Yeah, I Am Hip Hop…

Or at least I was on Saturday!

Saturday was super busy – we had so much going on and it will take me a while to catch up.

We went to a friend’s birthday party on Saturday.  Greg is the owner/director/founder of World Hip Hop Market. So he “knows people.”

He decided to have a bash for his 40th birthday and invite his Hip Hop recording artist friends to come perform and he invited all his friends and their families to come help celebrate. 

 

My Boy is Now Eight!

Well we had a fun and exciting weekend!

Josh's birthday was on Sunday and instead of a party we talked him into just inviting one friend over to spend the night. We were able to convince him without a party, he'd get a better present because we'd have the money to spend on the gifts.

Worked a charm! On Saturday, he invited his friend Sean over and since we're friends with his parents and hadn't seen them in ages, we just invited the whole family over for dinner. That way Josh and Sam could play with Sean and his brother Jackson for a bit while we had some "grown up" conversation with Pat & Sherry!

One thing Josh did request was that I make some Shark cupcakes from my Hello, Cupcake book. I only made four since there were only four boys.

I think they turned out cute! The "sharks" are twinkies that have been cut and dipped in grey frosting.



The "teeth" were a challenge -- and one fell on top of another one so I had to try and fix it. But in the end, it didn't matter... the boys ate them!



Like I said, the boys were entertaining themselves while the grown ups ate dinner. At one point it sounded like they were having a sack race around the 2nd floor. And guess what? Not only were they having a "sack race" but a "redneck sack race" to boot!



I guess they had to run off all the sugar from the cupcakes!

We got up and took the boys out to IHOP for breakfast then dropped Sean off. I'm still finding his stuff around the house! Good thing he lives close by so I can drop them off!

After we dropped Sean off with his parents it was time to come home to open presents!

We took all the money family had given us for birthdays and bought a "family" present -- a PlayStation3. And it is fantastic! It plays BlueRay Discs and the picture is just awesome! We had to go out and buy a movie just to watch it!

Anyway, he also got two games for the PS3 -- Little Big Planet and Guitar Hero. Sam loves Little Big Planet and Josh has become addicted to Guitar Hero! I must admit, both are fun!

Here's what my son will look like as a Rock Star!



He's got real "bed head" in this photo... he didn't even need to "fake" it! And notice the nice Red Liverpool t-shirt Auntie Jane and Uncle Rich gave him! Needless to say, it's his favorite t-shirt!

Sam has been asking to play tennis and we were lucky enough to get some tennis rackets from Auntie Jo & Uncle Dean for both the boys.



Sam has hardly put his down. He wanted to take it to school to show his friends. When he opened it he said, "Are these for the WII?"

And since it was Josh's birthday, that means it snowed yesterday!



We lucked out here and had no accumulation although other parts of the metro area received quite a bit. We'd had several days of rain prior to the snow so there was lots of ice out on the roads. Our county was the only school district in the Atlanta area (just about) not closed! There may have been two or three others... but most were closed.

So now we're just recovering! Since the kids were tired yesterday, it was nice to just hang out at home and let Josh enjoy his presents!

Josh's Birtday Update

Thank you everyone for Josh's birthday wishes! His birthday, and the weekend was lots of fun!

On Friday we took Josh and three friends bowling after school. They had a great time. Josh even got a strike!



On Saturday, Josh's actual birthday, we opened presents in the morning, then Grandmother and Grampa took both the boys out for lunch and to buy a birthday present for Josh (and an "I was a good boy" present for Sam).



I have to tell you, this was my favorite part of the weekend! My parents took the boys and Rich and I went out and did errands. First stop, the wine store! Then we had some other things to do and errands to run, but it was so nice to get out and be with him -- just the two of us!

We came home and got ready for another party we were having for him. I'd invited the families of two of his friends over for pizza and cake. Rich and I are also friends with the parents so it worked out nicely. It was lots of fun!

So much fun that did not get one picture. Not.One.Single.Picture!

On Sunday, we went on another Scavenger Hunt at our local State Park. It was lots of fun for all of us. Sam would not let anyone write the answers down, he had to do it. It was hysterical. He'd say what he was writing down as he was "writing" it.



Josh took the whole thing quite seriously. Here he is with Grampa looking for something a deer could eat.





There are more pictures on my Flickr page. Once again, we had a great time.

After, we went to brunch at IH*P. Josh was talking to the waitress and mentioned that his birthday had been the day before. They surprised him with a HUGE hot fudge sundae! The look on his face was priceless! He was a bit surprised and embarrassed and happy all at once! It was wonderful.

And to have Ice Cream for dessert after breakfast was even better!

As you can see, it was a very successful birthday weekend for him! We're still recovering!

Rollerskating

I think I mentioned that Josh was going to a birthday party at a roller rink on Saturday.

He had so much fun! Here he is right after he got his skates on.



And while he was "having fun" I spent the afternoon with my heart in my throat! He fell, and fell and fell some more. It was not fun to watch as a mom.



But somehow, I still managed to take pictures!

He was bound and determined to do it though. And by the end, he was making it around the rink without falling down.




He now wants skates for his birthday and he wants to go skating again!

I managed to get some video of Josh too -- and I was under strict orders to play it for Daddy as soon as I got home!

He also had a sleep over at the birthday boys house. Apparently, they had a great time and were up until at least 1:30 in the morning, and then back up again before 7:00 a. m. Needless to say, Josh was a wreck on Sunday. We went to the playground because it was such a beautiful day and thought the fresh air would do Josh some good. He fell asleep on the way to the playground and on the way home!

We had him in bed by 6:30 last night. When I tried to get him up at 6:00 this morning for the bus, I couldn't wake him up. He slept until 7:00! I had to drive him to school and he was about 5 minutes late, but it was worth it for him to get that extra hour of sleep.

I have a feeling it will take him most of the week to recover!

Rich's Birthday and other stuff

On Thursday night Josh was in the "PE Show" at school. A few kids from each class were selected to go and show-off some of the things they'd been learning in P. E. this year.

Josh was about as far away from us as you can get, so I did not get any pictures. It was very crowded and the kids were all over the place in the gym.

Each "year" had a different song they did a little dance to then showed off some skill. First grade did a dance to "I Like To Move It" -- which was very cute. Then they demonstrated their ball handling. Josh's group's skill was soccer. They dribbled the ball and shot "goals" through their partner's legs. They also demonstrated passing and trapping. Of course Josh is a natural at this!

Friday was Rich's birthday.

I picked Josh up from school early and we headed over to our local grocery store to get some cake and balloons. They had fun trying to pick out one that Daddy would like. I had to nix the "Winnie the Pooh," "Lightening McQueen," "SpongeBob," and "Train" balloons. Finally, Josh picked out one that was appropriate -- it says, "Go CRAZY! It's your Birthday!"

Rich was able to get off work early and since it was a gorgeous day, we headed over to a local park for about an hour.

It was really nice to be outside in the fresh air! The boys were both tired from being up late the night before. I think the fresh air is so good for them, especially when they are tired. At the very least, it gives them a release and distraction so they're not getting cranky at home!

Then we took the boys to a local restaurant they like for dinner. Rich and I had dinner later at home. Then we came home, had cake and opened presents! The boys were quite worn out (as you can imagine) so they got off to bed early and Rich and I had a really yummy steak dinner!

Josh is going to a birthday party this afternoon at a roller skating rink -- that should be interesting -- and then he has a sleep-over at the "birthday boy's" house. I think he's going to be tired tomorrow too!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Birthday Recap

Wow! Yesterday was a FUN Day!

Compared to last weekend when Rich had to work pretty much round the clock -- this weekend kicked some major fun booty!

As I said yesterday, it was Sam's birthday! He turned a whopping 3 Years Old!!!! I don't really think he knew what the whole "birthday" business was leading up to it, but he's got it down now! Josh was really excited too. He could not believe that there was a BIRTHDAY in the house! It's so cute to see how excited he gets! Anyway, Josh was so excited, he got up at 4:30!!!!! I had to send him back to bed. He came in several times between 4:30 and 6:00 when
we actually got out of bed -- he and Sam played for a bit in Josh's bedroom but they made too much noise.

Josh made a birthday card just for Sam and could not wait to share it!

So, Rich and I managed to pull ourselves out of bed and we went down to begin the Birthday Festivities...

Sam was very excited about the presents.

Josh even got a present from Nanny & Grandad for doing well on his report card. They wanted him to have the "gift" on Sam's birthday. Another Pokemon GameBoy Game -- "Just What I Wanted!!!!"

After breakfast, I made cupcakes to bring to Sam's class today. I did not plan a party for him because, in my opinion, three is just too young. Next year, I'll let him invite 2 or 3 of his friends over, but he doesn't really need anything and he was quite happy with out a party! The four of us went to a bouncy castle place near by in the morning. It's a great place, full of bouncies and slides and all sorts of stuff. We got pizza there for lunch and all three boys had a blast!
I read my book.

After lunch we were invited to a friend's house -- well, her mother's house. Two of Mary's cousins had a birthday last week so we went to play with them and celebrate over there. The boys had endless amounts of fun "Sledding Southern Style" down Mary's mom's hill. It was lots of fun.

There are a few more pictures on my Flickr page. I did do it several times, but, alas, there is no photographic evidence! The camera is on it's last legs -- Rich thought he got some, but I guess not!

We then went to Josh's end-of-year baseball award party -- for more bouncies and pizza. By the time that was done, we were pooped! Sam and Daddy went back home and Josh and I went back to Mary's for birthday cake and a little more playing.

By the time we got home, the boys were so tired (as were Mommy and Daddy), there were no arguments about going straight to bed! In fact, Rich and I used the old, "Well the clocks went back last weekend... so even though it's 8:30, we feel like it's 9:30" excuse and were in bed fast asleep by 8:30!

Celebrate!

Today is Veterans' Day, Remembrance Day, Poppy Day... whatever you call it, today is a day to remember those who served their country and fought in a war. For those who don't know why today is Remembrance Day -- I found this website that gives a very simple overview. Feel free to read up.

Anyway, in our house we celebrate Remembrance Day by celebrating life. And what better way to celebrate life than to celebrate a birthday...

Today, Sam turned 3. Happy Birthday Big Boy!

We're busy today, so I wanted to get a quick post up in case I don't have time later. I'll be sure to post an update later today or tomorrow!

We Survived!

Okay, this has to have been the worst weekend I can remember. I'm sure it could have been worse, no one died, we just all felt like we wanted to die!

As you may recall, Sam came down with a stomach bug on my birthday. That wasn't so bad in the end, because Rich and I were going to go out to dinner to celebrate my birthday on Saturday. Oh, I was looking forward to moule marinieres, and steak (we haven't had it in ages), and maybe some creme brulee for dessert... Yum!

But, when Sam started throwing up at 2:30 AM -- so much that he needed a bath in the middle of the nigh! Rich changed his sheets, I gave him a bath and we got him back to bed. But we decided that we had to cancel that evening...

... and it's a good thing we did because when we woke up the next morning, Rich was sick. It seems he'd caught Sam's bug! So, Rich was sick in bed all day. I was stuck in the house with the boys -- except for a 2 hour window when Josh and I went out to a birthday party. It was awful. The boys didn't understand why Daddy couldn't play. And since Sam was sick we were stuck inside.

Saturday, which was supposed to be a nice relaxing day, turned into a stressful, sick filled day. I was never so happy as I was when I put the boys to bed, ate my pizza I had ordered for dinner and drank a glass of wine! I was so exhausted... I went to bed at 8:30.

And I woke up again at 2:30 because I was now sick. Pizza and wine is great going down, not so great coming back up. So I stayed in bed most of Sunday while Rich, who still wasn't well, looked after the boys. And it was raining so they were stuck inside...

So, today, the first day of Spring Break for the boys, it was drizzly outside this morning, we've done our chores and Sam is sleeping. Hopefully when he wakes up the drizzle will have cleared up and we can get out of the house!

Here's to hoping the week turns out better and that Josh gets through un-bugged!

40

Well, despite all evidence to the contrary, I actually had a really good birthday in the end.

Sam only threw up on me once and that was right after the strep-test at the doctor's office. He had a fever all day and was not happy unless he was on me. So, we just cuddled -- all day. And even though my plans were changed, it wasn't so bad to take some time out and just be with my little one cuddling! I wish he wasn't sick, but we had nice cuddles!

In the afternoon, Rich picked Josh up from the bus stop so they could go out and pick up some cake and candles. Josh picked out a birthday balloon (no SpongeBob for me) and a beautiful bouquet of tulips for me. Sam perked up when it was time to open presents. What kid wouldn't!

I got a book, a DVD, some chocolate, some more chocolate, some webpage software (so I can make this blog prettier), and this.

After presents we shared a piece of cheesecake... and when I say shared, I really mean we let Josh eat it and we each had a bite! My friend Sherry and her two boys brought a birthday cake over that she had made (after Sam was in bed because she didn't want to catch anything). Rich made me Spaghetti Carbonara with Garlic Bread for dinner. We opened our bottle of Chateauneuf-du-Pape that we had been saving. It was really yummy! And then we watched the new DVD!

So, all in all, it was a very nice birthday! Of course the best present of all is my wonderful family and all they do for me!

Sam seems better this morning. The fever is gone and he's much happier. We're still going to take it easy today. We were supposed to go to the park for a play date but I think we'll take it easy and make sure he's okay before exposing him to other kids! And his potty training is going great! Yippee! No more diapers!