Jarem's Lego Party

I thought I better get this posted since Jarem will be turning 9 in a couple of months!!  Yikes!  I have to catch up. :)  

Even though Jarem's birthday is the beginning of April, we had to put off his birthday party until May 23.  Mainly it was due to having a newborn and having his baptism and Micah's blessing in April (which required some work and planning).  Jarem didn't mind because we planned it exactly how he wanted it, and we had it the day after school was out which worked out for all his friends.  I had a lot of fun planning this party.  It turned out to be a fun party!  (Well for the kids at least).  :)

When I planned the party during the daytime, I knew that Eric would be at work, but I figured I'd have my older kids to help out.  Well, as soon as Alex and Tessa saw the group of wild boys, they retreated down to the office to play computer games and hide.  Jesikah did help and Micah fortunately slept upstairs in his swing for nearly the whole party.  I was grateful for Alex's suggestion not to leave Micah's swing down here.  Alex took the swing up to my bedroom just before they all got here.  Micah definitely would not have tolerated the noise well.  I had forgotten how loud a group of wild boys can be.  I think it was especially bad because our wood floors and high ceilings seem to amplify the noise.  It was SO loud!  Even Jarem said later that it was too loud for him too. :)  Noise and high energy aside though, it was a lot of fun and the boys really loved all the games we had planned. 

I had fun creating this invitation.  Jarem built the Lego guy he wanted on the front. :)

The birthday table

Goodie bags for the kids to take home

Marshmallow pops for  the kids to take home

Pops for them to eat during the party.  These were so fun to make!!

Lemon drops and cherry sours

Lego pizza

Lego cake (this was fun and easy to make)  Jesikah made the fondant and it was perfect!!!

Chocolate Lego men (another fun and easy thing to make) and SO CUTE!!

Lego crackers and cheese

Even Lego water

The kids really loved guessing and putting their guess in the jar

Build your own Lego guy station

 We have A LOT of Legos, so I had the kids pick out heads, bodies, legs, and accessories that they didn't care about, and each person got to build their own Lego guy to take home.

This turned out to be a great idea.  I had free play Legos for them to do during the first 20 minutes of the party while everyone was arriving.  They all loved it and it kept them engaged while everyone was getting there.  The beginning of the party is always difficult before everyone gets there and you are ready to "officially start".  This worked perfect. In fact, it was hard to draw them away once I was ready to do other things.


Our party group:

Having some snacks, Sydney was the only girl (and I warned her beforehand), so she brought Thomas to keep her company.

Jaden checking out his marshmallow pop

More free play after eating

Now onto Lego Bingo

The kids LOVED this Bingo

 Bingo hasn't always been a hit in years past.  Sometimes the kids are bored with it or just not engaged, but they LOVED this Bingo.  It was pretty cool with unique Lego guys.  We let everyone get a Bingo and then we did a blackout.  Even after that, people were still asking to play again.  It was pretty cute.

Landon looking at the next card

Jarem looking over his card

They were almost to blackout!

We also played some outdoor games and had cake and ice cream.  I didn't have a photographer since I was doing everything, so I didn't get any pictures of that.  Surprisingly though, they loved the fondant and even mentioned how much they liked it.  (Most people aren't big fans of the taste of fondant).  Everyone ate their cake and ice cream!  And the party got over right in time! (I sometimes have trouble with the timing on birthday parties...either too short or too long) :)

A Happy Mother's Day

I am so grateful to my husband and children for making me have a wonderful Mother's Day!  I love them so much!  I never thought I would say this, but I really LOVE having teenagers.  And having a baby and teenagers, while presenting its own challenges, is really the best of both worlds.  I can have fun conversations with my teenagers and we can laugh together and have fun.  And that sweet innocent baby always has a smile for me!  Not to mention Tessa and Jarem, who are also both sweethearts and at great ages too.  There has never been a better year to be a mother.

Today while I was at church, I almost got a little resentful about being the only one to tend the tired baby at church.  For a minute, I almost felt upset that my husband can never help me on Sundays since he is the bishop.  But then, I decided instead of pacing the halls with an overly tired baby, I would take him for a little drive in the car so that he could go to sleep.  I turned on the Mormon Tabernacle Choir singing, "Amazing Grace", and as I drove down the highway through beautiful green trees and farmland, I couldn't help but feel so incredible grateful for my life, for beautiful music, for nature, and for the beautiful experience of being a mother.  I will recommit to cherish every moment I have with my children!  I am so proud of them.  They are such good kids.

Beautiful, beautiful flowers from my husband!  I LOVE them!  Orange roses are my favorite!

I love me some chocolate

A sweet card that everyone wrote in and signed!

Jarem's gift to me from school.

Both from Jarem:  the book is a purse with pages about his mom.  The other had a packet of sunflower seeds and a verse.

Another card from Jarem

Jarem loves giving gifts.  He always feels like he wants to give more and more and he insisted I keep this dollar too. :)

Jarem didn't want Micah to go without wishing me a happy mother's day, and since he wasn't capable of telling me himself, Jarem helped him out.  When I went to get him out of the car at the church, this is how I found him. :)

And the inside of Micah's card said with Micah's own scribbles to make it more personal...so cute!!

Cinnamon rolls for breakfast

And a delicious dinner with beef roast, mashed potatoes, corn, rolls, and coconut cream pie for dessert with 100% of the preparation and clean-up done by my sweet husband and kids!

And a picture of me today!  I love being a mom!

Soccer District Champs

We are very proud of Alex and his high school soccer team for winning the district championship this week. Now on to region, then hopefully state.

They have a great team this year and one of their greatest attributes is that they get along well and support each other. That makes such a difference in a team sport!

3 Months Old

This little boy has gotten so fun this month!  He smiles all the time and laughs quite often.  He is very expressive with his eyes and eyebrows.  He coos and thinks he is really communicating too.  He takes his daily naps in his swing and sleeps usually 8 hours in his cradle at night.  He got his first cold this month which was a little sad for him.  He's getting such a pleasant demeanor.  He is starting to like his siblings a lot more.  He still struggles at church because he doesn't have a swing to go to sleep. He is getting pretty chubby.  He weighs about 12 lbs 8 oz.  We sure love this boy!