we are happy for a few little (but oh so important) reasons today.
I am happy because ali FINALLY has hair long enough to go in a clip without the headband thingies.
and I get to pull out the summer clothes
(ignore her sad little mosquito bites...the one draw back of summer nights)
cole is happy because he has a new big window in his room...quite the process, but so worth it!
ali is happy because she stole cole's cars when he wasn't looking.
and daddy will be happy when he finds out I assembled our new (IKEA put them together yourself cause my wife is cheap and made us buy them from there) nightstands...well I am going to attempt it anyway, it's the thought that counts...right?
When looking through our pictures there were like 500 that I could have posted on here to show how cute Justin is with the kids. So rather than post 500 pictures I went for the most recent daddy picture and one from our family photo's. I love this one from the family pictures because it shows perfectly how Justin watches over Cole and Ali. And the one below is just a picture from this week. I walked in and found them all laying in Cole's bed together reading bedtime stories. (Note the refreshments daddy provided and partook of.) He is such an adorable daddy. The kids absolutely adore him and with just this little glimpse into our lives I am sure you can see why. So happy father's day sweetie, you are wonderful! I am so glad our children have a fabulous daddy just like I have always had!
If you are a movie buff then that post title should tell you what the theme of Cole's 3rd birthday party was. If not, then this first picture should clue you in. Due to Cole's absolute obsession with this movie it was clear that this had to be a Cars themed party.
This cake was definitely a labor of love, but so fun and well worth it. The track is crushed oreo's and the grass is dyed coconut. Cole really wanted a Piston Cup on his cake, and he was insistant that his crashed Mr. the King had to go on top since that is after all what he looks like after the big race. Thanks go to Becca for providing the fondant for the sides, I can't imagine what a disaster it would have been to try that with just frosting. The one casualty, our fingers will be black for a while from dying it black, small price to pay right?
Thanks also go to Justin for making this amazing banner. I think it turned out great, and I am so glad he did it because I would have gone crazy trying to get it looking this good!
So onto the party. Do you think he looks a little excited? I don't know why he looks like he is glowing in these pictures (evidence why I should have had Val take the pictures I guess!).
How awesome is this shirt? Grandma and Grandpa gave it to him a while ago and it went perfectly with our motif! You'll have to check out the back of it in some of the later pic's.
So after a million pictures Cole was apparently ready to dig in...
We took that as a cue to sing and blow out candles. Anyone who was there can attest to the fact that Cole was a bit overwhelmed by a room full of people singing at him. He had a small break down during the song, but perked right up when he saw the fire he got to blow out.
Then it was time to dig in! We had so many friends kind enough to come help us celebrate Cole's special day. And for the first time Cole had friends his age at his party instead of only Mom and Dad's friends (but let's be honest it's a party for us too right? I mean we have successfully kept him alive for 3 years!). The kids took over our kitchen floor and went to town on their cake and ice cream. Our friends were all so willing to help I didn't have to do a thing to facilitate the distribution and consumption of the masterpiece.
mmmmm...
How did he get this old? He looks so grown up in these pictures.
All that sugar was immediately followed by a sugar rush. Which led to what these kids thought was the best game ever...spinning in a chair. What party planner's we are eh? Our wonderful friends put up with all that noise and stayed to help us have just as much fun as the kids!
Don't worry, Ali was not left out of the fun either. She was perfectly content to go to town on the discarded wrapping paper. Cole was spoiled this birthday by friends who knew just what to get him (even though they were told presents were not necessary). We feel so lucky to have friends to get together and celebrate with. We absolutely loved it!
As the night grew late (well late by 3 year old standards), and the sugar rush wore off, and everyone went home, it was time for one last treat...
Cole chatted on the phone with his Nana and Papa. Then he got to video chat with Grandma and Grandpa. My parents had sent up Cole's gift (the cars above) so that he could open it in front of the web cam with them watching on his b-day.
After he was thoroughly convinced of how much he is loved, there was nothing left to do but plop down on his new Lightening McQueen blanket, courtesy of mom and dad, and go to sleep as a 3 year old.
Ali has been officially mobile for a while now. Her crawling has graduated from the army crawl to the up on all fours (and much speedier) form. She pulls herself up and has begun to walk along furniture too. and as you can see from this picture she has decided to conquer the stairs.
I have mixed feelings about having stairs in the house. I like that our kids learn how to use stairs, but it is a bit of a hazard, guess it's time to break out the safety gates again.
Now that she is mobile she has found herself in some interesting predicaments. This one was my favorite...
I could hear her rattle but couldn't figure out where the sound was coming from. Then I looked under the couch and saw her behind the couch in the middle section. I had to grab the camera, it was too cute. She had found her own little hide out.
Of course she has found herself in slightly less enclosed, but no less tight quarters with her brother.
She is so proud that she can go anywhere Cole can go. So the frequent scene at our house is Cole running by in a blur with a little companion on all fours following close behind.
For those of you who were ever a part of the BYU 9th ward when Bishop Young served, his sweet wife passed away this past friday after a long and hard fought battle with Lou Gehrigs Disease. Services will be held on Tuesday June 16th at the Grandview 6th ward building (1880 w. 1600 n. Provo, Ut.) The viewing will be held at 10 am followed by the funeral at 11 am.
Cole will be 3 this month, and while we have tons of pictures, we had yet to ever get family pictures taken. Mostly out of fear, it stressed me out just to think about actually getting a picture where we all are at least looking in the same direction. Enter Val... Val is a friend of ours who just happens to be a FABULOUS photographer. She has been working on us for a while and we finally decided what the heck. If she is willing to put up with some 3 year old craziness, and trying to get a baby to pay attention, then we had better go for it! and I am SO glad we did! These are just SOME of my favorites.
Val did an INCREDIBLE job. She was so flexible and dealt so well with crazy kids and stressed parents. I love how she kept shooting when we were not all cooperating, those crazy pictures are some of my fav's. She has the best prices ever (I am not exaggerating) and she gives you the CD of pic's to keep. She is so talented and by far the BEST deal you will find. If you are interested in getting pictures done just ask me about her, or visit her website at http://photographybyval.com/
I am happy because ali FINALLY has hair long enough to go in a clip without the headband thingies.
