Monday, June 13, 2011

Happy Birthday Grady Lee!

On Friday, June 10th, Grady Lee went to bed as a tired four year old. 
And on Saturday, June 11th, he woke up and walked through his door as a tough stuff five year old!
The birthday boy chose what he wanted for breakfast: cinnamon rolls, bacon, and "lots of fruit with lots of colors."

During breakfast, each of us took turns sharing something we admired about Grady Lee.

Micah commented that he "liked to go bowling and get spares with Gwady." (I think his three year old mind could only remember back to yesterday when I asked him to think of something fun he liked to do with Grady Lee.)

Nana shared that she loves how much Grady lee loves Jesus. Daddy said he enjoyed the energy and excitement Grady Lee has for trying new things. And I told him how happy I was that he was getting much better at learning self-control.

I pray that each year he hears enough encouragement and love from people who care about him and that he never, ever doubts others support and affirm who God created him to be.
While I cleaned the kitchen mess, Grady Lee chose what board games he wanted to play. And, of course, he chose the one game that he and Micah always argue about and the one game that involves hammers. Ay-yi-yi.
After breakfast the boys raced around the culdesac on their bikes while Nana and Annalyse took a slow walk behind them.

Our neighbors were having a small garage sale and my boys found a couple of treasures they wanted to buy. They thought they were very cool running back home, getting a couple of quarters from their piggy bank, and returning to pay with their own money.
When it stared to get hot, we filled the pool and turned on the sprinkler. I gave the boys balloons and had them compete to see who could sit on their balloon in the water and pop it first.
They squirmed and spilled and splashed and slipped... and Nana and I laughed and laughed. Apparently this was much harder than it looked.
And, when you're only eight months old, all you need for a good time is a golf ball and Nana's lap!
When Daddy returned from a few errands, both boys met him at the door asking if "it was time for pwesents and cake yet?!" Because really, when you're a kid and it's your birthday, it's not really your birthday until you open gifts and eat cake!
Lo and behold! Paper to rip and tear and chew. Endless fun!
Sometimes gifts are overwhelming. Which one to open first? Which one to play with first? I know I should share, but I don't really want to cause it's my new toy. I know I should stop and say thank you, but I don't really want to cause there's lots more to open.
Check out that stack of little boy, or should I say, BIG boy, fun! 
For the longest time, Grady Lee has told me he wanted "a firetruck cake for my birthday. And I want the firetruck to put out a fire."
Thanks to a friend of a friend, he got just that! Whew. Not only cute and creative, but yummy too. So yummy that I actually dove into the extras later that night once kids were in bed. And, so yummy that I snuck a fork full after breakfast the next morning. Sshhh - don't tell.
Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday, Dear Grady. Happy Birthday to you!
While Grady Lee scarfed his down in a couple of bites...
... Annalyse was not a fan of the teeny-tiny drop of frosting I offered her. She made it clear that she is not a fan of sugar yet. I'll have to work on this - she can't be my daughter if she's not a glutton for sugar.
Later that afternoon it was time for a nap - a lot of excitement in a short amount of time. And there was much more birthday fun to come!
Grady, Nana, and the boys enjoyed swimming for a couple of hours while Annalyse slept. Since I wasn't there I didn't capture the usual 1,207 pictures of the event, but Grady was thoughtful and snapped a couple pics on his phone.
Grady Lee requested "hamburgers on the grill and french fries for dinner" so that's just what we did. How come my boys are only three and five but can still eat more than me for dinner? My dad tells me I'll want to just take the door off the fridge when they're teenagers, but I think I kind of wanna do that now.

After dinner we spent the evening mini golfing. The fountains and waterfalls weren't working, but the boys didn't seem to mind. It just gave them more places to run and jump and swing their club.
This sweet girl hung out with me and, despite being well after her bedtime, did great all evening thanks to a long afternoon nap.
After our 18 holes were through, the boys had fun on the putting green and kept saying, "This is the funnest part! I like these holes the best!" Of course you do - those are the free ones. Why would you like the ones we actually had to pay for the best?
By 9:00 it was time for baths and bed! A long day. A full day. A fun day. And, hopefully, a Happy Birthday day for my big guy, Grady Lee.

3 comments:

  1. A very Happy Birthday to Grady Lee! Looks like a great day. That breakfast sounds yum! Our own little A is about to turn 4! I can not believe it. We're having a Grandparents celebration too this year.

    Michelle

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  2. Wow, that sure is one fantastic birthday full of all day fun & celebrations! All of the pictures are adorable! I love how you thought to take one last picture of Grady when he sleeping still 4 years old! Micah seems just as excited as Grady Lee, I love how excited the siblings get. And yes, it is a widely held belief in our household that you do not actually turn your new number until the party with presents & cake! (Boy, if that were actually true, I would still be...well I would be much younger!)
    Happy Birthday to Grady Lee!

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  3. What a super fun day for a super fun boy!!!! Happy Birthday to Grady Lee!!!

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