Cole's 6th Birthday Party

Cole decided he wanted a Super Mario Birthday party, only because he's totally obsessed.  So we did our best to deliver.  Here's the invite. 

There was a lot of prep work.  Drew decided to take on the task of making the pinata.  None of my kids have ever had a pinata at their birthday party, so this was a big deal.  And who doesn't like beating things with a stick?  Especially when you get a candy reward.  

Drew wanted to make a memorable one, and boy did he.  He decided to make it into a mushroom.  

For the top, he used my salad bowl.

And the bottom is a tin can. 

It took about 4 days of work to get it just right.  I think it turned out awesome.  And Cole loved it.

We invited 8 boys, and 7 of them showed up, so it was kind of a mad house.  

Mia colored a bunch of Super Mario characters and hung them around the front room.

And I made the cake.  My first attempt at fondant.  It was actually really easy, and lots of fun.  This is just two round cakes.  One layer chocolate, and one white cake. 

As the boys arrived they colored their pinata bags.  

For our first game, they played marshmallow launcher (like we played at Mia's birthday party), but this time they had to get the marshmallow into "Boo's" mouth.  

It was so funny to watch them.

Then we played "Pin the Mustache on the Mario" (Thank you Dixie for drawing the poster)

After those two games, the boys were ready for a break.  So we had some pizza and watched a Super Mario episode.  The boys LOVED that part. 

Then for our last game, we tied a balloon to their ankle that had "Boo's" face drawn on it.  Then they had to run around the back yard and pop other people's balloon by stepping on it.  It was a lot of fun.

And then it was Pinata time!

Cole got the first swing.

Each boy got a turn to hit it once, really hard.

It didn't break so they went for round two.  This time each boy got to hit it two times, really hard.

I still wouldn't break.

Drew felt sorry for Mia sitting on the side lines so he told her she could have JUST ONE swing at it.  Sure enough it broke!  Not much else to say but... GIRL POWER!

And who cares who broke it.  What matters is how much candy you get.

Mr. Jake is always the jokester!

We stayed outside to open the presents.  We always play "heavy heavy hang over" and the kids get bonked pretty good.

He loved all his presents.

By the end he was getting a bit of a headache from all the "bonks on the head".

Cole loved the cake!

It was a fun party.  Anything for our Coleman!

So Cute!

A conversation between Cole and Drew:  Cole was telling him about the little turtles he got to hold in school, and I was listening.

Cole:  "I got to hold a turtle in my class today.  It was so small and it's fingernails scratched my hands."
Drew:  "Did you wash your hands after you held the turtles?"
Cole: "Yeah."
Drew:  "Good, because turtles carry Salmonella."
Cole:  Pause..."I don't think that turtle could carry Ella.  It's  too little.  Who's Sam?"

First Cereal

On Monday September 6th, Ella had cereal for the first time.  No funny faces... she loved it from the first bite!

Mia was really excited to feed her little sister.

Ella's Blessing

Ella was blessed on Sunday September 5, 2010.  It was the day after Mia's baptism, so it was a busy weekend.  Ella wore the most beautiful dress that Grandma Dixie designed and sewed, just for this special occasion.  It was amazing.

I've been having some minor wrist problems since Ella was born.  I try to remember to remove the brace for pictures, but sometimes I forget.  Obviously.

Two beautiful girls in white.  I feel so lucky to have them.

Mia's Baptism

Mia turned 8 last month, so naturally it was time for her to be baptized.  This was a big decision.  She felt ready, so we were ready.  

Here is the invitation we gave to family and friends. 

I decided to do Mia's hair in a way that wouldn't require much work after she came out of the water.  We did two twists back to a bun.  Isn't she beautiful?

Mia was thrilled that so many of her friends came to share in her special day.

Her adorable friend Conner was also baptized that day.  He was pretty reluctant to pose in a photo with all those cute girls, but he was a good sport.

This is the cool climbing tree outside of the church building.  Every Sunday after church, there are about 10 kids hanging from it's branches.

We were so happy that Drew's parents could attend the baptism.  Mia felt so much love and support.  It was awesome.  

Afterwards, Grandma and Grandpa took us out to dinner to celebrate.  What a wonderful night.