A Celebration for Sam

Hey everyone - Sam here.  I get to do the blog today because this weekend we had a celebration all about me.  My birthday is this coming week - I turn 6 years old.  We decided to have my birthday celebration this weekend because we knew we couldn't fit everything in on just one evening after school/work.  

We started out the morning with balloons, banners, and a gift.

Mason and mom and dad each got me a Skylander.  

After a quick breakfast, we headed out to a big book fair.  Mason and I got to go through the warehouse and pick out books we wanted to add to our book collection/library.  We had the best time!  We even got to take a picture with Clifford - he's one of our favorites!

From there we headed to the Tulip Festival.  It was a gorgeous, warm day.  And despite the fact that there was a ton of people wanting to see the tulips, we had a really good time.  Get ready for picture overload - there were just too many pretty pictures to choose from.

And these pictures don't need a lot of narration - just enjoy the beautiful flowers.

Look at this flower - half pink, half white.

A couple of handsome boys!

The sun was soooo bright!!

There were a couple of these hand-blown glass displays in the garden - super cool!

Here we are in the Italian gardens.

We found a shady spot with some chairs to relax.  The gardens are 55 acres big - a lot of walking.  But so worth it!

Here we are with mom.

And a picture with dad and the boys.

 After the Tulip Festival, we went miniature golfing.  One of our birthday traditions is that the birthday person gets to pick a family activity to enjoy.  I love golfing and it was a beautiful day - so it was an easy choice.  

We golfed on the haunted house course.  

Later Saturday afternoon, we enjoyed some dinner.  I got to pick my favorite thing for mom to cook.  I chose Top Ramen - she makes it with some secret ingredients that she learned about when she was a starving college student.  It makes me warm all the way down to my tummy.

Then I got to open another present from dad and mom.  

And finally - my cake!  I requested a giant cupcake with chocolate frosting.  Mom added some little pink piggies digging and floating in the "mud".  

And my wish will come true - I blew out all the candles.

Another tradition is to mark our height on the growth chart every birthday.  Believe it or not, I grew 2 1/2 inches this year.  

Then we got to stay up late playing.  I got a new Nerf gun from dad and mom and I put it to good use.  

And finally - no birthday is complete without a Sam Sandwich picture.  It was a great celebration!  I love birthdays and can't wait for my next one.  

Mason Alert:  Mason here - we had such a great day celebrating Sam.  Enjoy a picture of me hanging out in the mountain garden at the Tulip Festival.  I'm ready for my birthday.  Just a few more weeks!!!