Party time!

Here are a few pics from Jack's birthday party on Saturday. It was a delightful time. After a rainy, unpredictable day, the weather cleared and it was a lovely evening. We had 7 toddlers, 2 babies, and 3 kids along with their various parents in attendance. The toddlers were ridiculously cute, loved the sandbox, the swing, and the barn toy, and didn't fight over anything. The bubble station, staffed by Tina's daughter Aiwyn, was also a hit. I also loved looking back and seeing various parent/child pairings enjoying the hammock... The only real problem with the party was that it was so fast. I wanted very much to spend time with everyone there, but by the time you make the rounds... also a few guests had to leave early. It was several days of preparation for a 3 hour party-- but worth it. Jack appeared to have a grand time. I think he was actually in the act of running about 75% of the time. He loved his new rocking horse (courtesy of Gram) and his new dumptrucks (courtesy of Lulu and Randy and crew). He also loved his cake. And, of course, singing Happy Birthday and blowing the candles out. His infatuation with this started on Friday, when we had a smaller party of 8 out for his actual birthday. I think we sang happy birthday at least 10 times to the boy. "One. more. Cannle on!!" was his refrain. How can one resist? Especially when we got to hear him singing, on a single note, the entire song along with us, about half a verse behind. "Happy tutu" is a thing of the past; he can now say every word of the song properly, and is quite proficient at blowing out a candle! He can also answer, when asked "how old are you?" with an emphatic "a two!" As for gifts-- well, he received a total of 46 wheels for his birthday, between the diggers and dumptrucks and cars and motorcycles and monster trucks (he love love loves those monster trucks!) Also a fair assortment of books and a few clothes. And, we got him a new toddler chair to replace the highchair. About time, we wish we'd gotten it sooner... All told, he's been a great kid on this overstimulating weekend, with no real meltdowns and a whole lot of smiles. .. more pics to come when I find the other SD card...