Saying Goodbye and An Early Birthday

My parents left yesterday and I must say after seven and half years of being here the good byes haven't gotten any easier. I am not the type that cries at the airport during the goodbye. I am the one that wakes up the next day and realizes they are really gone and I burst into a million tears. I walk around with an ache in my heart for a while until I get used to them being gone. I might spot little things around the house that remind me of the them and just ache inside. As my kids get older the depth of the good bye sinks in for them as well. This time around Kayleigh cried some and was really sad. Which just breaks my heart. In the short five years of her life she has had to say some hard goodbyes not just to grandparents but to friends as well. It's just plan hard.

We traveled so much the month that my parents were here that I didn't have time to plan an early birthday party for Layla before they left. Last night in an attempt to somewhat reenact a birthday party I decided to give Layla a bowl of chocolate pudding. We sang Happy Birthday and watched her go to town on the pudding. I think it is safe to say she LOVED it. 

This past Friday, Kayleigh and Zeb went to Toys "R" Us to pick our a toy of their choosing for their birthdays, up to a certain monetary limit. Kayleigh of course chose a piano keyboard. Pink. Complete with microphone for performances. Zeb wanted to play with it so bad, he used his feet to get in on the action.

Happy Birthday Kayleigh!

Kayleigh, your five! I really can't believe that it has been five years since you came into this world. You are growing up so fast. You love to ask me questions about everything and are really interested to know why things are the way they are. You are a joy and a delight to be around. Your such a big help to me more than you will ever know. I love your excitement about life and your love for others. So happy 5th birthday my dear little one.

We started out our day with Kayleigh opening her presents. Then we spent the day with our dear friend Danielle and her new little one Harvey. We finished the day with dinner at Pizza Hut ( your mother was thrilled) and shopping at Toys "R" Us.

Kayleigh with her Fancy Nancy Tea Party game and Playdough noodle maker.

This pose is very Chinese!

Layla hanging out with "Uncle" Josh.

Hard Hat Zone

Kayleigh and Zeb's friend Nathan had his 4th birthday party on Saturday. It was a construction party. It was full of fun games like painting a house, a wrecking ball that knocked down boxes, and a race with dump trucks. The kids had a blast! I am pretty sure my friend Brooke ( Nathan's mom) is the next Martha Stewart. She had hard hats for each of the kids with their names on the back. She also sowed each of the kids a tool belt that had goodies in it like a tape measure. She is amazing!

Painting the house.

Dump truck race.

Zeb the construction man!

Kayleigh the construction woman!

My Birthday

I don't think I have ever met anyone that shared a birthday with me until I met Justin Barber. What are the odds that in our small community of Americans that someone would have the same birthday? I think pretty slim. Not to mention that he was born in 1988 and I actually remember what I was doing in 1988! That makes me feel old. However, Kayleigh made me feel better when she guessed that I was 21! I thought I would take that offer. We had a great time celebrating together. We went to the Japanese steak house which is one of my favorites. Also, my mom friends had a picnic for me in the courtyard with a chocolate cake. It was a lot of fun! Later on this week, John plans to take me to a nice Thai restaurant, just the two of us.

My cake turned out a little crazy looking but it still tasted wonderful! Give me chocolate any day and I will be a happy woman!

Justin and I may have been born on the same day but we are complete opposites in how we like our desserts. His choice for a cake was a fruit pizza. It was good but doesn't beat chocolate in my book!

Happy 4th Birthday Kayleigh!

One of Kayleigh's favorite books is called "Fancy Nancy". Nancy loves being fancy by dressing up all the time and using French words. Nancy also has red curly hair just like Kayleigh. My friends Laura and EA had an idea that I should have a "Fancy Nancy" birthday party for Kayleigh. It was a great idea and also very fitting since her middle name is Nancy! All of Kayleigh's friends and the moms came dressed up very fancy. Since Nancy loves tea parties we had a tea party, painted our nails, and even put on fake tattoos. We gave the girls necklaces, rings, and ear rings for party favors. The girls had a blast!

Joint Birthdays

We decided to do a joint birthday party for Kayleigh, Zeb, Hayley and Holly while we were home. Hayley, Holly, and Zeb's birthday was in April and Kayleigh's is in June. The kids had an awesome time and loved opening all the presents. My poor sisters where left in the shadows as my kids took all the attention. I think they still had a good birthday though.

We got this hat at Buffalo Wild Wings and thought it fit Zeb's personality well!

Happy 2nd Birthday Zeb!!!

My dear little Zeb. I can't believe that you are two! Time has flown by so fast. You bring so much joy to our lives. You are funny, energetic, and very loving. Your birthday certainly wasn't what your mommy planned for it to be. I had planned a big party with all your friends and you were even going to get a "Mater" cake. You however, got very sick and we had to cancel your party. When mommy rescheduled your party we sang to you and while you were eating your cupcake you threw up everywhere! Zeb, I hate to brake the news to you but that is certainly a party killer! It didn't stop you though. You wanted more cake after throwing up and you were up running around ready to open gifts while mommy was cleaning up. I certainly won't forget this birthday. I love you and am so glad that God has blessed us with you.

Happy 3rd Birthday Kayleigh!!!

Happy Birthday Kayleigh! We love you so much and are so glad that God as blessed us with you. For your third birthday we had a small family get together. We decided on ice cream cake since you would rather eat ice cream than cake anyways. You loved it. You had a wonderful time with your cousins and family. You seem all grown up to me already. Sometimes I feel like you are 3 going on 23! You come up with some of the funniest things to say. I love to talk with you and really see how your little mind works. You are very logical and you want everything to make sense in your mind. Your new obsession as of late is flip flops or any shoes for that matter. Most of the day you are wearing other people's shoes around the house. Your favorite thing to do is to get in your Grammy's closet and wear all of her shoes. You have so much joy and love to give. We are so thankful for you.

This was your reaction after opening a new pair of your very own flip flops. Others would have thought you just won 10 million dollars. Oh, the simple things in life that make you happy.

Lake Norman Birthday Party

My cousin Kathryn had a little boy named Blake a little over a month after Zeb was born. She has been talking about having a joint birthday party for them and Kayleigh ever since she found out we were coming home. So we decided to have a triple birthday party for all three of them at Lake Norman. We had tons of family come! Zeb and Kayleigh met cousins they didn't even know they had or had never met. It was a lot of fun but I was exhausted by the end of the day. Kayleigh loved the boat and jet ski but would not get in the water at all. I am convinced that it is because she can't see the bottom because at a pool she jumps right on in. Zeb however loved the water and didn't want to get out.

Zeb and his 9 month old little cousin Bryleigh.

Me and my cousin Kathryn.

John, Kayleigh, and little cousin Joe.

The birthday kids: Blake, Zeb and Kayleigh.

Once again Zeb had no problem with devouring the cake!

Kayleigh barely touched her cake. She just wanted ice cream.

We gave Zeb a bath in the lake to wash off all the cake.

Happy Birthday Zeb!!!

Zeb is one today! I can't believe it! We took him to McDonalds to have some ice cream for his birthday. We plan to have a birthday party for him after my sister Hayley and her husband Charlie get here. He loved the ice cream and cried when it was finished. He also had a great time playing on the slide with Kayleigh. I am so glad that God has blessed us with this little boy. He brings so much joy to our lives.

Birthday Party!

Last Saturday Kayleigh went to her friend Bright's 4th birthday party. They started out with a trip to the ball pit and then back to his house for some pizza and cup cakes. She had a blast!

Zeb mostly just tried to crawl around and eat the balls that had come out of the ball pit.

Below are some of the party attenders. The birthday day boy had his head turned. He wasn't in the mood for his picture to be taken.