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| On the way home from the hospital |
He was so excited for his birthday this year. In the weeks leading up to his party, he happily told all his teachers that his big day was quickly approaching.
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| My birthday is coming!!! |
Needless to say, Cole's 5th birthday had a Curious George theme. It wasn't too hard to design the perfect card for my little Curious George fan - George and balloons - two of Cole's favorite things!
To my surprise, our local party store did not have even one Curious George item in stock. Thank goodness for the internet! With a couple clicks of a button, every necessary Curious George party item from plates to decorations were delivered to my door. And of course no party can be complete without a pinata!
Cole's party would have been easy as pie, if it hadn't been for the cake. I decided to make his birthday cake. And, well, I'm not much of a baker. It was quite the process considering I had no clue what I was doing. Cole's not much of a cake person, but he sure likes brownies. And he's also gluten-free so I thought why not make him a flourless chocolate cake (yum!!) It took me two days, but my first 5-layer cake turned out looking and tasting pretty good if I do say so myself.
The morning of the big day, Cole opened his gift from us. He got a couple Doodle Bop dvds, a Curious George movie and his very own DVD player.
The boys both enjoyed Cole's new presents and quickly zoned into the Curious George movie.
Soon it was time for the birthday boy to get ready for his party. He had the perfect shirt to wear for his big day.
It wasn't long before the party guests arrived, followed by Cole's favorite lunch - black olive pizza, grapes, and a juice box. Of course, the guests also had the choice of a few more grown-up options.
After lunch the kids played "Pin-the-butterfly-on-the-Curious-George-poster".
And Cole opened all his fun presents (with the help of his very eager big brother).
And then it was time for the pinata. This year I ordered the pinata from a family run online-business. It was a pull-string pinata, but instead of each child taking a turn to pull one string, they kids were all supposed to pull a string at the same time. All the strings were connected so with all the kids pulling at the same time, the bottom of the pinata was supposed to fall off, thereby releasing all of the sugary treasure inside...in theory. Alas, it didn't quite happen that way. (We don't have the best luck with pinatas!) The kids grabbed a string and pulled and pulled and pulled, but the bottom would not give away. So eventually Shane removed the flap on the bottom and the candy poured out.
Next on the agenda was the birthday cake. Cole was a bit nervous about everyone singing to him, so we skipped the song and went straight to blowing out the candle.
He was so excited to blow the candles out that he did it so quickly and I totally missed snapping a photo. So I relit the candle for him to give it another try and I nearly missed it that time too!
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| Blowing out the candle |
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| "That was fun!" |
Even Cole thought the cake was yummy - and he usually doesn't like cake. He's not a big fan of frosting either, but luckily I ended up having an extra layer of cake that I didn't need so Cole had an entire frosting-less layer just for him.
Dear Cole - You are sure getting big. You run like the wind, quite literally. When we walk out to the car in the morning, you take off running out the garage and down the sidewalk. You love to run which is quite an amazing feat for the boy who was too scared of falling to walk. You are constantly in motion, running here and there. The only thing that can get you to sit down is Curious George on TV. You love watching George and seeing what silly things he's getting into. For you to be happy in the family room, the TV must be tuned into Curious George!
You love music. You have since you were born. But now it's more than just kids songs. If we are riding in the car and you can't hear the radio, you are quick to tell someone "I can't hear. Turn it up." I often hear you singing along to your favorite songs, which recently have all been country. Some of your favorites these days are "Somethin' Bad" by Miranda Lambert and Carrie Underwood and "Day Drinking" by Little Big Town. You love knowing the names of the songs that catch your attention. When a new song you like comes on the radio, you always ask "What's this one?" On occasion you even make up your own tunes and lyrics. You just may be a music star someday.
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| Dancing to a tune of your very own |
You're starting to enjoy books more and more. Some of your favorites also have catchy tunes, so your love of music is helping you like books. You love the Pete the Cat series with his groovy buttons and white shoes. But your favorite book of the moment is "Who's Been Eating My Porridge?" You especially like the silly voices Mom does when Old Scary Bear comes chasing after Little Bear to get his porridge. You love that page and ask for it to be read over and over again.
You are deathly afraid of mascots and pretty much anyone dressed up in a costume. Whenever we see someone in a costume at the amusement park or a sporting event, distraction is the key. Because if you set your sights on them, you will not be forgetting it anytime soon. You have yet to get over the terror of seeing TC Bear on the field at the Twins Game. You wouldn't go back to your seat that entire game and have refused to go back to the stadium out of fear of running into the terrifying bear yet again.
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| The Twins game BEFORE you saw the bear |
You love to drive! Whether it's a steering wheel attached to a play structure at the park or your very own electric car, you love grabbing a hold of that wheel. You sure are a crazy driver steering this way and that. And you definitely have a need for speed! You love riding in go-carts and on Popi Jerry's tractors. Whenever we plan a trip to the park, you are quick to ask "Is there a wheel?" We now have a list of parks that meet the wheel criteria because if there's no wheel, it's just not worth your time.
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| Driving your very own car |
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| Driving Popi Jerry's tractor |
Happy 5th birthday, Cole! Here's to another year of watching you grow up before our very eyes!
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