was on an important call.


More celebrating to come!