Table for 4: July 2010

More of Ben's b-day

We went to a concert in the Marina and brought Ben's cake with us. It got a little smushed and I'm definitely not going on Ace of Cakes anytime soon, but I think Ben liked it :)

Ben's Amazing 3rd Birthday

So Matt and I were feeling bad that we didn't have anything planned for Ben's birthday. We had parties 3 weekends in a row. Ben's birthday was on a Thursday & Matt was going out of town on Friday (so no party that weekend). So we decided to call up the fire dept. and ask if we could come by. They said, no problem, we'd love it, you don't have to call, come on over. We hear sirens on our way over, so we know at least one truck will be out. The chief was there and showed us all around the brand new, state of the art firehouse. Ben was in heaven, climbing on the trucks, trying to turn them on. Then, the guys get back from their call with the big hook & ladder. The chief says, "do you guys want to go for a ride?" Uh, yeah!! So we all get in and get headsets (except Ben because he refused to take off the big fire helmet). Did you hear the part about headsets?!? Like REAL headsets where we could talk to the guy driving the back in the Kramer seat. (THE BACK!!!! There's a steering wheel back there because this truck is sooooo big you have to steer the caboose!!!! Call me Cosmo cause I want to drive that thing!!) Lily was into the headset. "Can you hear me now? Now? Mommy! Can you hear me now?" (Guy steering the back says, "I can hear you, Lily!") We take off, drive around the block and then onto Westchester Parkway (FAST!), sirens blaring, all of us yelling, "happy birthday Ben!" We head back and they show off how they can make hairpin turns in that big rig. We got back and the kids played with ladders and oxygen tanks, ya know, really safe stuff. It was so much fun, we all had to lay down at home from all the excitement. We don't feel bad about not throwing Ben a party anymore. Thanks Station 5!!

Can you hear me now?!

Let me drive the back!!!!

In his 3 year old glory

Captain Safety and Pretty Princess Headset

The Epic Nap

We are not nappers in this house. We are sleepers, oh yes, we love to sleep in, but naps? At this point, they usually consist of Ben sleeping in the car for 20 minutes. Then we have to rouse him because any longer and he wakes up swinging. Full on nap hangovers can last up to an hour. No fun.

Lily had her first sleepover at Emma's house last week. We were wondering if we'd get a phone call in the middle of the night, but not with Lil. She was so excited! When Lisa came to pick her up, Lily told me, "Pick me up tomorrow," then RAN out of the house. It was really odd not having her here and having just Ben. He's never been alone without her overnight! At bedtime, he asked, "Lily sleeping?" In the morning, he said, "Lily come home now."

So we had Emma over for a sleepover and it was really fun. Nail polish, hair braiding and plenty of giggling. The kids were up late and up early the next day. Thus, the epic nap. Lily & Ben both fell asleep in the car. When I moved them inside, they both fell back asleep and then would not wake up! Even when Matt picked Ben up, no dice.

He just laid down on the floor and went back to sleep....in the sun.

And, he's back.

More spinning

Be careful Grandma, you're probably going to get sick from watching this!

Lily's b-day dance off

This is just a snippet of the 5th birthday dance party. This is usually how the night ends when Emma & Lucas are over. The kids go crazy and Gus, Lisa, Matt & I just sit back and crack up. This particular video is going to be worth a lot of yard work when they're teenagers :)

Ben, Emma, Lily & Lucas

Lily is 5!!

Lily turned 5!!

We had a little backyard bbq party which turned into a disco dance party that night.

Matt painted the kids faces & I made a mermaid cake that took a lot longer than I expected. At bedtime though, Matt asked Lily what her favorite part of her birthday was and she said, "the cake!" Totally worth it!

Lucas :)

Owen, baby Lily & Emilia taking a ride

Zoe, Lily & Emma super excited about cupcakes

Lily's mermaid cake.

Ben & mommy were worn out!

Miss Ava Sassypants

Ava has become quite the little princess. I keep telling Shanon (who is in a state of shock), welcome to my very pink world. Lily is definitely a very girly influence. She is happy to show Ava the ways of the princess.

But she can still dig in the dirt with her BFF Ben :)

Aquarium trip

We went to the aquarium with Rebecca, Otto, Laurie & Emilia. Sadly, it was the last one with R&O for a while. They up and moved to Portland last week and it feels like we didn't even have time to realize it! Brian got a job there and they had to move in 2 weeks. It all happened so fast. So glad we got this little trip in before they left. We're sad and missing them, but excited for their new adventure!

Lily shared her ice cream with Emilia & E was soooooo happy!

Garden

Matt's been working on our backyard all summer and it's looking a lot better. We put a bunch of plants in pots so that we can take them with us if we move. They're all native plants, so they don't need much water. Now on to vegetables!

Big Kids

After Toy Story, every meal looked like this:

Ben is in a big boy bed! We were so freaked out. Taking down the crib (and net tent) was a sad day (no more babies), but also very exciting. Ben was so proud of his bed and he stayed in it all night. In the morning, he came out of his room with his chest all puffed up. Since he doesn't nap during the day anymore, he's just too exhausted at night to get up for any burrito business. He's getting so big and he hates when I tell him he'll always be my baby. "I NOT A BABY, MAMA! I A BEN!"

Also, the kids love the extra space in Ben's room and play in there a lot. We got rid of some toys they don't play with anymore & they spend more time playing with one thing at a time. Right now, Ben's favorites are puzzles, legos and cars. Lily's favorite things are Barbies, dress up and books about kindergarten.

Toy Story 3

We love Toy Story, so we got tickets to go see #3 in Hollywood on Father's Day. There was a big activity tent after, just like the princess movies we've seen there with Lily. We weren't sure how Ben would do with 3D glasses, but he kept them on for most of the movie. Lily was a little scared at the fire part, but overall it was a wonderful movie. I laughed out loud and cried more than once. What a great trilogy.

The kid sized 3D glasses. It just kills me!

Hello, I'm Elvis Costello

Outside on the ferris wheel. (this was all set up in the Hollywood High School parking lot). Ben loved the getting people on and off part of the ride and Lily loved the going around fat with her hands in the air part. Go figure!

This is where a lady said, "wow, you have a little engineer there." Again, go figure!

This is my attempt to show Lily that Buzz & Woody were not scary. Fail.

Recital video

This is from the dress rehearsal. I was standing right at the stage and it still looks like they're miles away. Lily can be really quiet and reserved in class or in certain groups, but she LOVES the stage! She gets up there and rocks out! Jazz hands!