Sam & Ethan's 4th Birthday!

This year Samuel and Ethan turned 4.  Four!  That's like... a legit KID!  No more toddlers or baby cheeks or lisps or binkies.  FOUR!  Doesn't that sound so old?!?!  Ugh.  On one hand it makes me a bit sad to think that they are this old already.  And on the other, I'm so proud at the boys they have become.  They are both kind, courteous, and caring of others.  They don't know any stranger, and will tell anyone their life story.  Sometimes, they've even pushed me to be more friendly to those I come in contact with.  They are crazy and have a party EVERY.WHERE.THEY.GO....  The bath.  At dinner.  Playing with toys.  At "quiet" time.  They are having fun and ramp each other up at every activity.  (I think that's part of the twin thing... having two kids at the EXACT same age.)  They are my pride and joy, and my heart swells when I think of them.  I'm so thankful I get to be a witness to their lives and see the men they become! 

This year, we were originally planning on having a pirate party.  But, as time wore on, they got REALLY into Rescue Bots.  So, we switched it to Rescue Bots.  This was the first year we had a "drop off" party, where the kids get dropped off and the parents leave.  We had family and friends from Fresno that also came up, so there were lots of adults to help out.  It's always fun planning the party, and always fun when it's over.  =)

So we had a minor cake collapse.  Good thing Bumblebee was there to help!

Rescue bot drinks

When the small guests arrived, we had on an episode of Rescue Bots so as to control the children and keep them from pulling out every toy we own.  They were so into it!

They also got a Rescue Bots tattoo from Daddy.

The party crew with masks

I can't remember what I asked them to do here.  Maybe flex?!?  I don't know.

Party crew without masks

After we took a party pic, I read them a Rescue Bots story about the Bots finding an old bell that pirates had stole from the city of Griffin Rock hundreds of years earlier.

After the story, we went out and looked for our own pirate treasure!

L found it!

And then we all tasted it. (It was chocolate gold coins.)

Next up was a matching game.  They had to match the Rescue Bot with their vehicle mode.  Here I'm showing them what each one is paired with before we play the game.

R trying to find Optimus's vehicle mode.

In the end, I let the kids keep the pairs they found.  Then, of course, EVERYONE wanted one.  Good thing my bomb husband printed out an extra set for me!

So then we tried to play this game that I think they were too young for.  I gave them a baggie of all different shapes of crackers to have them build a robot.  Only one kid attempted it.  But, it was their snack too, so it worked out.

S, "Mom…. I don't know what to do!"

Baby Z made his rounds!

All the previous activities went way faster than I had anticipated, so I pulled out another book that talked about one of the Rescue Bots trying to adopt a pet lion from the zoo.  The lion, of course, got out and they had to rescue it.

So, we hid 4 of our own wild animals to find outside.  L found one.

S found two!  I didn't get a picture of the 4th one.

Then we had our drinks outside, coupled with spontaneous screaming.

Singing time!

S

E

Yummy!

"It's red!"

Ok.  The only thing I can compare opening presents at a 4-year-old party to
is trying to keep piranhas at bay.

It was comical.

I've never seen anyone tear into presents so fast.

They loved it!

At this part in the party, we gave everyone their goodie bag and then the parents came to pick them up. Our family and friends from Fresno stayed for an early dinner before going home.  This also included another rendition of "Happy Birthday" and more cake!

This time, we sang first to Samuel.  He blew out one candle, whilst licking the flames
(he wasn't hurt but sure learned a lesson!).

Then we sang again for Ethan, who turns out to be shy when all the attention is on him.
We sang twice so as to give each boy their own time in the spotlight without having to share.  Being a twin mom, I'm always on the lookout for ways to promote individuality and give them their own "stuff", because they've shared EVERYTHING since that little egg split.

And my birthday was the day before their party, so I got a few gifts too!