Pookie and Geetle also had a Family Birthday party this weekend. Before we could have anyone over, BAGD had to shovel the driveway. Too bad for him, the next day it was 50 degrees and all the rest of the snow melted.

Once the party got started, it was lots of fun. Lots of food.

Lots of people.

Lots of great presents.

Every year when birthdays come and go, I can’t help but stop and think about how much my kids have grown. One very poignant thought jumped into my head at the party. Last year, Great Grandma BlueGrass gave Pookie a package of CARS underwear. He opened them and threw them aside, because at that point, he had absolutely no interest and no understanding of the potty. At the time, it made me very sad. I was happy that my boy was turning 4, but angry and frustrated that he was not potty trained. I wondered when it would ever happen. Then at this party, almost a exactly a year later, I found my boy in the bathroom pooping on his own during the party. Thats how far he had come in a year. I was so proud of him. And then there’s Geetle, who told me several times this week, “I don’t care what people get me.” Her way of saying, in abbreviated 5 year old language, that she just wanted a party, not presents. Good kids. I am lucky.