Sam is THREE!

His birthday is finally here! I feel like we've been talking about it for a while. Probably ever since his cousin Carter's birthday and that was six weeks ago.

Where would we be without this little ham in our lives? He has brought us so much joy. He loves to make us laugh with his silly faces and smiles. He likes to make up nonsense words and say "Boo!" to Afton. He loves cars and trains. He loves playing Sesame Street games on the computer. He knows the sounds of all the letters, but gets mixed up when counting to twenty. He loves playing with his friends but is really shy around pretty much anyone else. Each night he gets to sleep with one toy. He usually picks a car. He's an early riser and comes into our bedroom usually around 6:30 to wake us up. He still takes a great afternoon nap. He's a picky eater but loves PB&Js, warm milk, warm chocolate milk, and warm strawberry milk (thank you, Nesquick). He likes to wear gloves in 90 degree weather. And he likes to pick out his own socks.

As far as size, he's in the 70th for weight, and 77th for height. Although it was pretty hard to figure that out. When we went to the doc for his appointment, he threw a total tantrum when they tried to get him to stand on the scale. So then I picked him up thinking I could put him on the scale. But then he did that thing kids do where they go limp and saggy and flop around like a wet noodle. He was crying, the nurse was holding Afton, and I didn't know what to do. Finally we got him to semi-sit on it. The scale read 34 pounds, but his feet were on the ground so that might not be correct. Then to measure his height, a good little boy would stand against the wall with the inches on it. Sam would not. Remember? Wet noodle. So we had to hold him down on the bed thing and she marked his height on the tissue paper cover. Oh, well.

We started the day with donuts. That was Dan's suggestion. Sam loved it. And I did, too.

 After breakfast, we let Sam open his present from Grandpa and Grandma Cheney. He was so excited! (He cannot smile normally anymore. It's unfortunate.)

A little later we headed upstairs. I put his toy together and he got down to business playing.

 I told him to give me a "regular" smile. This was it. Guess we're going back to a "funny" smile! And the boogers are a nice touch, don't you think? Love this kid.

He requested a robot cake for his birthday, so I thought he liked robots. Apparently not. I made him this robot shirt to wear today. He said he wanted to wear his front loader shirt instead. I made him wear the robot shirt until he gave me a good picture and then I told him he could change.

It took a while to get his cooperation.

Finally I caught a good one. And then I let him change.

He's a character.

Sam requested grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner, so that's what we're having. K&G are coming, too. Here's the cake:

After the train cake debacle of 2010, I followed the tutorial from Betty Crocker more closely.

We LOVE our little guy! He is the best!

Cheap and easy projects

I bought two matching frames at a yard sale a month ago for $1.25. One 8x10, one 5x7. I liked the look of the frames, but I didn't like the wood stain. So I bought some spray paint for $3.25 and changed 'em up. I thought our recent bluebonnet pictures look nice in them.

 Total project cost including prints: Around $5

My next project I got from this website. I thought it might be nice to have some little cake plateaus for cupcakes. (Sam's b-day is coming up, afterall!) So I bought candleholders and plates at the dollar store, spray painted the candlesticks that same blue, and hot glued them to the plates. Here's one of them.

It would look better with cupcakes on it, but that will have to wait until next week.

From the Camera

 This dress isn't going to fit her much longer, so I wanted to take some pictures because I think it's so cute. And this is our new(ish) rug. I love it. I like this picture because Afton looks like she's telling a joke.

 Sam brings home a picture from nursery at church every week. He's not too big into coloring, but do you notice something? (He didn't write "Sam".) Notice something else.

 He drew some letters! A's.

 And an S. It looks like a super S.

 Me and my crazy kids on Mother's Day.

 My very first skirt. No, it's not for me. I'm hoping it fits my niece. I used this tutorial. The lady who wrote it said it takes her 15 minutes to make one of these. It took me less than an hour. I think the more I make, the quicker I'll get. I'm excited to make some skirts for Afton when she gets bigger.

 Playing at the pool two weekends ago. We were the only ones there. The water was FREEZING!

 My summer uniform. I don't want skin cancer. Or old lady saggy chest.

 Zoo time! Is it just me, or are lions some of the laziest animals at the zoo?

 Pooped.

 We watched Carter, Wendy, and Harrison this weekend. This little missy is always on the go!

 But she stopped long enough to give her cousin some love.

 Sunday morning we fed the ducks.

 Then we saw these weird creepy zombie ducks.

The end!

Happy Mother's Day!

I'm sure you think you have the best mom in the world. And unless you're one of my siblings, you are wrong.

My mom is incredible. She is selfless, kind, righteous, and loving. She is always thinking of others - especially her seven grandkids.

She put up with a lot of temper tantrums, whining, and weird outfits. In fact, she would even make weird clothes for us - per our request, I am ashamed to admit. "Hey, Mom! Can you take this perfectly good pair of pants, cut slits up the inner legs, and sew in a giant triangle of fabric to make them into humongous flared pants? Thanks!"  I'm sure she must have been so embarassed of us, but she never said anything.

She is amazing and I am so grateful to have grown up with such a good example of motherhood. Love you, Mom!

 And thanks for giving me awesome bangs.

And I found this survey that was meant for younger girls, but I figured I'd answer some of the questions about it and my mom can tell me if I'm right or wrong.

What will your mom say you think is the silliest thing she's scared to death of?
Mice.

How will your mom complete this sentence? "I'm sure glad Kristen isn't anything like (blank)."
I'm sure glad Kristen isn't anything like Pamela Anderson. (?) I had no clue on this one. But I'll bet now that she's thinking about it, Mom is glad I'm not like Pamela Anderson.

What will your Mom say is the one song she can sing that's guaranteed to put you in a really bad mood?
Love at Home. Mom and Dad would always sing that when we were fighting and it would bother me! It doesn't anymore, though.

If your mom could invite a third person to help out with a problem between you two, who would she ask for?
Candice. Candice is decisive.

In the past year, will your mom say she's thrown more: softballs, footballs, basketballs, or bowling balls?
Bowling balls.

Would your mom say she knows more about you or you know more about her?
I think she knows more about me.

Will your mom say that your last argument with her was over a person, a place or a thing?
I don't think we have arguments.

What "foreign word" will your say she uses the most often?
A weird version of "bien." She'll call and say "Hola" and then when I say, "Como estas?" She gets kind of flustered and says a french-accent version of "bien."

What will your mom say was the first Halloween costume you remember wearing?
The first costume I ever wore was a carebear I think, but the first one I actually remember wearing was probably a ballerina. I have a terrible memory.

The very last time you went shopping together, will your mom say YOU paid with: Check, Cash, or Credit Card?
I didn't pay. Thanks, Mom!

Who will your say you look the most like in your immediate family?
Candice.

Which of the following will your say is HER favorite holiday: Thanksgiving, Easter, or Halloween?
I'd say Thanksgiving b/c it usually involves spending time with family.

What will your mom say was the last thing you gave her as a present?
A book with letters from her kids.

How will your mom complete this sentence? "I don't want to hurt her feelings, but I'm not too crazy about the way Kristen (blanks)?" Be specific.
I don't want to hurt her feelings, but I'm not too crazy about the way Kristen dresses Sam in clothes that are too small for him!"
What will your (m/d) say is the last game she beat you at?
Skip-bo
Would your mom rather kiss Richard Simmons or Gene Simmons?
Richard Simmons.

Takin' me back

I've had two experiences in the past two days that took me back to memories of fifth grade.

First, yesterday I was at the library and there's a section where you can buy used movies and books that people donated. I was so excited to see this:

"A definite winner." That is true. So I bought it. Best 50 cents I ever spent. That might not be true, but it's the best 50 cents I've ever spent in recent memory. It's a VHS. I told Dan I would like to watch it together Friday night. He told me he's like me to watch it during the day when he's not home. Ouch.

But getting this movie reminded me of what a big deal the mighty ducks were in California. Disneyland was COVERED in MD apparel when we went there on a visit. Does anyone else remember the duck craze?

My second trip down memory lane happened today. I was driving home and I heard "Zombie" by the Cranberries on the radio. As part of our fifth grade graduation ceremony, we had to take a popular song, change the lyrics to make them relevant to our graduation, and perform it for our parents. We had a week to write down our suggestions. I wrote down "Zombie." Can you imagine fifth graders singing about graduation to the tune of "Zombie"? What was I thinking? I also requested "Black Hole Sun" by Soundgarden. I was apparently very into what my brothers thought was cool.

In the end, we sang "When I Come Around" by Greenday and "You Gotta Be" by Des'ree. Both a little fluffy if you ask me. I think Zombie definitely would have added some much-needed intensity to the ceremony...

**I just looked up the music video to Zombie and it is actually rather creepy/bizarre. So you probably don't want to.