Gettin' Down with Chuck E. Cheese

Since Wednesday was Madison's actual birthday, we met her at Chuck E Cheese to celebrate after school.

These three munchkins were thrilled to have the place all to themselves, and so were Gigi and I!  Lila started off by riding this horse and did it no less than 10 times!  I think we've got a little cowgirl on our hands:) 

Then we got a real treat when Chuck E. came out to say hi to all the kids.  He even stopped for a picture with the birthday girl--how cool!

Cue the music, it's time to boogie down.  To the left, to the left, to the right, to the right...this girl was all over the dance!

When the song was over, Chuck E gave our free tickets.  So fun.

Even though J didn't dance the first time, he still gave the big mouse props for all those free tickets.

We played lots more games and were pleasantly surprised that they had added some fun new ones, too.  Right as we were about to leave, though, they started the song for all the kids to come dance with Chuck E.  Look closely...who do you see joining in this time?  That's right--Jackson Hays was cuttin' a rug!  If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I don't think I would have believed it.  Good times!

Happy 5th Birthday, Madison!

Bounce U was such a hit for the girls' parties last year that Maddie just insisted on going back this year for her party!  Who says variety is the spice of life?

These three kids were thrilled to pieces to be back at Bounce U!

There was bouncing basketball...

and all kinds of cool slides. 

These fearless girls had a blast...

as did all of Maddie's classmates and friends who came to celebrate with her.

She loved her Tinkerbell cake from Annie's Bakery.  Yum, yum, yum!

After all that hardcore playing, it was time for some dessert.

We lit the 5 candles and everyone sang Happy Birthday to Miss Madison...

then she made a wish and blew them out all on her own.

After cupcakes for the little kids and chocolate cake for the big kids, it was time to open some presents.

Her friends liked getting to watch her open each gift and she was really sweet about always thanking them for what they brought her.

Happy Birthday, sweet girl!  You are so loved!  By us...

Uncle Andrew and Aunt Maria, Memaw and Poppi...

and Gigi and Boom, too! 
We loved celebrating with you and are so excited that you are 5 years old now!

Cheering for the Cubs

Baseball season is here! This is our fourth season with the Cubs and we are loving it.  It's intense, with practice twice a week and games on the weekend, but it's such a great group that we don't mind one bit.  A few weeks ago a group of moms were talking about how fun it would be to get shirts made for the season.  I liked mine so much that I just had to get Lila one, too!

Hers is blinged out on the front...

and I just adore the back!  She's so proud and tells everyone that it says "Jackson's Sis" on it.

Friday night was J's first game.  After practicing for over a month and then getting rained out twice, this kid was READY!

His biggest fan.  Melt. My. Heart.

Cole and J were the first two players there and got to warm up together.  It's so fun that Jackson's best buddy is on the team.   



I think 8 moms ended up getting shirts made--we were missing 2 of them at this game, but the rest of us rocked our Cubs shirts. 



Game time!  Jackson started at first base and also played short stop, which is new for him.  He did good at both and made us proud.

Hey batter, batter!  His legs look so long to me--my baby is growing up way too fast! 

As are these girls. 
For Saturday's game, Madison borrowed J's shirt.  She wanted to show her love, too.  These girls are always such good sports about going to the games.  Doesn't hurt that they get fun things from the concession stands, like popcorn and snowcones, either, thanks to their grandparents!  The Cubs won again and are 3 - 0.  Let's see if they can continue this winning streak tomorrow night.  Stay tuned!

Happy Fun Friday

We are just starting the weekend off right. Maddie came to play yesterday afternoon and was here to see Lila's very first bike ride. 

After getting her helment and pads on, we took off to hand deliver a princess thank you note.  She did such a great job riding to Elise's house that we just kept on going to the park.

She's not in the baby seat any more.  There she goes!

The kids were having so much fun with each other that Maddie asked to spend the night.  Hooray!

Happy Friday, everyone, from Jackson's silly class and us, too!

Disney On Ice!

A few weeks ago I was looking through the newspaper and saw an advertisement for Disney On Ice.  It was in town over the weekend and since it fell so close to Lila's birthday, I knew that should be our present to her.  I had no idea how cool it would be though!

We got there in plenty of time and she kept talking non-stop about what was behind the big curtain.  She was ready for the show.

At 5:30 on the dot, out came Minnie, Mickey...

Donald and Goofy!  They were the hosts of the show and such a fun way to start things off.  The first big act was about to rock Lila's world.

"Mom, it's Ariel!"  And cute Flounder, too:)

We loved watching Sebastian dance with Ariel's mermaid friends...

and the Starfish busted a move, too.

Then mean old Ursula came out and Lila got a little worried.  She must have asked about the "mean lady" 22 times after she had left the stage!

Ariel did lots of cool tricks, including this one that was very high in the air.

The second princess to come out was Rapunzel and her seriously long hair.

Lila tried her best to get Rapunzel's attention!

She loved this part, too, especially since it featured an ice-skating horse.

By intermission both kids had declared it "Good!" and "Very cool!"

After a short break, it was time to bring out Merida from Brave.  The dancing kilted men were neat...

but not near as awesome as when Merida shot an arrow and hit the bullseye, which triggered these fireworks.  It was so cool!

The last of the princesses to come out was Belle.  She and Gaston sang a few entertaining songs...

and then the Beast arrived!  He was intimidating, for sure, but Lila assured me that "he's not really mean."

We loved watching and singing along to "Be our Guest."

And cheered when the Beast turned back into the handsome prince and danced with Belle.

Goodbye princesses and princes, Minnie, Mickey and the whole crew!

We loved the show...



and it was a whole lot cheaper than a trip to Disney World!