Charlie's 1st Birthday!

On Friday, April 17th, Lauren, Charlie and I headed up to Timonium, Maryland to pick up Charlie's birthday cake.  We have had my college roommate, Susannah Gillespie, do all of our family celebration cakes, since she did the Gender Reveal cake when I was pregnant with Lauren.  It is always fun to catch up with her and her cakes are amazing!!  This year did not disappoint...the Farm themed cake was so cute!

On Sunday, April 19th, we began the celebration for Charlie's 1st Birthday!!  All of our family, friends, and their kids arrived for a party.  And then we had a "Bear Bus" come out to the house, so each of the kiddos could go onboard and build their own teddy bear.  It was really cute and a big hit!!  The kids, AND Aunt Sarah, loved their creations!!

Then, everyone went back into the house for play time, fun, and cake!!  It was really nice to see everyone and to watch the kids all play together.  Charlie had a good time, until he saw me.  He is currently in that stage where he wants to be picked up and held as soon as he sees me.  He is fine when I leave the room, but I have to be careful when I come back in.  Of course, heading outside to get some cake seemed to make him happy!!

                     

                           

Charlie LOVED the cake.  He was able to try a taste at his big sister's birthday, a month before, and he had no problem downing half of his smash cake.  He was hesitant at first, but it did not take him long to dive right in!

After the cake, Aunt Sarah and Kevin brought out a taco pinata for the bigger kids.  Grumpa held it up high (behind him for safety), and the kids whacked at it with mini hockey sticks.  It took quite a few whacks, but eventually Sophie managed to free the candy, and they all were very excited!!

Once the guests left, the family came together and watched Charlie open his presents.  He was able to start pulling off pieces of the wrapping paper, but Lauren was all too happy to assist him with the rest.  And she enjoyed his presents as much, if not more, than he did!  Their favorite toys so far...the fire truck that shoots water and the Count & Chomp Dino!  And I was happy that Charlie got some "boy" toys.  He has plenty of opportunities to play with "girl" toys, and while I don't care if he prefers to play with barbies, princess dresses, building blocks, or trucks, I want to make sure they can play with all of them!!

At the end of the day, as we cleaned everything up, Charlie enjoyed a quiet moment in the ball pit.  He was happily trying to shove the balls into his mouth and full of cake!  I think the first birthday party was a success!!

On Charlie's actual birthday, Chad, Lauren and I took him out to eat at BJ's Brewhouse.  Charlie had a hotdog (Lauren had the same thing for her first birthday) with mashed potatoes and he shared his ice cream sundae with his big sister.  

                          

Here is a quick look at Charlie at 1 Year...

Charlie now weighs 21.5 lbs.

Charlie is 29.75 inches long.

Charlie has 4 teeth (2 on the top and 2 on the bottom).

Charlie is now crawling.  He is pulling up, but not interested in walking.

Charlie really enjoys opening and closing drawers and doors.

The only food Charlie has not liked is coleslaw!!  

Charlie loves all other food and gets excited when it is time to eat.

Charlie is obsessed with his big sister and wants whatever toy she is playing with.

Charlie now says "Mama", "Dada", and "Yeah"!

 Charlie is a very happy baby and hardly ever cries. 

Charlie loves it when Wrigley is around. 

A Typical Day for Charlie is...

8:00 am - 8:30 am:      Charlie wakes up & eats breakfast

9:00 am - 12:00 pm:    Charlie plays/crawls around, we run errands,and Charlie may take a cat nap

12:00 pm - 1:00 pm:    Charlie has lunch

1:15 pm - 3:30 pm:      Charlie goes down for an afternoon nap

3:45 pm - 4:00 pm:      Charlie has a snack

4:00 pm - 6:30 pm:      Charlie plays/crawls around

6:30 pm - 7:15 pm:      Charlie has dinner

7:30 pm - 7:45 pm:      Charlie goes to bed

Aunt Sarah and Kevin's Bachelor/Bachelorette Party!

On Saturday, April 18th, Aunt Sarah and Kevin had a joint bachelor/bachelorette party at Nationals Park, in Washington DC.  Sarah, Kevin, Mee-maw, Grandpa, Heather & Vic Hillaert all drove up, from Salisbury, in a large van.  

                                         

Grammy and Grumpa came up a day early to watch Lauren and Charlie so that Chad and I could go to a National's Game, with Ennis Electric, the night before.  So the four of us headed in for the bachelor/bachelorette party together.  (Side note: Lauren and Charlie stayed home with a new babysitter, Maggie.  It was a long day, but apparently they were well behaved, and they loved the babysitter).

After a drive to Pentagon City and a frustrating metro ride/long walk, we finally made it to the park.  We met up with Uncle Ryan, at the Center Field gate, and headed in to the park.  Vic managed to get everyone tickets under an awning, so we all enjoyed the shade and the view was great!!  Kevin's groomsman, Brian, and his wife Candace were there as well.  And then Kevin's brother, Patrick, joined us to round out the party.

Chad and I made everyone t-shirts for the occasion.  Grandpa did the artwork, and they turned out great!  Every game, at Nats Park, features a President's Race.  So the shirts feature Sarah and Kevin racing Teddy Roosevelt, who hardly ever wins.  During the President's race that day, Teddy lost once again!!  But they are so fun to watch!!

                               

We even had a scavenger hunt (girls v. boys).  We had to convince people to buy one of us a hotdog and a drink.  We had to form a 10 person conga line.  We had to find someone to serenade Sarah,  And we even managed to find a birthday candle.

(OK, so we didn't find a real birthday candle, but how cute is this cupcake!!!)

During the 8th inning, Chad and I took a quick walk around the park.  It is a rare treat for us to go to the ballpark without kids, and we took advantage of the opportunity.  

After the game, we walked around the park a bit and then headed to the Pentagon City area for dinner.  The area around the park is still in a transition phase, so there are very limited places to eat, and all of the restaurants were packed.  We found a Bar Louie in Pentagon City, which was perfect.  The dinner was delicious and it was fun to finally sit down with everyone to celebrate Sarah and Kevin.  

It is hard to believe, but things are moving along so quickly.  Now that the bachelor/bachelorette party is over, the wedding is right around the corner.  We can't wait!!!!