Cakes

Clint came home from work on Tuesday and thanked me for putting Caleb's birthday pictures on our blog. People from work had asked about Caleb's party and he could simply direct them to our blog. He also told me that his co-workers wanted to know what the other birthday cakes I had made looked like. Clint made it seem to them like there was no way I would let him post those pictures because I'm too humble. The only cake that I'm not humble about is the pirate ship. The others definitely needed work. But sometimes its nice to do the unexpected, so I'll post the others as well.

Clint's coworkers---enjoy! (Everyone else enjoy them too!)

Mitchell's First Birthday 9-05

Mitchell's 2nd Birthday 9-06

Mitchell's 3rd Birthday 9-07

Happy Birthday Caleb

This past Saturday, the 16th, was Caleb's first birthday. The day started out with Caleb and Clint spending the morning together while Mitchell and I were at a primary activity. Caleb and Clint don't have many opportunities to spend one-on-one time together so it was fun for both of them. That afternoon the kids took a nap while we decorated Caleb's alphabet block cake. We have a tradition now where we make fun cakes every year for the kids' birthdays. They certainly aren't proffesional looking but we have a lot of fun making them and the kids get excited about them. (At least Mitchell does anyway. I'm sure Caleb will when he gets older.)
After naps we got ready for the party and had Taco Bell for dinner. Previously when we've had Taco Bell Caleb has devoured his tacos, but not that evening. He must have saving up for cake and ice cream.
His party had a great turn-out. His Clement grandparents came along with his Uncle Dave and Aunt Darci and their kids, Marissa, Hailey, Zach and Mason. Our good friends, the Walls who live down the road, were able to make it as well along with their daughter, Hannah (who is Caleb's girlfriend), and her Uncle Ray. Caleb thrived on all the attention of so many people. He has always been happier with more people around. He went from person to person smiling and showing off.
Caleb especially loved his cake. Once we placed him in his high chair and put a rather large piece of cake in front of him he went nuts. He was taking cake in by the fist-fulls and would only take breaks occasionally to get a drink. He ended up eating 3 big pieces of cake and 2 large scoops of ice cream by the time we decided he should be finished. He was undaunted by the temperature of the ice cream and would have continued eating if we would have let him. He went straight from his chair to the kitchen sink to be hosed down.
On his birthday Caleb decided that it was a good day to start walking a little bit. He didn't start walking fully but progressed from hardly any steps to 3 or 4 at a time. He really enjoys walking back and forth from his parents or anyone who is close by. He showed off at his doctor's appointment this morning by walking from my legs over to Dr. Uncle Paul to investigate his stethoscope. As a side note he weighed 25 lbs and is 31 inches long. He is a big boy.






















Not only did Caleb get a party on his birthday but also got one the next day as well. Clint's parents weren't able to make it on Saturday due to their teenagers' busy schedules so they came down Sunday to celebrate. His grandpa was very cute. The picture above is a picture of them together right before the opening of the presents began. He loves to spoil his grandchildren and barely waited for everyone to gather before starting to have Caleb open his gifts. He had called us a few days before asking what we thought would be a good gift for Caleb. We gave him a few ideas and he ended up purchasing all of them much to the delight of Mitchell. He enjoyed the gifts just as much if not more than Caleb did.

A Boy and His Dog....and other stories

Mitchell loves his dog, Maya. He made this very apparent the other day. We had some friends over for awhile and while they were leaving Maya escaped out the front door. Usually Maya is very obedient (when she is already confined in the walls of our home). But if she gets outside she doesn't want anybody to know that she's associated with us. I think she's embarrassed. If I try to catch her she runs further. The best option has been to just let her come back on her own terms.

While she was gone Mitchell was watching and waiting for her by the front window. After 10 minutes of Maya not coming back he started crying frantically that he didn't have a dog anymore. I told him that she was probably out investigating the neighborhood and would be back shortly but inside I was starting to plan out what I would tell Mitchell when she didn't return. I was also wondering when the appropriate time is to start hanging posters and putting ads online. It only took a few more minutes for Maya to return and Mitchell was very excited.

A few hours later I found him hugging Maya and very sweetly telling her how much he loves her, and showing her with his arms just how big his love is. "Maya, I love you THIS much" (with arms extended as far as they can go).

Last Sunday during dinner Caleb was having a hard time being happy. He and Mitchell are both recovering from colds, coughs, and fevers that plagued them last week. Usually when my children are having a hard time I end up making a fool out of myself to try and help them be happy. That day was no exception. In an effort to change Caleb's grumpy mood I started pretending that I was going to eat his hand. That progressed to me kissing his hands and arms. He really liked it so I really got into it. To get some better smooching action I moved from my chair to Caleb's side (as shown). At this point shown in the picture I think he had had enough.

Valentine's day was great. Mitchell enjoyed writing his name on Valentines and giving them to his friends. He also enjoyed getting Valentines especially the one from his grandma. He could hardly wait to open the package that had arrived a few days before. Clint surprised me and the kids with balloons when he got home from work. I had asked him to pick up some for the kids but he also got a boxer-wearing monkey balloon for me. I'm sure it will last longer than flowers and bring more enjoyment to the whole household. Clint never ceases to bring fun surprises to our home. I'm so glad that I have him for my husband. He is a wonderful spouse and father!

Friday Night Action

This past Friday night we had the opportunity to watch some of our friends' children. In all there were 6 kids at our house all under the age of 5. I rather enjoyed the full feeling that the house had but Clint was pretty overwhelmed. He was ready to put the three babies to bed by 6:30.

Caleb really enjoyed having friends Hannah and Ethan who are closer to his age. Hannah is only a month younger and Ethan is a few months younder. I also especially enjoyed having Hannah here for the evening. I couldn't keep my hands from playing with her long, curly brown hair. Caleb would have loved to get his hands in it too if we would have let him. He was able to get a few fingers into Ethan's face. Luckily Ethan is a very sweet baby and didn't mind the attention until Caleb DID get his fingers into his hair. He recovered quickly and didn't hold a grudge. He was smiling at Caleb later on in the night.