We had a visitor...

A leprechaun trap,
(designed and made by Zac)


Clues for a treasure hunt left by a sneaky leprechaun that escaped the trap ,



a leprechaun hat filled with gold,



little green footprints seen throughout the house,



food turned green by the sneaky little leprechaun when our backs were turned,



festive snacks for preschool,



green attire,

(K went for the layered green look...he added layers such as his swimming suit and Peter Pan costume as the day went on)





a green dinner and a green candy buffet.....



= a fabulously fun St. Patrick's Day!

Birthday Boy

Last week, my used to be little but now is SO BIG
little guy turned 3!

He started out the day with breakfast in bed, which the boys think is super fun.
(Although he gets up pretty early and gets himself dressed, so he was already dressed by the time I had it ready.)
His breakfast of choice was cinnamon rolls and strawberries.


That night we had a family party with a Toy Story 3 cake, per his request. I thought it fit perfectly since he was turning 3, so I made it look (kind of) like the Toy Story 3 movie posters.
I had lots of interruptions and not much time, so it wasn't the best cake I've made, but he was happy with it.

He's been talking about what kind of birthday party he wanted for the last six months or so.

He wanted a Toy Story 3 party, but with a newborn, I wanted to keep it as simple as possible, and I wanted to keep the germs out of our house.

So, we had a little party with a few of his friends at Chuck E. Cheese,
with a few Toy Story 3 decorations and cupcakes to fit the theme.
The kids loved it, and I loved how easy it was!

This roller coaster simulator was his favorite ride... he rode it over and over!

Lots of fun games and rides,

pizza and juice,

a little dancing,

the "Little Green Men/Alien" cupcakes that he wanted me to make,

and opening gifts...

it was a great party, and best of all, he loved it!

I still can't believe he's already three ~ I don't know where the past three years have gone!
We love our birthday boy!

And what did this little cutie do during all of the birthday festivities?

He slept through them all.

So precious

We are all in love with our new little one.

Ethan is as precious as can be!

I have had fun taking pictures of him and spending as much time snuggling him as I can...
I know he'll grow up way too fast!

FIVE

I can't believe that Zac is five years old now!
My little boy is growing up so fast!

To celebrate his big day, he wanted to have a Star Wars birthday party.
He loves to participate in the Jedi Training Academy at Disneyland where they train the kids with light sabers and then they get to fight Darth Vader. He wanted to have his own Jedi Training Academy so we could teach his friends how to be Jedi.



His favorite is Master Yoda, so for his birthday he wanted a green light saber like Yoda's.

When the kids arrived, they got their own Jedi training robes.
(our simpler version of the ones they have at Disneyland)


After a quick introduction to the Jedi Training Academy and the main Star Wars characters for inexperienced guests, they set off on their rigorous training.

They were trained in balance, speed, intelligence, defeating the dark side, and of course how to use their light sabers as they crossed the hot lava obstacle course, ran through cones to knock down a mini Darth Vader at the end, stomped out the dark side, and played Star Wars BINGO. At the end of their training they even went on a mission to rescue Princess Leia and succeeded.

Our youngest Padawan


Just as we were finishing the Jedi training, we heard Darth Vader's theme song and he came barging in to stop the young Jedis. This was the highlight of the party, for sure!
Zac has been telling everyone that THE REAL Darth Vader from Disneyland came to his birthday party and they got to fight him!

Darth Vader, dressed for Vegas. :)

Zac and Darth Vader

Each of the kids that wanted to got a chance to use their new skills in defeating Darth Vader.

Even Kayden joined in the battle.

After everyone had a turn to fight him, the young Jedis joined forces to
defeat Darth Vader for good.

It worked!

Triumph!

After all the excitement, everyone was ready for a snack of Yoda Soda,
pretzel light sabers, and of course cake and ice cream.

Zac's green Yoda Light Saber Cake

Finally, the young padawans graduated from the Jedi Training Academy as Jedi Masters with their very own certificates to prove it!

It was a really fun party and we all had a great time!

May the force be with you.