Nathaniel Turned 3!

Way-too-quickly after Christmas -- as in, we barely got our Christmas decorations down in time for his party! -- Nathaniel turned 3!

This boy is the light of our lives! I surmise that because he barely uttered a sound until about 9 months ago, he spent the first 2+ years of his life developing the most expressive facial and body movements ever seen in such a young child. When he's happy, he doesn't just smile, his entire head lights up and his back straightens and he seems to literally jump with excitement! When he's sad or moping, he doesn't just get a down-turned face, he hangs his head and droops his shoulders and does this crazy, lumbering walk while his arms droop and swing.

And nearly every day over the past nine months, Nathaniel has amazed and delighted us with his new-found words, expressions and songs. He is amazing! (Oh, and also a genius, of course. I mean, really a genius!!)

We had small celebrations with our little family for Naffy's first and second birthdays and for his third -- the first birthday he really, truly "got" -- we had a really wonderful party.

Nathaniel's birthday was on a Friday and our party was going to be that Saturday. But, I wanted to do something to help make his actual day special.

Inspired by a few posts on Oh Happy Day, Lucas and I made this little party hats and ribbon neckties for our dino collection. They greeted Nathaniel at his seat on his birthday morning.

Lucas was pretty pleased with our work!

Panda-cakes are Nathaniel's favorite breakfast (food in general, actually!) so he enjoyed a stack of three pancakes topped with sprinkles and a candle on this birthday morning!

For our BIG celebration on Saturday, we decided to fill the day with Nathaniel's favorite things. There's nothing this boy loves more than WATER! We invited a few families to join us at a local indoor pool for some fun time splashing!

After an afternoon break to give the littles time for a nap, we invited those friends back to our house for a good old-fashioned birthday party filled with playtime, pizza and cupcakes!

Using things we had around the house, I was just thrilled with the little table scape I put together while Nathaniel was napping and Abel was on the pizza and beer run! (If you have a Wegman's nearby, they sell these awesome sheets of pizza which serve 32!)

When Nathaniel woke up, I told him it was time to put on his fancy clothes, to which he immediately replied, "Spiderman!!!" That wasn't exactly what I meant, but why not let the birthday boy wear whatever he wants? I dug out his Halloween costume and he couldn't have been happier!

Does it get any better than this? I don't think so!

Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Happy Birthday to Me!!

Happy Birthday to Me! Today I am 31.

Here's how I'll be celebrating.

Morning -- I had a mani/pedi scheduled for this time-slot to finally use the gift certificate Abel got me to Elizabeth Arden for Christmas. BUT, after weeks of trying to get an appointment with the Rheumatology department, my Hematologist finally got me in. Wouldn't you know it? June 3 at 9am. So, I reluctantly cancelled my mani/pedi. As crappy as it seems like it would be to start your birthday with a medical specialist, I am actually looking forward to the appointment. Hopefully it will be my next step in figuring out what's going on and therefore the next step toward getting better!

Afternoon -- After my appointment I'll head out to Reston to meet my dear, dear friend Kristen for lunch at Il Fornaio. So, if you're stalking me just come on by and look for two cute girls laughing and chatting and enjoying a 2+ hour lunch! Kristen and I met when we worked together and during those years we ate lunch together 4-5 days a week, every week! Those were some of the best hours of my life and so I truly savor opportunities to see her for lunch these days. (Quick aside, I sincerely wish I was able to link her name to a blog above. She is a person who truly has design and style talents to share with the world and hopefully I'll be able to tell you about her new blog soon!! No pressure KAP :)

Evening -- I can't imagine anything better than having a nice dinner with my two favorite boys at home on our screened in porch. Followed, of course, by cake! First things first, I've already requested a round, two-layer yellow cake with (lots of!) chocolate icing to be made by Abel. A box mix is just fine with me! As for dinner, I'm not yet 100% decided. But, due to my steroid-induced-constant-cravings for protein I think I'll request steak on the grill with some grilled shrimp and a big salad with yummy, crusty bread. Delicious!

As for gifts, on Sunday (between coats of paint) Abel, Dad and I went to our local nursery to pick out some more plants for our front yard. A new hydrangea and a rose bush were my birthday gifts from Abel. Later that day (between coats of trim) Abel got them in the ground and they look terrific!

And from you, dear readers, I'll simply request a comment! So, de-lurk! De-lurk and wish me happy birthday! (I don't even mind if you remain anonymous!)

Sounds like a practically-perfect start to my 32nd year!!