Party Zone Fun

Sunday afternoon the boys attended a birthday party for one of their friends. They're always excited about a birthday party because they love the cake, balloons and wishing people "happy birthday" over and over. This party was a little different than the other parties they've attended. This one was at one of those wild, children's entertainment centers. I can still say we've never set foot in a Chuck E Cheese, but I imagine this place is pretty similar. You should have seen the looks on the boys' faces when we walked into this wild, noisy place!

They enjoyed trying to win prizes....

They enjoyed large cups of drink, which came back to bite us later.

They enjoyed cupcakes and ice cream! Tyler ate his ice cream so fast he got a brain freeze, which did not make him happy.

L-R: Tyler, Chase & Jackson

They rode in some flying bananas, which freaked Jackson out a bit.

They rode on a train. Tyler picked this car with a little girl in it already. He's going to be our ladies man I think.

The boys all piled into this tea cup with the birthday girl.

Then it was back to the train.

As you can tell from Chase's "thumbs up", they had an awesome time. That is, until the cups of drink caught up with us and Tyler had an accident. Laura and I aren't even sure where or when he had the accident. We just suddenly noticed he was walking funny and his pants were soaked. Whoops.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Before my family and close friends think I've finally snapped - yes, I know my birthday is actually in May and that it is now late November. That fact didn't stop me from buying myself a birthday gift though! Check out what's currently traveling across this great country to my home...

*sigh* Isn't it beautiful? That, my friends, is a Nikon D3000. Yes, I finally have joined the DSLR world! Yipee!!! The camera is coming just in the nick of time too; my point and shoot is rapidly deteriorating and the boys are supposed to see Santa for the first time next week - I must have a working camera for that!

So why am I calling this a birthday gift and why have I suddenly been able to fulfill my dream of owning a DSLR? Two words for you: Savings Bonds. When I was a child I would get a Savings Bond each year from my grandparents. I'd look at them and think "man, these things are never going to mature!". Throughout the years I have occassionally checked online to see how much they were worth and when I checked last week I noticed they had all matured enough for me to cash them in and get a camera!

Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for the sweet birthday gift! :)

Are you readers ready for an overload of cute pictures? Prepare yourself now, because pretty soon the picture-fest will begin!

Weekend Recap

Yeah, yeah. I know it's Thursday and the start of another weekend is almost here. I got so caught up in the giveaway, fall leaves and Chase singing though that I completely forgot to post the random pictures from last weekend! Ready for a whirlwind tour of a weekend of fun?

On Friday morning we decided to venture to the Home Show. Usually it's something outrageous like $8-$10 a person to get into those things, but due to the economy this one was free! We figured the boys would get a kick out of all the stuff to look at. We were semi right... The cable company had a pop-a-shot basketball thing and soccer net set up, so the boys loved that. Probably most loved though was the pet adoption section! It's only a matter of time before the 4 of us can gang up on Nick and get a dog.

Also set up at the Home Show was a kid's discovery area hosted by one of the local kid's museums! The boys had a ball with these "finger paints". They were in a tray and hard like regular kid's paints, but when the boys dipped their finger into a cup of water and then touched the paint they could use them like finger paints. Anyone know what these are called or where I could buy them? The boys loved them and I loved that they didn't make a big mess!

  

 

Tyler also enjoyed "painting" his own face.

 On Saturday afternoon we made a mad dash to a birthday party. We could only stay for about 20 minutes before heading off to church, but that 20 minutes we just long enough for Chase to make a mess with a Cookie Monster cupcake!

After church was over Nick needed to deliver something to another staff member. We took the boys on the hunt for said staff member and on our journey ended up in the sanctuary. It was the first time the boys had been in there since we brought them to church for the first time (when they were 7 months old). They LOVED all the chairs and Nick and I thought we were going to be in there forever while they tried out each and every seat. Thankfully something distracted them and they took off. I loved seeing them in there though and can't wait for the next time :)

 

We rounded the weekend out with more cupcakes! Sunday afternoon we celebrated Laura's 25th birthday.

 

 

If you haven't entered our WaterWeek giveaway, today is your LAST CHANCE! Contest ends at 10pm tonight and winners will be announced tomorrow morning!

Cake, Motorcycles and Bouncing

The boys were feeling in tip-top shape (with exception of the nagging cough that could hang around for a week or two more) by Saturday morning, which was a relief because we had places to go and people to see! Saturday afternoon as soon as the boys were done with their nap, we loaded up and headed to the hospital they were born at....

NICU Reunion
Each year the NICU the boys were at hosts a NICU Reunion for all the "graduates". This was the first time we've gone and the boys had a ball! Ironically enough, the reunion this year fell on Chase's "take-home" day!

We ate some cupcakes...

(Chase in blue, Jackson in blue and white, Tyler in white)

  

  

Sat on a motorcycle...

 

  

And got some balloons!

Birthday Party

Last night we went to another set of triplets' 2nd birthday party! This was actually the first party the boys have been invited to and it was at a fun indoor gymnastics/inflatable place. The boys had a ball bouncing on the long trampoline, hanging from the gymnastics bars and throwing balls around. Tyler was the only one brave enough to enter the large inflatable obstacle course. There was a fair amount of kicking and screaming when I told them it was time to go and another parent (the dad of the birthday boys) had to help me chase my kids down. 

(Jackson in stripes, Tyler in plaid, Chase in green)

 

  

  

  

  

  

Winners & A Party

Thanks to all of you who participated in my first 2 blog giveaways! The response was fantastic and I hope to do more of these in the future!

The winner of the Easy Potty Training Guide is #4 - Christina

The winner of the Blog Make Over is #34 - Keith and Jamie

Congrats ladies! Send me an e-mail to threetimesthegiggles@gmail.com and I can put you in touch with the folks giving you your prizes! I need to hear from you by the end of the day Wednesday or I'll pick an alternate winner.

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This last weekend we had the boys' birthday party! My parents were in town, which is why we pushed the party back a week. We had a blast! We had 8 kids who either just turned two (my boys!) or are going to turn two sometime in the next month and a half. Then we threw in a couple of 4 year olds and a baby for good measure. Good thing we had so many adults to help referee!

Here are some shots of the fun - thanks to my sister and my mom for taking so many pictures for me (and sometimes of me)!

Hard at work decorating cakes - those things took waaaaay longer than I thought!

 

  

The bouncer was a gift from my parents! Step 2 Clearance items rock!

 

 

  

Even though he has a "C" shirt on, that's Jackson - not Chase!

 

 

  

  

  

Dear Jackson

Dear Jackson,

I often find it hard to believe the 4 pound 4 ounce little baby with big eyes that I held just two years ago is the same 27.5 pound boy who daily brings such joy to my life. It amazes me that your eyes still hold the same sparkle and curiosity as they did just days after you were born!

Even though your blankets often smell nasty, the way you shove your blanket into your mouth is adorable and endearing to Daddy and me. Much the same way you continually asked to be "pee up'd" (picked up) is endearing. Sure, sometimes my back is killing me and the last thing I want to do is hoist you onto my hip but how can I deny such a cute little boy? Especially when I realize in a short time you truly will be too heavy to pick up all the time, and then I'll blink and you won't want to be picked up even if I offer.

Your enthusiasm for music and dancing is always entertaining to watch and I sometimes find myself wondering if you'll have a future in the arts instead of sports (shhhh.... don't tell your daddy I said that!). To hear you belting out "na na's" and to see you dance around the house, the deck, the yard or in your car seat brings so much joy to our lives!

I love you little man! Keep dancing and keep singing - it spreads too much joy not to share!

Love,
Mommy

Readers! Don't forget to enter my two giveaways! Entries will be accepted until 9pm CST on Sunday night. Enter the Easy Potty Training Guide giveaway HERE and enter the Blog Make-Over giveaway HERE!