birthday, birthday

As I am sitting down to write this post about my beautiful little boys turning five, my heart is heavy with the news of others whose future birthdays are not a given.

In the last week I have had three people I care about tell me they have been diagnosed with MS, thyroid cancer and leukemia.

While this makes celebrating a birthday taste bittersweet, I am grateful to be reminded of our health.  I have been blessed with three healthy children (two of whom got new bikes for their birthday!) who can run and play.  And that is so amazing.

We started their birthday morning off with waffles.

Which are always a hit!

Then we got ready for the day, loaded up the car with their new bikes and a picnic lunch, and took off for Coop Park.

The boys are all into hat wearing these days.  Wyatt loves this Buzz hat I found in the storage unit that used to be the twins'.

And Logan & Jack love their new WSU hats that I found at Lids at the mall while we were buying sandals with my mom last week.

Once we got to the park, Wyatt was strutting around like he owned the joint.

That kid cracks me up!

And the big boys finally got to ride their bikes!

I was amazed at how quickly they adjusted to the new, bigger bikes (sans training wheels!) and were able to "start" themselves.  They make me so proud!

They bought each other baseball bats for their birthday, and were anxious to try them out with dad at the park.

They each did great, getting a few hits.

Josh is such a patient teacher, and he loves baseball, so it was fun for everyone!

Soon we all gathered around for a picnic. 

We had invited my sister and her two littles, as well as my mom, to join us.  

It was a really fun morning!

After lunch Nanny pushed Wyatt & Milo in the swings side by side. It was so cute!

Milo loves the swing whereas Wyatt's not so sure. 

Nanny managed to keep them both smiling, though.

There was tons of off-roading, especially with Jack, whose favorite thing to do is ride in the gravel.

I just loved watching them go around and around the loop, never tiring.

Ferris isn't ready to pedal yet, although I think Roxanne's hoping watching the twins will convince Ferris to give it a try.

He chooses instead to scoot with his little legs, and Roxanne and I both commented that our thighs would KILL us the next day if we were doing that workout!

Off went Jack...

And then Logan...

And then Ferris!

He didn't let his tiny bike slow him down.

He wanted to go with the boys every time they went around.

It's just too much fun to watch the three of them together.

I can't wait to take them to the river and camping together.

All the memories they will have... it's just really special.

Wyatt was getting pretty warm by the end, so he and Nanny sat in the shade singing. That baby loves to sing or be sung to.  It was so precious!

Soon we loaded the car back up with our sweaty, exhausted boys and headed home for naps.

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After naps we were off to Aunt Julie's to BBQ for the twins' birthday.

I picked up an ice cream cake for them (Oreo, of course!) and we played and ran and laughed and finally ate dinner.

Julie had put up decorations in the boys' current favorite colors (Jack's is blue, and Logan's is yellow, like his father), which are also my junior high school (shout out to all you Wy'East alumni!) colors, where I was a cheerleader. So I felt a little bit like I was at an awkward 8th grade dance whenever I noticed the streamers.  Luckily no one was ignoring me and there wasn't any Ace of Base playing... so it was all good!

I love the way she sewed the streamers together, though. So pretty & fanciful!  Not to mention super thoughtful for the boys!

Wyatt loves Julie's house, and in fact, when she stopped by our house the other day, he wanted to go to her house with her to jump on her trampoline!

After dinner we lit the candles on the boys' cake (five each!?!) and sang.  

Logan blew out his candles over and over as we sang.

Ethan saved the day and re-lit them for him!

I told them to make a wish, but Logan just laughed and said no.

I guess that means they got everything they wished for this birthday!

Once we ate the cake (which was awesome!) we headed out front where Josh, Ethan & Alvin played basketball, and the little boys chased Julie and I around with dart guns!

We also played some cars with Wyatt.

And used up every last ounce of their energy.  It was such an awesome way to end such a special day in my life.  

June 6th is special because two amazing little boys entered the world.  

June 6th is special because I became a mommy.  

June 6th is special because Josh became a daddy.

But mostly June 6th is special because we became a family.