Once there was a snowman

With it finally warming up a bit, we ventured outside yesterday to play in all the fresh new snow! With some help from Kristol and Dax, we made a snowman.

Meet "Chocolate Chip"

Why is he named Chocolate Chip? I don't know. I asked Jackson what he wanted to name him, and that was his answer, so Chocolate Chip it is! 

It felt so good to be outside. We were getting major cabin fever being indoors so much. 

If you are wondering why Jackson's mouth looks so dark, it is because he and Dax kept sneaking Oreo's (which we used for the eyes). :)

After building the snowman we did a little sledding around the neighborhood and ended the afternoon with some hot cocoa. Hooray for the inversion being gone!

Ski day

After a melt down at the base of Sundance last year and not even making it to the bunny hill, Jackson has been showing a lot of interest in skiing as of late. He kept telling us he wanted to try skiing again when he was "four". Well, I wasn't so sure how it would go because last year's experience really was quite epic. He kept saying he wanted to go, so Sean was brave and took him back up to Sundance yesterday morning. Sean's mom (who has been a ski instructor) gave him some pointers the night before.

There were a few reservations in the beginning...

But not only did he make it to the bunny hill, he skied down it a few times!

Working on his "french fry" and "pizza pie"

He came home smiling and proud of himself and said he wants to go again. I'm so proud of him! 

Sean brought Jackson home at lunch and then he and I went back up to Sundance to ski the last half of the day together. I never even made it skiing last year so I was really excited. Sean got new skis this year (I have only ever known him as a snowboarder) and it was a lot of fun to see him on skis!

The snow was great and there was a lot of powder at the top. This was my favorite run.

Skiing helps me feel not so old! 

It was really cold at the end of the day, but we had a great time and it was worth freezing our butts off!

A birthday fit for a superhero

The birthday boy wanted a superhero birthday party this year, so superhero it was! 

We invited some of his best friends to his party (which we had at the clubhouse). When they got there we had them decorate their own superhero capes. They were easy, and I thought they turned out really cute! 

Then we played a superhero cake-walk type game where the kids all walked around in a circle to music (the theme song from Superhero Squad). When the music stopped, we called out a superhero and if you were standing on that superhero, you were out. Last boy/girl standing wins!

Then it was on to fighting some bad-guys! We had some balloon ninjas that the kids got to defeat using some special tools...

A Captain America shield (frisbee)

Iron man fire balls (Nerf guns) 

And Spiderman webs (silly string)

Then it was on to gifts. He received so many nice gifts from his friends, including lots of superhero stuff, so he was in heaven!

He loves all superheroes, but his favorite is Spiderman. I surprised him with a Spiderman cake and he was pretty excited :)

The picture above was taken before Bode got his hands into it for a few tastes of frosting… little stinker! I am glad I got one picture of it in its better form :)

We also had Spiderman cupcakes!

Each kid got to pick a superhero lollipop to take home. Thank you Pinterest!

I think the party was a success. Jackson told me he loved it, so that is all I care about. Thanks to everyone who came to celebrate with us! 

Other highlights of his birthday include opening presents from nana and papa, grandma and grandpa, and mom and dad. He was really excited about his new toy ship, Batmobile, and razor scooter (with green wheels, of course).

After dinner at Malawi's (pepperoni pizza-- his favorite), we headed across the street to Provo Beach Resort where we let he and Bode play a few games and ride the carousel. 

Finally, we headed home, blew out the candles, and dug into the cake!

Happy birthday to our 4-year-old superhero!

Jackson is 4!

How is our baby boy 4 years old?! Four seems so much older to me than three! How grateful we are for our Jackson. 

Some notes about Jackson as he turns 4:

-Loves superheros and his favorite is Spiderman

-Favorite movies are Polar Express and Nightmare Before Christmas

-Favorite foods: spaghetti, pepperoni pizza, cheesy bread, grilled cheese sandwiches, green beans (one of these is not like the other…haha)

-Is always taking his shirt off like Tarzan

-Hates being hot. When he is too warm he says, "It is hot in my nose!" referring to the warm air blowing in the car.

-Wants to snuggle every night before bed. We always talk about our favorite part of the day.

-Loves preschool and primary

-Favorite color is green

-Fearless on rides and roller coasters, but does not like being taken off guard with loud noises like fireworks

-Has a sensitive and loving personality

-Very protective brother who is always watching out for Bode and making sure he doesn't wander

Jackson is so excited about his birthday this year and has been talking about having a super hero birthday party for months. As I did last year, I went through our photos and picked out my favorites of Jackson from the past year. I realize there are about a billion pictures here, but as I said last year, this is sort of a gift to myself. 

Here they are in the best chronological order I can remember!

Happy birthday buddy. We love you to the moon!