Snapshots { birthday boy! }

I've officially been a mother for 3 years. I actually feel like it has been a lot longer than that! The years just go by so fast these days. I guess that just goes right along with the grey hair and wrinkles that I'm getting!

We decided to have a low key, inexpensive birthday get together for Ande this year. We just had family and his closest buddies over to eat waffles (his favorite), and ride bikes around the driveway.

Here are a few things we did to save some extra cash...

Thanks to Curt's sweet computer graphic skills, we designed our own invitations, and then emailed them to friends and family instead of printing them off.

We also saved a little by making our own decorations. I made a fun rag garland using fabric scraps that I already had on hand, and a "happy birthday Ande" banner with colored paper and yarn. For refreshments, we had a homemade waffle bar with all kinds of toppings. Ande especially loved the chocolate chips, sprinkles, and whipped cream!

We used mostly paper products that we already had on hand. The only dishes I bought were these adorable mini caserole dishes from the $1 store. I got yellow, blue, and red and I love them! We cleared the driveway and used sidewalk chalk to draw a road and parking lot for the kids to ride their bikes, trikes, scooters, and cozy coupes around.

So, we did a lot of eating,

visiting,

and present opening.

There was an impromptu story time,

and of course, a lot of riding and driving!

It's probably a good thing that we kept it as simple as we did, since Ande was pretty crazy and emotional the whole time. But, all in all, things turned out good, and I think he enjoyed it. 

Now, at 3 years old, Ande is growing tall and finally starting to lose his pot belly. He is still halfway potty trained, but loving the independence of it (mostly enjoying it by peeing in the yard while outside playing). He still loves cars and trucks more than anything, but is starting to show some interest in super heroes who "save the people!" He is also beginning to play "pretend" a little bit more, having really interesting conversations between the different cars. He loves his little brother and is constantly hugging, kissing, and tackling him. He loves teaching Owen everything he knows (good or bad thing? still not sure), and he shows genuine joy and pride in all of Owen's accomplishments. Ande is my little reader, with an intense need to know how everything works and why. He loves to sit on the top of the car and listen as Curtis describes the engine and how it works. Ande just loves to know things, and I just love to know him. He is our sweet boy and we love him so much! 

Happy Birthday Dude!