More Birthday fun at Monkey Bizness

Jackson's actual birthday was on a Thursday, but we held his birthday party the following Saturday. Since Jackson loves monkeys and all things physical (running, jumping, climbing etc.), we decided to have his party at Little Monkey Bizness. Monkey Bizness is an indoor jungle gym/play area for kids. Their website bills it as 3-4,000 square feet of bounce houses, climbing structures, obstacle courses, play houses etc. The best way I can describe it is a kids play paradise that is made of soft surfaces and entirely safe. The kids could run, play and explore to their hearts content and the parents could sit back and relax knowing their children were safe (although I did see a few parents participating too!). The kids had a great time! After play time, everyone went into the arts and craft room to decorate monkey masks. When the masks were complete, it was time for pizza and cupcakes! It was a great party and J and his friends had a blast!

This is one of my favorite shots. Every time I looked up J was running from one play area to the next with his tongue hanging out...he just couldn't believe how much there was to do and couldn't get to each place fast enough!

I had a great time making the "monkey cakes," as Jackson called them, for the party. Thanks Whitney for the idea and my neighbor Stephanie and her daughter Hogan for helping me ice and decorate the 50 cupcakes!

Thank you to all the families who joined us for the party. We have been extremely blessed to make so many great friends since our move to Denver. You all made J's party really special. Thanks for sharing his big day with us!

Jackson's 2nd Birthday!

Jackson turned two on May 13th. While I know it was a while ago, I wanted to document on the blog how we spent Jackson's special day. First, just let me say time has flown by! Cole and I can't believe our little baby turned 2! What happened to the tiny, helpless little bundle we brought home from the hospital? Somewhere along the way we blinked and he turned into this sweet, precocious little boy that is on the move from morning to night!

Getting back to the subject of his birthday, Cole took the day off so we could spend it together as a family doing all of Jackson's favorite things. Jackson only asked for balloons for his birthday so when he came downstairs that morning there were lots of balloons and his present from mommy and daddy, a new tricycle! He was so excited! Next we had his favorite breakfast, waffles, where he blew out his first set of candles for the day. After breakfast we played with his new "cycle" and opened a few more presents from friends and family.











I had an OB appointment that morning. So after breakfast and play time, we loaded up and went to the doctor. Now why in the world did I schedule a doctor's appointment on J's special day? Well it wasn't just any appointment. We had a sonogram scheduled and were going to learn the sex of the new baby! From the beginning of the pregnancy, Jackson predicted there was a sister in mommy's tummy. When we would say "brother or sister," he would casually say, "its a sister." He was always consistent. Sure enough, he was right! The sonogram confirmed we were expecting a little girl! Jackson was going to have a sister!

We let J pick where we dined for lunch. He of course picked McDonalds. "Donalds" is one of Jackson's favorites and a treat he doesn't get very often. After a tasty lunch of chicken nuggets and chocolate milk, we went home for a much needed nap- after all even birthday boys need their sleep! Another surprise was waiting for him when he woke up, Grammy and Pop had arrived to help him celebrate! We had a wonderful afternoon playing at the park, learning to ride his new tricycle and opening more presents! After dinner we enjoyed a Curious George cake (made by mommy) and ice cream.







Overall, Jackson had a wonderful birthday and we had a great, fun-filled family day with our favorite two year old!

Jackson- Mommy and Daddy love you so much! We can't wait to see what the next two years have in store for you! Your sweet, joyous spirit has blessed us immensely and everyday we thank God that he chose us to be your parents. What a wonderful gift!