Mark's Surprise 55th Birthday Party

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Rodney, Joseph, Gina and Jessica had been planning a surprise birthday party for their Dad for a month and it went off last night without a hitch! More than 20 friends and family members turned out to the Laguna Hills El Torito to wish Mark the best in his senior years. HE knew that he was going to the restaurant to have dinner with his kids, but had no idea that the buffet he commented on was for HIM! That was, until he turned and everyone shouted "Surprise!" Thank goodness we didn't give the old man a heart attack!

Mark mingled and chatted ... after dinner he opened his cards and gifts ... most of them, quite funny. (What is a metal probe anyway?!?) A poster and scrapbook displayed photos from his past (childhood photos were sent by my Aunt Carole - thanks again!)... a notable one was taken in 1960, when he was playing with an original Hula Hoop. Mark's cake was a tribute to his kooky nature and was quite tasty! Plus, he got a phone call from his Company of Military Historian friends, who were unable to attend the party because of the annual conference on the East Coast.

Happy Birthday, Mark! Now you can eat off the senior menu!

Will turns 5!

Will's birthday fell on a Tuesday this year and so he took cupcakes to preschool to celebrate. In the evening we headed to his favorite entertainment spot - the Irvine Spectrum, and we ate and played games at Dave and Buster's. Will's focus was to get as many tickets as possible so he could go "shopping" in the prize room. One of the big payout games is a pirates game, so it was all the better for Will. He managed to earn enough tickets for a stuffed Batman to go with his stuffed Superman at home, and a stuffed Scooby Doo. He phone chatted with all sorts of family through out the day, and ended up going to bed an hour late because he still had presents to open! He got a number of gifts from Mommy and Daddy, his favorite being a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle motorcycle set, and a pillow case his cousin Kara made with her grandma. Happy Birthday, Will! But the celebration isn't over yet - you still have your Boomers party at the end of the month!

P.S. - The head scrape was from playing too rough on the playground that day. Will is well on the way to recovery from that!

Family Pictures in the Park

Last Sunday we got together with the Paturzos and took family pictures. Nan and I both needed pictures for scrap projects that are coming up, so we figured now was as good a time as any. The boys cooperated, for the most part, but Xan was not quite as smiley as he usually is. We still managed to get some good shot of everyone!

Addressing his own birthday invitations

Will is doing very well in school ... so well, in fact, that his teachers canceled Mom and Dad's parent-teacher conference. He's ready for kindergarten, they said, there really wasn't much to talk about. So, Mom figured that on Monday night, Will would be able to address his own birthday party invitations he was giving out at school. (He'll be having his birthday party at Boomers when his Illinois family comes to town!) Will got all 23 invitations done in less than half an hour, copying the class list his teachers gave us to use. We are very proud of the careful job he did!

Celebrating the BIG 5 with the Family

Jessica's family had a birthday dinner Sunday night to celebrate Will's 5th birthday, which fall on a Tuesday this year. After a hamburger dinner, Will opened gifts: A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle (and college fund money) from G.G., Grandma Nancy and Grandpa Mark gave him new jeans with reinforced knees, a Hot Wheel playset, and two games ... for his NEW computer! Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Joe and Aunt Gina all pitched in and got Will his very own computer, much like the one he plays with a school. When all the gifts and cards were open, Will blew out the candle on his cake. He assured us all he made a wish but could not tell us if it was to come true. Now he's waiting for his REAL birthday on Tuesday to see what that day has in store ...

Easter at Grandma and Grandpa's House

The Easter Bunny made sure to stop at Grandma Nancy and Grandpa Mark's house ... and leave LOTS of See's chocolates around! Grandma Nancy taught Will the finer points of chocolate choosing while Uncle Joe, Aunt Gina and Katie played with Xan. G.G. and Uncle Mark were there, too, and everyone chowed down on tasty Honeybaked ham!

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Easter Morning 2007

Easter morning got a bit of a late start because everyone slept in. The birthday dinner must have wiped us all out! But the Easter Bunny didn't disappoint. He sprinkled Tootsie Rolls around the house for the boys to pick up. Will grumbled that he wasn't the one who sprinkled them, so why should he have to pick them up? So much for the fun! Xan grabbed one Tootsie Roll in each fist and tried to eat them, wrapper and all.

The Easter Bunny brought Will a Easter basket full of candy and Xan a small wagon with sand toys. The rake and shovel were especially fun when he used them to beat his Mom and Dad on the feet. Mommy and Daddy gave each of them a book.

Grandma Peggy and Grandpa Paul spoiled the boys with summer PJs. They also gave Will a Plasma Dragon, an ugly thing that hatches out of a green egg and slime. That was the one toy that Will had had his eye on all week. Now that he knows that the parts are interchangeable between dragons, he wants to collect them all. There's a birthday gift idea for those of you who were asking!

Aunt Brenda and Uncle Jim sent Kettle Corn for Mom, Cadbury Eggs for Dad. and adorable hooded towels for the boys. They also sent Xan a cute Spiderman outfit for his birthday - he looks great in the hat!

Aunt Vic and Uncle Earl packed everything into one bag and said that we could probably figure out what went to whom. Both boys got socks (will loved the camo ones and plans to wear them with his Superman camo outfit, he informed us) and then there was a spatula and a $5 bill. Not sure if this was the plan, but Rodney was very excited about a new egg spatula and Mom can always use $5 for scrapbook adhesive. We were all happy campers.

We'll have Easter Dinner and Grandma Nancy and Uncle Mark's House tonight, so I am sure there will be some more Easter cheer later!

Let Him Eat Cake!

Xan didn't understand why people were singing to him, or what the fire on the cake was for (Mommy and Daddy had to assist in the blowing out for the wish), but boy did he know what to do with the cake once it was placed in front of him! While Will ate some of it and smeared a lot of it around the tray to make his 1st Birthday Mess, Xan ate most of his personal cake. We expected him to throw up after all that sugar, but so far so good...