Double Birthday Month

May brings us two birthdays in my house.  Mark was born on the 21st and Jane was born on the 24th.  Since we have been out of town, I am just now getting around to posting about the birthdays. 

Mark knew exactly what he wanted for his birthday party.  He wanted to invite a few friends to go swimming and then come back home to eat sloppy joes, Funyuns and rootbeer.  He wanted a cinnamon pizza with cream cheese frosting drizzle.  Daniel took the boys swimming while Jane and I stayed home to get the dinner ready.  I think that it would have been fun to go swimming, but we only have 7 seats in our van, so it works out best for someone to stay behind if the kids invite friends.

The boys played around in the backyard with a football.  I don't know that I will ever understand 'boy play' because it is so rough. 

It seems as though Mark is growing more and more each week.  He is up to my chin now, and I dare say that he won't be my 'chin rest' for much longer.  I am anxious for the warm weather to come along so that he can wear shorts because his pants are all getting too short on him. He is eating a lot more than he use to, but he is still rather picky about what he eats. 

Mitchel, Mark, Max, Austin

We used trick candles that relight and it was fun to see all of the boys react to them!

Max and Austin

Jane was really interested in the candles.

I love to watch Mark interact with his classmates.  He feels really comfortable in his class and he is quite the ham.  It took me by surprise the first time I saw him give an oral report because he was so energetic and funny.  He is a smart kid and I am pleased that he is able to present himself without being shy. 

Mark hasn't been shy when a camera is pulled out lately.  He loves to strike a pose for the camera!

Happy 11th Birthday Mark!

We went up to Snowbird on Sunday morning and we came home Tuesday afternoon.  It snowed the morning that Jane was born and we woke up to a snowstorm this year too! 

It's not the best picture, but it was cold and I had a difficult time finding a willing photographer to come out on the balcony.

We kept things really simple for Jane's birthday, and I like it that way.  When we got home from Snowbird, we went to Olive Garden for dinner.  We had a raspberry Boston Cream cake and Jane loved eating it!

Jane is such a delightful little girl!  I love watching her discover things and play with her toys.  She loves to go shopping and I am glad to have a companion to shop with!  She usually only cries when I put her in the car seat to go home!

She has 7 teeth now and has been very easy to deal with despite being in pain from teething.  I love that she is a cuddly baby.  I am having a difficult time acknowledging the fact that she is nearly a toddler.  How did this past year go so quickly?  I get sad sometimes when I realize that she isn't a tiny baby anymore.  Pretty soon she will be walking and talking and I'm not ready for that yet, but it will come! 

Happy 1st Birthday Baby Jane!