We had a great time over the past few days celebrating some birthdays. Saturday was my niece Makenzie's first birthday (no, there is no "c" in her name b/c my sister wouldn't listen to me...) and Matthew turned five on Sunday. In between parties we had a wonderful time visiting with family (well, at the parties too!)
On Friday we stopped in Streator to visit my grandmother. The boys were very well behaved and we had a good time with her, but we kept the visit short b/c she was still tired from a several-day stint in the hospital. We got to see the new assisted living place she lives in, which was very nice. Then we went on to Normal and had supper at Chuck E. Cheese with Rob's family. I was a little disappointed that they had removed the toddler area. Anna and Cousin Jamie had to make due with the little rides scattered about. I followed Matthew around, which was kind of like following a ball in a pin ball machine. He had a great time and even won three rounds of Mario Kart. That was funny b/c he's too short to reach the gas pedal, so the steering wheel was practically in his chest!
Saturday started out with Matthew and I getting the stuff for the games at his party. It was a pirate theme so we got a treasure chest pinata and gold coins for a treasure hunt. Thankfully, we got everything at one store and then I grabbed some Starbucks for me and Rob. It's kind of become a little tradition to get it once per visit (as opposed to three-four times a week when we were DINK's...that's double-income-no-kids)
Kenzie's party was at noon that day and we headed over to a fun park. The boys ripped around the playground most of the time, except when we made them stop to eat. Anna had a good time as well and surprised all of us by climbing up a plastic rock wall. She's a nut! After the party, we took the kids to the Children's Museum for an hour. We then took them to Grandma and Grandpa Litwillers and went out on a date. We ended up eating at Chevy's, walked around Borders for almost two hours, then tried to go to Hobby Lobby but it had closed earlier than we expected. The kids were in bed when we got back and we chatted with Rob's parents for a bit, then grabbed Blizzards at DQ before turning in.
Sunday we went to church in the morning and I was amazed that both Anna and Ben went into their respective locations w/o fussing. Matthew just stays with us in the service. We had a yummy lunch at GG's before heading back to give Anna a nap and getting ready for the pirate party. The cake was really neat and Matthew enjoyed all the piratey things we got for activities. The children present consisted of four female cousins ages 6-13, four one-year-olds, a newborn, and Matthew and Ben. Kind of an interesting group to plan activities for, but a pinata is for all ages and the treasure hunt for gold pieces went over pretty well. We had a fun time watching Matthew demolish the pinata after it had spilled it's candy. He whacked it good! He got lots of neat presents which I won't take the time to name, but we got him his own remote for the Wii. Coolest parents ever!!!
After the party we took Matthew to Toys R Us so he could get his birthday balloon and crown and to spend a gift card he got. This was a pretty good deal: He wanted the game Super Mario Galaxy. There was a coupon for 15% off video games, he had a $3 birthday coupon, and he had a $15 gift card. He also wanted the movie WALL-E which was $5 off. So, we got $70 worth of items for about $40. Not too shabby! (And Matthew had enough birthday money to pay for it!)
We headed home on Monday morning. Rob took the day off so that we wouldn't have to drive on Sunday night. We got out of Normal around 9, stopped for lunch in Janesville, and were home in the early afternoon. I then went and registered Matthew for soccer in the fall, went to the library, and grocery shopped. Needless to say, we all slept like rocks last night!
Well, we prayed for a fun weekend and we had it. Can't beat that!
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