Chuck E. Cheese's!

Peter didn't have a friend birthday party this year, but we told him he could take 1 friend and choose a special outing.  He chose his friend Simon and Chuck E. Cheese's!  We went today since Casey was off work and of course he didn't want to miss a chance to go to Chuck E. Cheese's.

The only other time we have been to CEC was for Esther's 6th birthday.  We went on a weekday then as well and went right when they opened.  We decided that was a good plan to repeat, and we were happy to have the whole place to ourselves for about an hour.  That meant no waiting, no chaos, and lots of free tickets since the machines all spit out tickets when they are turned on in the morning! 

Posing with the Big Mouse himself!  (Simon was busy playing a game at the time)

We had an early lunch, and by then it was getting busier, so we headed home so the boys could play at home for a while.

Simon got Peter this cool Lego set, an ice cream truck, and a Pez dispenser.  They had fun putting the Lego set together (ok, actually Casey did it) and then playing with it for a while before we took Simon home.

Peter also tried out his new bike this afternoon!

Happy 6th Birthday Peter!

We had a really fun day today celebrating the coolest 6 year old around.  Casey worked today so that he could take tomorrow off and have a 4 day weekend, but he still got to be in on some of the fun.  We started our morning by going to Marge's for donuts (and angel cookies for the girls) with Grandma K, Aunt Renee, Ty and Cassie. 

Our next stop was Breton Village to see the trains...

We went home for a little while and then went to Casey's office to pick him up and go our for lunch.  What did Peter pick as his lunch destination?  McDonald's, of course!

We had a fun and relaxing afternoon of playing Wii, Monopoly, and hide and seek and watching a Charlie Brown video.  Peter started getting quite anxious to open his gifts, so we did that when Casey got home before we ate dinner.

Peter got a harmonica and a grow fish aquarium from princess Miriam:

Esther made her money go a long way by buying books at the thrift store that she thought Peter would like:

For the last few days Casey has been teasing Peter that he would be getting socks and underwear for his birthday.  It became quite a joke between them, so the first gift we told him to open contained...

some of his own socks and underwear (yes, they were CLEAN!).  He wasn't too impressed at first, but we clarified that it was a joke and then he thought it was funny. 

Then it was on to the real gifts:  a US map puzzle for our map-loving boy and a Finn McMissle car.

For his final gift, he opened a box that contained a word puzzle that he had to solve.  He set to work right away...

The answer was "Basement Storage Room."

This is what he found... hopefully he can actually ride it a bit this week since we don't have any snow!

After dinner and showers, it was time for cupcakes...

We are so thankful that God has blessed our family with Peter.  He makes us laugh, gives excellent hugs, is extremely ticklish, tells us every street name that we drive on and provides directions when necessary, loves any type of toy vehicle, enjoys reading and music and school and playing outside, and is a really great brother to his sisters.  He's a super cool kid!

Esther's Nativity Scene

Esther made this cute project during children in worship class at church during December:

She had a lot of fun making it, and it turned out so cute!  I'm sure it will be part of our Christmas decorations for years to come!

Peter's 6th Birthday Party

Yikes, our favorite little dude is almost 6!?  Tonight we celebrated Peter with Casey's family and had a great time. 

Peter chose a Detroit Tigers theme this year...

We typically give the kids their gifts from us on their actual birthdays, but we needed to give Peter one gift early this year. Casey has been wanting to get him a slot car track, and so he spent much time researching and finding the perfect one. Uncle Nick and the McCauls bought him extra cars to go with the track, so in order for them to be able to give him those tonight, we had to give him the track first!

Peter is such a great gift receiver. He is genuinely grateful for each one, and gives many hugs, thank yous, and excited "oh my word!" reactions to his gifts.

He got a Finn McMissle car for the track from Uncle Nick:

Lightning McQueen car for the track and a TobyMac Christmas CD from Uncle Jeff, Aunt Renee, Tyler and Cassie (his cousins were too busy playing to be in the picture):

Grandpa and Grandma gave him a remote control monster truck, a Holly Shiftwell car, a wooden airplane, and a framed picture of Peter and Tyler, taken when we had family pictures done this fall.

Time for cake!

Casey told Peter that he'd set up the slot car track after everyone left.  He was patient for a long time, but eventually he started asking when everyone was going to leave.  :)  They got it set up and had some time to try it out before bedtime.  I think this is going to provide many hours of fun!

We're looking forward to a fun week of celebrating Peter's birthday and of course Christmas!  We just need to make it through a couple more school days and get to break.  It will be wonderful to have family time and be able to focus on the true meaning of the season.

Peter's School Birthday

Today Peter got to have his birthday day at school since his real birthday is during break.  Miriam and I went to school and walked with the class while they delivered Christmas cards in the neighborhood.  When we got back, he handed out his birthday treat--snickerdoodle cookies!  They also made a birthday book, and it was fun to see all the pictures that his classmates drew for him.

Miriam's 4th Birthday Party!

Tonight we had Miriam's birthday party.  We were joined by the McCaul family, Grandma K. and Uncle Nick.  Unfortunately Grandpa K. was sick, so he had to miss the fun.

I took Miriam to pick out balloons this afternoon, and she picked out a gigantic butterfly...

Miriam picked out a butterfly/flower birthday girl theme. 

Here is the adorable cake that Grandma made:

She got some very fun gifts.  From Grandpa and Grandma, she got a musical jewelry box, a cute Hello Kitty purse/bag, and some lip gloss and nail polish. 

Uncle Nick gave her a cute new outfit and purse for Ella, her Build-a-Bear Bunny!

Peter and Ty had some cousin snuggles while watching the gift opening...

Uncle Jeff, Aunt Renee, Tyler and Cassie gave Miriam 2 new sets for her Snap 'n Style dolls.  One is a really cute Christmas set that has pajamas, slippers, a blanket and a stocking.  The other one is a birthday set.

Ella tried on her new outfit.  She seems to like it!

She also got her doll ready for Christmas...

Cake time! 

We had a fun time celebrating our sweet and fun 4-year-old!

Gingerbread Houses

Today Peter's class made little gingerbread houses, and Miriam and I were able to help and participate in the fun!  His teacher had the houses all ready.  She glued graham crackers to milk cartons and then glued those on to a paper plate.  It made the decorating go much more smoothly than if they'd had to assemble the houses on their own!  The kids had frosting to spread on as their glue, and lots of different types of candy/treats to use for decorating.  She even gave them a gingerbread man cookie to put on their house complete the project.  Mrs. VanSledright was kind enough to have extra houses for Miriam and another sibling who came along, so they could do their own.  Peter was very sweet and let Miriam sit next to him while they were working.
Here they are with their finished products!

Happy 4th Birthday Miriam!

Miriam turned 4 today!  She has been so excited about her birthday, and it was a special day.  She got to spend the morning with Aunt Erin and Elizabeth and was welcomed with balloons and streamers decorating the house.  She also got to go to story hour at church where they sang Happy Birthday to her!  I didn't have to work this afternoon, so I was able to come back in time to join them for a lunch of chocolate chip birthday pancakes--yum!

The only candles Erin had were these...

Yup, 3 + 1 = 4!  I thought she was quite clever for thinking of that!

They gave Miriam a Strawberry Shortcake doll set!  She loves it!

After we picked Esther and Peter up from school, we just had to wait for Daddy to pick up a pizza and get home from work to begin the celebration!  We played Guess Who while we waited...

After dinner Miriam opened her gifts.

 Esther picked out a set of Dora rings for her, 1 for each day of the week!

Peter picked out 2 matchbox cars for her.  As we were in the store, I kept having to remind him that he was picking out a gift for her, not something for himself.  To his credit, she really does like playing cars with him and having her own "special" cars to call her own.

We got her a Polly Pocket set, another baby set for her Snap 'n Style dolls, and a couple books for her Tag Junior. 

Finally, it was time for cupcakes!  She chose strawberry cake with chocolate frosting (and sprinkles of course).

What a special little girl we have!  She can be oh so sweet and loving, but also feisty and strong-willed at times.  She makes us laugh a lot.  She loves hugs and snuggles, being read to, playing dress-up, playing with Barbies or other dolls, and playing cars and trucks with Peter.  She is becoming quite the little artist.  Most days she colors several pictures and then presents them to various people.  She wants to do everything her siblings do, and usually keeps up with them just fine.  We are so thankful that God blessed our family with Miriam.  Happy 4th birthday sweet girl!