the birthday events

We didn't just have a birthday party for Fletcher.  It seemed like we celebrated for days.  Which we kind of did.  For his actual birthday, we got him a cake and gave him presents from us.  Since it was just our little family, we let him do this to the cake.

He loved it.  I don't think he actually ate any of the cake, but about a fourth of it was licked clean.  And then he proceeded to bounce off walls yelling, IT'S MY BIRTHDAY IT'S MY BIRTHDAY IT'S MY BIRTHDAY.  What can I say?  We're not always big-picture people around here. 

My parents came early and helped get ready for his party.  We cleaned, decorated and blew up a gazillion balloons.  His party theme was "trains" of course, so my mom and I made these chocolates to go on top of the cupcakes.

I did put up his own photo garland, but settled for a picture every 6 months of his life, since a picture from every month just wouldn't have fit.

I decided to be super ambitious and paint a huge plywood train with a window cut out just because I thought it would be cute to take pictures of the kids behind it.  I sometimes think I have completely lost my mind.  I'm sure you agree.  But I took pictures of all the kids, sent the pictures in to one-hour photo, and gave them to each of them in a magnet frame before they left.  It all worked out, despite the insanity behind it.

Here's the birthday boy behind the train.  Special thanks to my husband, who goes along with my insanity most of the time.  This time he went along with it and cut out the window.  But cutting out the whole dang thing was not in his realm of sanity.  It was still cute despite this.

John and Mason, making us all laugh.

We all sang Happy Birthday, and Fletcher basked in the glow of everyone's undivided attention on him.

He blew out his candle, but I don't think he remembered the wish part.

He was pretty pleased with himself, anyway.  And all the kids were waiting patiently for those cupcakes!

But my banana cupcakes with chocolate trains were not the favorites.  My mother-in-law made cone cupcakes, and the kids LOVED them.  Mine were left in favor of the cone cupcakes even by the adults. 

I think Fletcher ate 3 in total. 

I think Rowan would have had 3 if we had let her, too.

She did keep trying to get into all the drinks.

On a side note, she's started holding up her finger when you ask her how old she is.  Smart!

{really cute outfit made by our neighbor, Tara}

Anyway, Fletcher opened presents and then just played and played with all his friends until we had to drag him literally kicking and screaming to bed. 





Which is a sign of a successful party, if you weren't aware.