More Birthday Fun... and a Super Bowl

The weather is amazing here today.
70's, sunny, breezy.
My french doors are open and the fresh air is trailing in, slowly warming up the house.
I'm sitting at my desk enjoying a much-deserved cup of coffee (Starbucks Blonde, Keurig style), while my new tea light candle holder does its job of dispersing just enough scent and light to give out some beautiful ambiance.

I am about to load up my favorite Pandora station and...
Wait.
What's that noise?
Surely that's not the baby waking up from his nap?
I only put him down 45 minutes ago!
I barely had time to shower & dry my hair!
WHAT?! Why is he awake?!?
Maybe he'll go back to sleep...
Nope. No such luck today.
Well, I bid you adieu for now.


The above portion was written at 11:30 this morning.
It's now 8:34 p.m.
But... both kids are in bed (one is asleep, so that's progress).
Hubby is on the phone working, so I'm back to finish my post.
No candle, or coffee this time. Although I might bust out some decaf in a bit if the mood strikes...

So, where was I???
Oh yes, I wanted to share a few photos with you... some of which are birthday related.

Payton's birthday weekend extravaganza continued after his birthday party on Friday night. 

Saturday afternoon we all went for a bike ride and ended up at Starbucks (surprise, surprise).

Yes, that is a monkey on the back of Brian's bike. Remember Payton's class "pet"?

Yes, Bongo the monkey enjoyed Starbucks too. :)

We let Payton get a ginormous chocolate chip cookie and then we headed to the park to play with friends. The day was amazingly beautiful! Sun was shining and temps were low enough to need a light jacket. Just goregous.

Saturday evening we laid low and hung out at home. Payton (and Brian and I) really needed to rest after the sleepover party. But by Sunday afternoon, we were ready to celebrate some more! We headed on down to our neighbor's house for a little Super Bowl party.

Brian convinced Payton that the Bears were in the Super Bowl, so they all wore their Bears attire (and yes, he even asked me to wear my Bears t-shirt). Nothing like brain-washing your kids at a young age! :)

 Payton and his buddy Avery had so much fun hanging out all evening.

The Moms had fun relaxing a bit too!

Monday was Payton's actual birthday and we always let the kids pick the menu on their birthday. He asked for birthday cake & bacon for breakfast, and a chicken casserole for dinner (no veggies of course). 

So... we obliged!

Cake 1st thing in the morning!

 I love the look on their faces! 

They couldn't believe there was a cake on the table at 6:30 a.m.

 He was definitely a happy birthday boy.

I believe Payton has had a wonderful entry into his 8th year so far. But the fun isn't over yet. 

 He and Brian go on the Cub Scout camping trip on Friday and then both sets of grandparents will be visiting this weekend to celebrate the boys' birthdays.

The fun just doesn't end around here folks!

To wrap up the rest of the weekend, here are some other random photos...

Parker being silly at the park.

This is the Valentine's inspired plaque that is displayed on the kitchen table right now.

We change the wording every day. 

This was Payton's birthday message:

And one more photo that makes me tear up every time I look at it.

Payton looks like a middle schooler in this picture.

He's growing up so fast.

Thank God he still likes to cuddle, give me lots of kisses and hugs, and still yells out, "I love you too!" every morning when leaving for school with his friend.

I know it won't be like this for much longer, so I am treasuring every second of it.

Happy 8th birthday to one of the sweetest, most genuine kids I could ever dream of being a mom to. You make me so proud and I love you more than you can ever imagine!!!