Oliver kept telling me all day that he didn't actually turn 5 until he had his birthday cake. So, he turned 5 years old at approximately 7pm last night. We started the day off with his favorite breakfast- German pancakes with buttermilk syrup. Later, when we were at the grocery store, he asked if he could have a birthday doughnut. How could I refuse? He played outside ALL day with friends and then we went to another one of Oliver's faves, Chick-fil-A for dinner. This kid and his Mommy have very similar tastes! :) After dinner, we came home and ate cake and ice cream. Oliver's having a face-painting party on Saturday with all of his friends and he is SO excited.
Oliver enjoying his birthday pancakes. I decorated the light above the table with balloons and streamers and he was so excited to see that when he woke up.
Big 5! You might be wondering about that small corner removed at the bottom of the cake. All of the things I bake require taste tests. Plus, that cake was calling my name at about 4:00. Ladies: I KNOW you know what I mean. Dang, I have a handsome husband. And two adorable kids. I am so lucky.
I had reached my creative and cutesy capacity for the day so Oliver's presents didn't get wrapped. We had a sort of scavenger hunt for him, though, so there was some build-up for his gifts (a new (green) scooter, a drawing pad, and a plastic ninja sword). Aunt Rachel also got him the outfit he's wearing that he put on immediately as well as a couple more shirts and a gift card to Target. What a lucky little guy!
I love my sweet little boy, Oliver. He really lights up a room when he enters. He has such a sweet and tender spirit and personality. He is so friendly and accepting of anyone and everyone. He loves to play outside on his scooter, draw, paint, swim, read (or be read to, rather), snuggle, and play with his Daddy. I love him SO much and I am so grateful he's my little boy.
August 25, 2011
Happy 5th Birthday!
August 2011
Amelia discovered make-up a few weeks ago. I found some old lipstick and compact and this girl went to town. I don't know who taught her how to apply it- it certainly wasn't me.
We went up Provo Canyon for FHE a couple weeks ago. We found a spot, started a fire, roasted hot dogs, played some games, and were just about to roast s'mores when a friendly passer-by informed us that there was a "NO FIRES" sign about 10 feet away from our campfire and that some kids had been ticketed a few days prior. We had some very underdone s'mores before quickly stomping the fire out. We have LOVED being so close to 2 canyons this summer and have tried to take advantage whenever possible. There is NOTHING better than a Utah summer night in the canyon.
We celebrated Uncle Seth's birthday at Provo Beach Resort with cousins Cooper, Luke, and Ethan. Here they are watching Uncle Seth tear it up on the Flowrider.
Grandma and Grandpa brought the kids some suckers from their visit to Peurto Rico. It took Oliver and Amelia days to finish them and it took a lot of discipline from me not to throw them away while they weren't looking.
At the Bell Family Reunion in Park City. Pre-lunch treat with all the cousins on PC Main Street.
Look closely at Oliver's right leg.
Oliver's drawing of the earth. He is quite the artist and will go through phases when he will color for hours on end.
Our best friends from Albuquerque, the Alders, were in town. It was SO fun to see them and catch up. We miss them! They have two darling little girls, Lucy and baby Mae. This is Oliver's new camera face I guess.
Amelia begged to hold baby Mae the whole night. We finally consented and she was ecstatic.
Oliver's first soccer game. Which turned out to be more like a dog-piling sports event. Either way, it was so fun to watch. Oliver has a soccer prodigy on his team that scored 7 goals in the first half (15 min. halves, mind you) so Oliver didn't see a lot of action. But, he had the sloppiest grin on his face the entire game.
Dog pile # 49.
Amelia is definitely in her happy place in the pool, or any amount of water.
Last week, Aunt Meredith and Cousin David came to town. David's starting at BYU and we got together a few times to celebrate. Here's Oliver with Ben and Abe at Abe's pool.
We took a trip to Thanksgiving Point's Dinosaur Museum. It was $2 Tuesday (as opposed to $10 rip-off day). The kids had fun time digging for fossils and admiring the bones and dinos. Like $2 fun, definitely not $10 fun. :)
Amelia likes to pretend that her sippy is her baby. She tells us when the baby is crying and when it needs t o be held. She is very careful when her sippy is in "baby mode."
Snuggling her "baby" whom she affectionately named Tammy??
July 2011
We spent a good part of July at my parent's house in Georgia. It had been a while since we had been there and we had such a fun time. My kids loved the pool and all the time they got with cousins and Grandma and Poppy.
A shot of the back lake at Grandma and Poppy's house. We really miss this place. We were there for about 2 weeks.
Taking advantage of all the land to run around on- one of the perks of living in the boonies.
Amelia adores her aunt Amy and cousin Lauren.
Late-night playing with cousins Lilian, Taylor, and Ella.
This was the first annual Jewkes Cousins' Camp in my parent's back yard. All the cousins were there and it was a GREAT time. Oliver loved it. Amelia wasn't old enough to participate this year, but we're hoping to make it back for future years. You can kind of see the banners hanging in the background. We all made them for each of our families. I wish we had gotten a close-up of ours- Christian did a great job on it.
Oliver with his buddy, Gabe at Cousins' camp.
Planting a tree at Cousins' camp.
Playing on Poppy's deck.
I love snuggling with my kiddos and thank goodness they are both snugglers as well.
Amelia got a visit from her old friend, Coda while we were in GA. It was a happy reunion for at least one of them.
Back home in Utah. Love these two.
What a set of buns! Amelia cannot get enough of water- whether it's sprinklers, water fountains, rivers, or pools.
Playing in the sprinklers with kids from our cul-de-sac.
Oliver learned how to ride his bike withOUT training wheels. We are SO proud of him!
May-June 2011
So, I've decided that I love to look back on previous blog posts and my kids do too. I lost the desire to blog a few months ago because I started writing regularly in my journal, but now I feel like I need to do this for my kids and for family and friends that live away from us. So, I'm going to play some major catch up here, starting with May and June.
These two just love each other. Oliver is so good to Amelia, as you can see by these shots. He always makes sure she gets to wherever she wants to go. They can often be caught holding hands just like this.
This was our neighborhood Easter egg hunt. Great neighborly tradition and my kids first year to participate and they loved it.
Serioso.
Did somebody say, "Candy break!?"
Amelia was feeling very saucy one afternoon.
Wow- what a dirty little one, huh? Strutting around in Oliver's mouse hat that Grandma Bell gave him years ago.
Oliver loved, loved, loved his preschool this year. So did I, except for the 1 hour round trip drive. But, it really was that exceptional of a school. Here's some shots of his graduation.
This was during the annual Bell Memorial Day Extravaganza. It was made even more exciting by the fact that is snowed that day. Yep, you heard me- It snowed on May 31. So, we had to make last-minute arrangements to "play" inside. As you can see, Amelia didn't mind- her cousin Anna was more than happy to give her rides around the huge gym in Heber.
We got a visit from my sister and her kids the next day. Yes, it's still cold outside. This is June 1st. I was so desperate for warmer weather, I forced Amelia to wear shorts.:)
Oliver loves this girl. So do we.
