Heffalumps and Cheese

This weekend we trekked down to Nashville to visit Nathan's sisters and our niece, Ellie (who's staying with Allie while her parents vacation). On Saturday we wanted to take the kids out to do something fun and decided on Chuck-E-Cheese. This was the boys' first experience there, and of course they had a blast. It was super crowded and we were ready to get out of there by the time we used up our tokens, but we had fun and I'm glad we went!

One of the kids' favorite games that they kept playing around the house was one they invented... one of them would catch a "Heffalump" (I guess Ellie has been watching Winnie the Pooh) by tying a fabric belt around the other and lead them around the house. They kept switching rolls... it was really funny!

We also celebrated Nathan's birthday while we were there, too! His birthday is tomorrow, but since we were with most of his family we thought we'd take the chance to have a proper party. He and I went out to The Pharmacy for amaaaazing burgers, then to a Fresh Market to buy fancy cakes. We ate lasagna, sang, ate delicious cake, he opened some presents, and we had a good evening together. Happy 29th, Nathan!!

Other noteworthy happenings:

-Desy went pee on the potty for the first time last week and has continued doing so whenever asked! He surprised me the first time because he's always liked to sit on the potty but his body has never known what to do, so when he got up there and did his thing like a pro I really cheered for him! I don't know if potty training is in the near-future or not, but it's nice to know we're headed in that direction.

-We had a belated Christmas celebration with our friends Andrew and Kayla and their daughter last week (which was interrupted by a mild Craigslist fiasco trying to pick up a dresser for the baby. It all worked out), and then yesterday we visited our friends Shawn and Michelle and their kids who all recently moved back to the area after living in Hawaii for a while. We love spending time with friends! The picture above is Orion and Des with Ava and Nathan, two of Shawn and Michelle's children. They all had a GREAT time; so did we!

-This isn't actually noteworthy at all, but this is just a good pic of everyday life. This is how our kids play with Play Doh. You roll out the dough long to make a road (sometimes bumpy), add some cars... you're good to go. Boys.

-Finally, a word from my niece. On Sunday after we left Nashville, Allie was explaining to Ellie that mama kangaroos carry their babies in a pouch on their bellies, and Ellie said, "Just like Aunt Rachel!" Haha!! Four year olds are awesome.