Tobin Turns 5!

Friday the 13th was Tobin's 5th birthday! I can hardly believe he's 5 already. Some days it seemed we would never get out of the toddler phase with him! For all the difficulties he gives us, he really is a sweet boy who is learning to think of others before himself on occasion. :-) He's grown and matured so much in the last year. I especially thank God for his sensitive heart for those who don't know Jesus. (He always wants to pray for the people who go to the Mormon church by our house, that they will find a church that teaches the truth so they can know Jesus and go to heaven!)

We had a small home party for Tobin this year. It was a little disappointing that 3 families we invited were unable to come, but Tobin didn't seem to mind and had a great time with Sarah's kids and Debi's 11-year-old son Kyle. Tobin absolutely ADORES Kyle--sometimes I think Tobin really needs a big brother, but since he obviously will never get one, it's nice that Debi brings Kyle over now and then to play with Tobin!


Tobin wanted a superhero birthday party (of course), so we printed out Batman invitations from a kids' web site and told everyone to wear their favorite superhero costume (or any costume they wanted, for that matter). Friday morning I dropped Charis and Arden off with the B's so I could take Tobin and Kenna to the store. It was nice to spend some one-on-one time with Tobin (Kenna doesn't really count at this point!). I treated him to a fruit and yogurt parfait at the Walmart McDonald's before we started our shopping, and then I let him pick out his cake. After much deliberation--Spiderman cake or Incredibles cupcakes?--he chose the Incredibles cupcakes. I was glad--there were only 12 cupcakes, compared with 1/4 sheet cake, which I knew would be way too much since the attendee list was pretty short. Then I let him pick out the ice cream, and he chose rainbow sherbet.


Then we headed to the party store. I would have gladly skipped this errand, as the winds were tremendously strong Friday morning. However, getting a balloon bouquet for our kids' birthdays has been a tradition, and I knew Tobin would be disappointed if he didn't get his balloons. We puttered around a bit looking at the superhero stuff, and I got some Batman napkins and Spiderman and Superman plates. I also got a Spiderman "bop bag" so the kids could play with it during the party. I had decided I would not do any organized games, there would be no prizes, and there would be no party favors. At this point in my life, it's all about simplifying! I did print out some superhero coloring sheets and word puzzles, but they actually never got used during the party. No matter--Tobin will do them all eventually! At the party store Tobin spent his $5 of birthday money from Aunt Iola on two superhero coloring books, and he spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon coloring in them, a great way to keep him quiet! We managed to get the balloons stuffed into the back of the van despite the strong winds, thanks to the help of a very kind customer who took pity upon seeing me struggle with Kenna's car seat, the store door that was being suctioned shut by the hurricane-force gales, and 9 helium-filled balloons that were ready to take off into the wild blue yonder.


We had the party in the afternoon, and the kids enjoyed bouncing on the trampoline for most of the time. They ran around the house awhile, too, and then they did settle down for cake and ice cream. Tobin had a ball opening all of his presents (which included a Spiderman t-shirt, Spiderman backpack, Spiderman puzzle, Spiderman slipper socks, and Spiderman web slinger...notice a pattern here?!) and was extra thrilled to get $20 spending money as well. I'm sure he'll find a fun way to use it the next time we can get to the store!

The party must have been a success, because Tobin has said several times today, "I really like all my presents that I got!" or some variation thereof. Now, if I can get him to sit down and write thank you notes, we'll be all set...