Celebrate good times

Birthdays are full of tradition in this household.  The big boys have come to “expect” certain things, one of which is waking up to a room filled with balloons and a door barricaded with balloon on their real birthday morning.  In our house, differentiating between real birthdays and birthday parties has been a source of confusion and arguments on all too many occasions.  We traditionally start countdowns weeks before and it’s always a debate about which to based the count down on.  This year we had an extended family birthday two weeks ago to lighten our calendar with our anticipated move, the kids had a small birthday celebration in school on Friday {their real birthday falling on Presidents Day and school mini-break this year} and today we had our small family birthday, just us. 

Last night Mike and I were busy bees on a “quiet step mission” as we referred to it, transferring bags of blown balloons to their bedroom floor as the boys camped out.  With the move on the horizon we dismantled Aiden and Chris’s bunk beds and they now party at night on their mattresses on the floor.  They think it’s amazing.  I consider it an added challenge.  Needless to say, this year was a bit more special as they woke to literally find balloons surrounding them as they slept.  Perhaps that accounts for their 5 am wakeup!  I fancied up their doorway and the dining room with rolls of streamers and they were beside themselves to be allowed sugar cereal AND donuts for breakfast.  We broke all the rules….

I had an early morning appointment to remove my sutures and headed home to bring the boys on a surprise adventure to Toys R Us.  Toy store visits are numbered in our house and they were beside themselves to have unlimited time to peruse the aisles. Jake was a great sport as we moved back and forth between the legos and stuffed animals again and again and again.  After an hour and a half final decisions were made and we came home with our own animal pound.  Both boys had gift cards to spend and did so oh so carefully.  Aiden chose a stuffed husky and a stuffed german shepard and Chris chose a stuffed german shepard (by default since there were no husky’s left) and a stuffed golden retriever.  They also combined their remaining money to treat Jake to a stuffed “Cali kitty (white fluffy cat)”  After our toys store trip we snuck into Trader Joes were I let them chose a dinner, individual cheese pizzas and we headed home.  On our way, Mamie called and invited the boys to a sleep over at her house tonight.  They were beside themselves excited so we bumped their birthday celebration to lunch.  Mike snuck in some work time this morning and afternoon and Dziadzu came for a visit.  It was a stellar day for all and I’m oh so proud to call myself their Momma.  These boys are all too special.  oxo

 

And yes, our house and walls are looking really lonely and sparse if I do say so myself!