Happy 5th Birthday to my Big Boy!

Birthday Boy

This is a belated post (I am in a lazy funk) but the birthday itself was not!  

Happy 5th Birthday Aaron!  You're my big boy now!!  It's so exciting to watch you grow and become older.  While Josh and I are always nostalgic for our chubba baby boy, we're also proud and happy to watch you grow and learn!

Aaron wanted a dinosaur themed party and Aaron gets what he wants for his birthday!  Since Josh had to work on Aaron's actual birthday it worked out to Aaron's advantage because he got a full birthday weekend instead of just one day.  On Friday at school it was kind of a party day anyway since it was the last day before Christmas vacation and they had an easy day watching The Polar Express.  They made Aaron a birthday crown and sang him Happy Birthday and I brought mini cupcakes for his class.  On Saturday he had a special day with his grandparents and tia Eva all by himself.  They took him to Chuck E. Cheese for the first time and then to Leatherby's for some yummy ice cream dessert where the entire restaurant sang him Happy Birthday and a young lady who shared a birthday with him bought him a Leatherby's t-shirt!  

Birthday Ice Cream!

On Sunday Aaron had a movie date with just Josh and I.  We took him to see Walking with Dinosaurs in 3D and he loved it!  

Notice the dino t-shirt too?

While we were out watching the movie, the rest of my family was at our house setting up a surprise party.  When we got back Aaron was greeted with a big surprise of family, balloons, streamers, presents and a dino cake!  

Freeport Bakery does the best cakes!

He was super excited and a bit overwhelmed I think but he loved all the gifts and ate part of his cake (he was too excited about the gifts and had to go back to playing with all his new toys, abandoning his cake!).  

So much dino fun!

Josh and I try super hard to make Aaron's birthday stand out since it's so close to Christmas (that's why it's always themed) and even though this year was kind of thrown together at the last minute I think it worked out really well and we all made him feel special.  Thanks so much to my parents, sister and cousin Susie who helped with all the birthday activities.  

Happy Birthday Buddy!  We all love you!  
 
 

Pocoyo Boo! - Our Review

Pocoyo Boo! - Our Review

This month Aaron and I got a fun Halloween themed Pocoyo dvd from NCircle Entertainment: Pocoyo Boo!

I know I've said it before but Aaron just loves Pocoyo!  And even though this is a Halloween themed dvd, it's not scary (like some other ones I've seen) so it's perfect for your younger or sensitive kids.  

This dvd has seven (yes, seven!) cartoons with Pocoyo and his friends.  They explore new games by scaring each other (BOO!), play with friendly aliens on their planet, enjoy a monster party, solve mysteries and engage in pretend play with each other.  

Aaron's favorite episode was the first, titled Boo!, in which Pocoyo goes around scaring all his friends by hiding and then jumping out and saying.... you guess it... BOO!  Aaron squealed and laughed every time Pocoyo scared someone.  He thought the episode was just hilarious!

The dvd runs 50 minutes, includes Spanish language and is perfect for all ages.  Aaron and I give it a very spooky two thumbs up!

The SRP is $6.99 and the dvd can be found at retailers near you and at Amazon.com.  

 
 

Pocoyo's World: Our Review

Pocoyo's World Review

Aaron and I were sent Pocoyo's World by NCircle Entertainment to enjoy and review this month.

First of all, this is an easy sell for both of us because we both love Pocoyo.  Aaron first watched Pocoyo on Univision en Espanol.  I immediately loved the face that Aaron was so interested in something in the Spanish language.  It was simple and easy for him to understand.  Aaron loved the cartoon from the start.

In this new Pocoyo DVD: Pocoyo's World, you enjoy twelve mini adventures with Pocoyo and his friends.  You can watch the dvd in either English or Spanish (we chose Spanish, of course) which is definitely a bonus if you ask me!  If you want your child to get used to the sounds, words and inflections of another language this is the way to do it!  They will still be interested because A) it's a cartoon and B) the Pocoyo series is so easy and simple to understand, with or without your language.  

That's the main reason we like Pocoyo so much.  It's such a simple concept.  It's like playtime in cartoon form.  It helps children to use their imagination, teaches them to share and figure out solutions, all while going on an adventure.

Aaron watched the entire dvd with great pleasure and then immediately wanted to watch it again with his dad when he got home from work.  In fact, Aaron's been watching it all weekend!  His favorite episode is A Dog's Life in which Pocoyo takes turns acting like all of his friends.  He even gets up and acts right along with Pocoyo!  

If you've never seen an episode of Pocoyo, I highly recommend taking your kids on an adventure with Pocoyo and his friends Elly the elephant, Pato the duck, Loula the dog and Sleepy Bird the birdy.  It's fun for children of all ages!

Aaron and I both give the new Pocoyo dvd two thumbs up!

You can buy the newest Pocoyo dvd at all major retailers on May 21, 2013.  The disc retails for $12.99.  

           

Valentine's Day in Pictures

Valentine's Day Card from us to Aaron.  It read: I love you with every appendage I have.

Aaron's Valentine's Day Lunch.  Heart-shaped PB&J and some of his favorite fruit.

Aaron enjoying his lunch.  His card and Sweetheart Candies (from Elizabeth) are waiting to be opened!

Elizabeth Grace wore her Valentine outfit for Daddy!  Isn't she the cutest?!

And after a wonderful afternoon, I dropped the kiddos off to spend the rest of their Valentine's Day with their grandparents.  Josh and I had a date to see A Good Day to Die Hard (my choice!) and eat some yummy dinner at Romano's Macaroni Grill.  Yeah, I know it's basically a step up from the Olive Garden but .... we poor, y'all.  And you know what?  It was the best date we've had in a super, super long time!  

The movie was kick-ass and the theater basically empty (bonus!).  And after we were told the wait at the restaurant would be an hour and a half, I situated us right between the front door and the bar seating area (first come, first serve of course).  After 10 minutes of using my super awesome stealthy observation skills, we had procured ourselves a small booth!  Seriously, bar seating is like a sport to me!  And I rarely lose!!  Haha!  

We had a really good appetizer of fried mac n' cheese with truffle sauce & fresh bruschetta.  Josh had a beer and the chicken parmesan and I had a peach bellini (yum!) and the lobster ravioli.  Then we split the quattro cannoli for dessert and I had a vanilla latte.  Everything was delish and our waiter was pretty awesome considering he had some douchebag asshat who had been sitting by the bar waiting for his own table (drinking the entire time) who decided he wanted to yell at our waiter because it was taking so long for OTHER RANDOM PEOPLE HE DIDN'T EVEN KNOW to be served.  He went on about he could "run the joint", etc.  You know - that guy.  PS - we got our table at the bar while this guy was busy being an asshole.  So there!

Then we went to pick up our munchkins and I was able (ok, I tried) to take this fun family photo before everyone was sent to bed!  

Happy Valentine's Day!

I hope your Valentine's Day was just as awesome!