Zachary's Birthday

Zachary turned 4!
Zach was SO excited to turn 4. He knew it was around the time that preschool started, and at the end of the summer. So he would ask me during the summer if it was almost the end yet. Which is funny, because other days he would tell me that being 3 is really fun and he wants to always be 3. So I kept pointing out how fun 3 is and also that there are fun things to do when you are 4!His party was GREAT. It was on one of the busiest Saturdays- we had a primary party and I had a baby shower, and other people had the soccer parade and games as well as ward parties. Crazy! The party was perfect though. We found a spot in the shade for some tables and lawn chairs and quilts, and the kids played while the parents hung out. They played in the sand with their trucks and played on the playground and had a great time. We had cupcakes for them to decorate (or just eat all of the candy as Zach preferred) and sang to Zach and had Otter Pops since it was so hot! The kids got construction hats and a truck in a little bucket. For some of the girls it was their first truck! :) I think it was so nice that no one had to make their kids eat dinner or play games. Much more fun that way!

A new boy moved into our ward a couple of weeks before Zach's party, so we invited him too. We are SO glad this family moved in! Travis and Zach have gotten to be good buddies. I love that Travis has his arm around Zach in this picture! Zach talks about playing with Travis all the time, I am so glad they are here!





The gummi worms were the most popular topping, followed by the candy corn which was requested by Zach...and happen to be construction colors





We had a bunch of little bubbles leftover from Caitlin's wedding, so we let the kids go crazy with those out on the grass









Slightly excited for his presents :)


He got a launcher with a rocket thing at the end of it from one of his friends (well, from his friend's dad) and it was a huge hit! The kids each wanted turns to jump on the pump to set it off.






Zach is so fun right now. He understands so much! He is starting to ask a ton of questions and we love it. "How does my tongue stay in my throat?" "Where is Jesus right now?" "What does food do in my body?" etc. It is fun to see his brain work. I had heard that 4 is great, and I have to agree. Not that there have been no meltdowns, but I can already tell he has matured a little. He is a fun buddy. He LOVES his relatives and friends. He mentions so many of his cousins and friends every day and how he misses them! He is a lucky boy to have all 4 grandparents so close and gets to see them several times a week, but he isn't close to any cousins which is a bummer. He does get to see his friends a lot...really, I think 4 year old life is pretty great. He also started preschool at the end of August and 4 weeks in has learned the days of the week, the months, the Pledge of Allegiance, and "America the Beautiful". He has also learned the importance of doing things when you are asked instead of wasting time or else you "lose recess time". He is so much fun and we love spending time with him.

P.S. Photo credit for both birthday parties done by Jennie Wallace. That is the way to go! I didn't touch a camera the whole time and it was so nice :) I was wondering afterward why I was extra relaxed at each party...then I realized why! I could just enjoy them!
P.P.S. There were a lot more pictures, but unfortunately it takes my computer about 4 minutes to upload 2 pictures to the blog. Yup. So I've been sitting here for over an hour working on this post, so I did as many as I could before bedtime!