Let's get this party started...

Bubba didn't want to get to close. Junior staged the shot by "being scared" Convincing, no?

We trekked south to ‘P town' (provo) this weekend to start the celebrations for Junior and (cousin) Will, whose birthdays are only 3 days apart in February. I say 'start' because (at least in our home) I don't think my kids have ever had fewer than 2 parties between family celebrations and now friend parties (and now we can toss in that Junior will also be celebrating with dad at some point as well). We should just designate a birth month instead of a birth day because that is about how long it lasts around here. The kids aren't complaining though (and actually, neither am I. Who complains about partying? Not to mention the kick I get out of creating parties in general) Also, if there was ever a year that my kids have earned a little extra attention...

This year Grandpa and Grandma treated the grandkids to an evening at Pirate Island Pizza and we will definitely be back. The place was like Pirates of the Caribbean without the ride and it was really pretty awesome. Especially if you have a little pirate fan like my Bubba (who has not. stopped. talking. about. it!)

I have a fun family and as we get bigger, we don't get together nearly often enough. There is not a place to hold us all when we are together anymore. We have graduated to having family functions at the church or the school where mom teaches.

Here is some of the fun (we missed you Jeff, Kate and Bek's families...)

Bubba (genuinely) kicked my trash at air hockey. It's all he wanted to play. Britny, we will be over to spend some quality time with your air hockey table soon...

Wren and Bubba - Frenemies forever!

Junior and his best friend/cousin Lily. These two have been best buds for years.

Sis celebrated cutting her two top teeth and feeling much better in general by helping finish off Junior's birthday ice cream. Seven months old and already a devastatingly beautiful heartbreaker! She's going to be trouble in about sixteen years. (By the way, all major tests came back negative. She tested positive for a virus that was harmless enough as long as her fever broke and stayed gone, which it did!)

Sarah and Grandma

Mak and Dave (who grew a pirate beard just for the occasion.)

Abby and Jen

Junior got a balloon parrot from the balloon guy. This is his pirate face (In case you couldn't tell). Good grief, I love this boy!

Of course Bubba's choice was a sword. I stoppped him from some serious playing to get this picture. This is the look I get when he is humoring me. I see this look a lot!

Aunt Mak always comes through with good looking birthday cakes/cupcakes.

Junior has been asking for a jack-in-the-box for over a year now, but mean old mom couldn't bring herself to pay $25 for a new "vintage" one at the store. Grandpa finally found one for $1 at the Thrift Store and it was even a monkey for our 'monkey man.' It was a genuine hit with all the grandkids (to our surprise. I thought for sure it would be one of those things that he thinks he wants until he gets his hands on one - kind of like the $60 Wowee Baby Lion he got for Christmas a year or so ago which he dreamed about for weeks before promptly abandoning it forever mere hours after it was opened). Before you think it is strange that my almost 6 year old wanted a jack-in-the-box, please note that his other request was a lava lamp (request indulged by Grandma, of course). Some boys want transformers....)

This is how we spent the afternoon. The boys wouldn't budge from the counter until the lava lamp started bubbling (3+ hours!) and no other activity I suggesting was anywhere near as enticing. When that first bubble broke, they definitely felt like it was worth the wait (I'm too cynical, I guess. I thought it was a little anti-climactic for how long it took to heat up. My attitude probably also has something to do with amount of fights I had to break up during the wait. They entertained themselves by bugging each other.)

Happy first party Junior and Will (wasn't it just a year or so ago that we were celebrating Will turning 2 and I was days away from having Junior? Now Will is about to be baptized and Junior is old enough to want 70's style bedroom decor) Sunrise, sunset...