Happy 5th birthday, Jack!

Our big guy turned 5 last weekend! He had "the best birthday ever!" according to Jack himself. We celebrated on Saturday with a party for some of his friends from school. We invited all of their families, and it was a nice chance to let the kids run around and for us to catch up with their parents. It was a pirate theme, which Jeff and I had fun preparing for. The kids didn't get into it quite as much as we had hoped, but we were still proud of ourselves for pulling it together. On Sunday, which was Jack's actual birthday, we celebrated with a waffle breakfast and a new bike! He has outgrown his balance bike, and we thought it was time he learned how to pedal. The one we bought is slightly too big, but he would have outgrown the next size down by the end of the summer. We've run the risk that he will get frustrated easily with this one, so keep your fingers crossed that he grows quickly this summer! Here are some pictures of his party--I haven't taken any of his bike yet, but it won't be long!

Walking the plank

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle walkie talkies!

Leftover cake on Sunday night and another celebration with family

Earlier this month Jeff and I took a day off work to take Jack skiing at Sundown Mountain in Dubuque. Jack did great! At one point we took him out of the practice area onto a real hill, and it was immediately clear that he was not ready. Jeff and I got mad at ourselves for trying to do too much with Jack too soon, but he was a trooper. After some tears and falls, we made it down. We gave him the choice of quitting then or trying to do more back in the practice area, and he chose to keep going. An hour later, he had mastered the training area and was ready to call it a day with some more hot chocolate! Our only goal for the day was for Jack to have fun so that he would want to go back again next time, and we succeeded. Not sure if we'll get out again this year, but by next year he'll be ready to pick up where he left off.

  

Also last month was Grandma Jane's birthday! She was feeling pretty recovered from her surgery and was just about to have her first round of chemo, so she was ready to celebrate with some cake.