Number 2.

After our family photo shoot ...

Where a few of my new favorite memories were captured ...

It was time to head back to the homestead for a CARNIVAL PARTY!

There was bean bag tossing ...

And ping pong craziness ...

And of course ... paperclip fishing! With tickets and prizes!

We had steak and other yummies and then it was time for my favorite part ... DESSERT!

Apparently ... this cousin (sporting the birthday bib I made) ... was not in the mood ...

And I believe this cousin is gagging! I'm pretty sure neither one of them was happy with the bib wear ... or maybe it's my cooking? Who doesn't like a sprinkle cupcake?

Eli finally gave into the dark side of SUGAR ... after ditching the bib and sitting on my lap!

As for this one ... no convincing needed. He is happy to partake of anything sweet ... at any time!

Then it was time for presents ...

And fake fish bowls ...

And a snuggle with mini-Mook!

What a fun day!

Happy Birthday Eli Bennett and RoHo!

One. Two. Three.

Last week, my brother and sister-in-law were in town and they brought with them .... a very special someone ... my nephew! It's hard to believe he's almost a year old and this is the first time I laid eyes upon him in PERSON!

With Eli's birthday next Friday and Robert's birthday the week after ... I figured it was a great time for a photo shoot ... and since the cousins would be 1, 2, and 3 ... why not make shirts for the occasion??

My own children had to be bribed to wear the shirts ... nothing like a little sugar to convince them that number shirts are SUPER COOL ...
Robert was the only one who was really interested in smiling and looking at the camera ... Eli was in his typical "taking it all in" Eli world ... and Joshua ... well ...

It's amazing what kind of smiles you can get out of a kid when you promise him an EXTRA BIRTHDAY CUPCAKE ... (or maybe it was 2 extra?)
Oh ... and you'll have to wait until Christmas but we did manage to get a great family shot that day ... thanks to my brother and his fine camera skills!

Fighting Toy Hunger: One Whale and One Car At A Time.

The First of What Will Be Three. Get Comfy.

The morning started off with a lovely (and VERY out of tune) piano trio ... but the afternoon held BIG plans for a PARTY!
Ben's parents had the GIFT OF THE YEAR for Mr. Eli ... and we could hardly wait to see his reaction ...
That's right ... 15 years before he can get keys to the real deal ... this kiddo landed himself a BRIGHT RED race car!!
He loved it ... got in right away ... called it Lightening McQueen ...
But that first love lasted only a few seconds ... then he abruptly got out and declared the red mobile ... JJ's car! As you can imagine, Joshua was more than happy to take over!
We couldn't even get him out of the car for a family picture ... so it just got included. It does take up a nice 3x3 plot of our concrete out front ... so it's almost like a family member.
No one could convince Eli to get back in the car ... but he did like the idea of marching behind it ...
And trying to push it ... and Joshua really is a bit frustrated in this picture that E-Why won't ride along with him. He must have asked him 30 times to sit next to him ... but nope ... that's JJ's car!
So ... it was on to bigger and better things ... like Matter undies ...
And kisses from Cake ...
And showing the world his organizational skills ...
And then ... it was the moment he'd been waiting for ALL DAY LONG ...
The BIRTHDAY CAKE! Ben's mom made a delicious Lightening McQueen cake ...
And Eli was SPEECHLESS with delight!
Even "The King" got a taste ...
It was a fabulous day ... a fun celebration ... and a great start first of Eli's parties!
Thanks for making it so much fun, Cake and Pap Pap!

For He's A Jolly Good Fellow.

My Benni ... came into marriage with a LOT of college credits. A LOT! A hundred and thirty-some lot. Three colleges. One seminary. And a whole lot of professional golf experience.

And last weekend, we celebrated a fantastic accomplishment ... turning fifteen years of hard work into a nice piece of paper ... with a graduation party ... to honor Ben completing his degree!! In what you might ask? According to the graduate himself ... a degree in African Interpretational Dance ... he'll show off some moves if you ask ... but if you'd prefer not to see the moves ... then he graduated with a major in history and a minor in biblical studies.

So for the grand celebration ... There was cooking and baking ... okay ... my wonderful mother in law baked and baked and baked ... and my wonderful mother baked and baked and baked and I ... well ... I bought a pumpkin pie from Costco. Some day ... I'll discover my inner-kitchen LOVE! But for now ... I'll let the pros show off their talent!
And there was decorating ...
And some ooo-ing of desserts ...
And some lighting of my latest Anthropologie purchase ... fun tree lights!
And some picture taking with the graduate ... and a well placed mum plant ...
And some wrangling of the crazies ... before they were shipped off to bed ...
And some mingling with some of my very favorite people ... like my Howie and Grandma!
And a whole lot of fun!
I think Ben should graduate from something every year ... or maybe I'll just pretend he did so I can have another reason to decorate!!!
Congratulations, Ben! Up next ... SEMINARY! I told you he was smart!!!

It's a Zoo Out There.

Last Wednesday, my mom and I took Cranky and Crankier to the zoo ... along with every other parent in this desert place. Why? Wednesday was the last FREE day of the season and ... I am a fan of FREE!

The kids had a wish list of animals to spot ... #1 on the list was a giraffe. Followed by a zebra and monkeys.

Some of us (we call him Pockets) ... leisurely strolled along the paths ...

While others of us ... raced through the exhibits at WARP speed ... at least warp speed for a 3 year old!

Our favorite part ... by far ... was walking through the monkey's cage. Although it was a tough call because we did see the rhino just as he excreted 800 gallons of pee ... and when we got to the tortoises ... they were a bit busy with private matters ... and for that matter ... they were still busy when we circled back around twenty minutes later. I just told Joshua that tortoise was resting on a rock.

But our trip was a fast one ... because even the non-humans were seeking shade! WE WERE TOASTY hot and did I mention ... a few of us were CRANKY?

So ... we headed towards the exit ...

Played in the tree house for a bit ... finally spotted the giraffes and hit the parking lot! Because when it's free ... you don't have to stay long ... which worked out perfectly!