Pumpkin Patch Birthday

We celebrated Perry and Mills' birthday this weekend. The day got off to a rocky start with Mills running high fever and us spending 3 hours at the doctor's office, but with the help of my mom and Alex, I was able to pull everything together in time for the party. This year was a lot of fun for Perry since he understood and was anticipating his big party; and it was so fun for me to plan such an exciting day for him.

Our birthday Boys

Some of the decor....

Birthday books for everyone to sign. I started this at Perry's first birthday, and I just love that the boys will have a special book signed by friends and family each year.

Mills' birthday banner. My favorite craft project!

 Perry posing at the photo op spot

 Food table (simplified version of inspiration)

 Pumpkin shaped cheese ball...it was tasty too! 

Pop corn cones were a hit

I forgot to take a picture of the drink station. The pumpkin beer was very popular! 

Fun things to do....

 Every kid got to pick a pumpkin from the patch to decorate and take home. Perry decided to help Aubrey out with hers.

Perry found a pumpkin

 The bounce house kept most of the kids entertained the entire time. Perry was in bouncy heaven!

Cake time!!!

I LOVED the cake!

 Mills had such a rough morning, so we gave him some Benedryl to help him sleep that afternoon. I had to wake him up when it was time to do the cake, so he was quite groggy for a while. Poor guy.

Look at our faces! I was trying to keep Perry from smashing the cake and it looks like Alex was helping blow out the candles.

Perry was chowing down.

 Mills liked his cake this time around!

Friends and Family...

Leah and the twins with Chelsey 

 Cute boys--Clyde, P man, Hudson and Josiah

 Sweet Josiah

 Mills and Papa

 Adorable Broyles boys

Perry and Carol

Mills and Carol

All worn out!

I had to document this...

Perry's first time to tee tee outside (or standing up)! He told me he needed to use the potty, and before I knew it, his pants were down and he was ready to go...only problem was that we were standing on the concrete right by all the tables. Alex grabbed him and ran behind the bounce house. Haha!

 Present time...

 Nana and Papa stayed late so they could see Perry open his present from them.

 Josh helping Perry with his bug stuff. Neat toys!

 Mae Mae came back down to watch Perry open a couple more. He loves his microphone! 

 Mills and Perry both got name choo choos from some special people. What a great gift!

 Maw and Paw stopped in earlier in the week to deliver presents.

We finished opening presents the following day...

 Well, hi there, sweet boy!

I don't think Perry realized the party and presents were for Mills too...luckily, Mills didn't either.

It was a really special day for us! We so appreciated all our family and friends who came (or wanted to come) to celebrate with us. Perry went to bed singing "Happy Birthday to Perry Burke" so I think it's safe to say he had a great day too! The only point that he got upset was when the guys came to take away the bounce house. He saw them in the back yard and ran outside (without notifying either Alex or I) and chased them down saying "No, you not take my bounce house away!!" We hadn't explained that it wasn't staying...lesson learned. I promised him we would do it again; and after seeing the joy he experienced that day, I truly meant it.

12 months

Baby Mills,
It's really hard to believe that you are 1 year old. The past year has been more amazing than I could have ever imagined. You have been the most perfect addition to our family and we are so thankful to God for your life. If I had to sum you up in one word, it would be HAPPY. As you're growing, we are beginning to see more and more of your personality. You are skilled, determined, care-free, and social...just to name a few.  You like to wave and clap and you can sign "more" when you feel like it. You are cruising around, but no attempts to stand with out support yet. You're babbling more and have starting hollering at Perry for fun as well as out of frustration. Naps are getting harder to predict and I have a feeling you'll be down to 1 nap/day sooner rather than later. You have 6 teeth! 2 on the bottom and 4 on top and you are always chewing/teething on something. Your eyes are still dark blue. You love to play peek a boo, read books, play with Perry, and be held. You also love playing "ride that horsey" or anything where we act like you're falling. You just want to "fall down" repetitively. At 12 months, you weigh 20 pounds 12 ounces and are 29 1/2 inches long. You are still nursing (we need to work on drinking from a cup) and you are eating well (we are staying away from eggs/dairy until we know more about allergies).

Playing

Reading

Being handsome

Being silly

Where's Mills?

There he is!

We love you!!!!!!!!

Mills' First Birthday

Mills turned one year old on October 7th. We had a normal Sunday morning at the house and then headed to church. After church we had a nice lunch at my mom's house. Mills got to open up some presents and try his first bite of cake. I baked an egg/dairy-free cake (since I suspect dairy/egg allergies) and he didn't want anything to do with it.

 Perry wanted to help with the presents...no surprise there!

He didn't know what to think about the singing card from Helen and Jeremy. When the music started, he would immediately close the card and try to find where the music was coming from. So cute!

Singing "Happy Birthday!"

After lunch we all went home and took naps. That evening we got a pizza and hung around the house. I tried giving him some cake again and he still wasn't fond of it.

 

He loved his new cell phone from Mae Mae though...

Overall, it was a really sweet day spent celebrating our precious little Mills. I just love him to pieces and feel SO INCREDIBLY blessed to be his mom.

Surprise Visit

Cheetah (and 4 friends) stopped by the house this past Saturday while on their way to Florida. We talked to her 2 hours before they were due to arrive, so it was quite a surprise...but a fun one! Perry and Mills were so happy to see their Cheetah.