The {Big Easy} Thalgotts: Sam Turns Four, 9.14.11

So, as hard as it is for me to believe, Sam had another birthday. A 4th birthday to be exact. And just like every birthday, he just couldn't wait! Talk of the birthday consumed our every conversation, it seemed. He felt that turning another year older meant he was closer to catching up to Tyler. Unfortunately for him, he doesn't understand how that just will never happen!

(so, just a disclosure here...I played around with some different edits on some of these pictures. Didn't love them, but was too lazy to change them again. So, that's why some of them may look a little funny. Just FYI. :)

So our morning got off to a great start. Sam woke up to find presents wrapped on the table and decorations put up. It was simple, but perfect for him! We had birthday pancakes for breakfast. We usually wait until evening for the big gift opening event, but I knew it would be one LONG day for me if I had all those presents sitting on the table and didn't let him open one. So, we let him open two presents.

And he was pretty sure he knew exactly what this one was. And he was right!

He had been asking for a certain 4 pack of Cars 2 cars from Target and low and behold, that's exactly what he got! I'm not sure he could have been more excited!

And I also let him open a new shirt to wear that day. Another Cars item...he truly is obsessed. He loved it, and still loves it!

Sam was also able to open a card from Grandma & Grandpa Andersen that morning that had money in it. So we went to Target and WalMart and I let him pick out whatever he wanted. He's never been able to do that before and it was so fun to watch him decide! He loved it and picked out a movie, a book, a monster truck, and a car. Quite the haul! And after lunch at Roly Poly (Sam's #1 choice--he loves that place!) and a quiet afternoon, Tyler came home from school, Dad came home from work and then it was time to get this party started. Ok, so it technically wasn't a party, but it was a family celebration. :) Perfect, in my opinion! I try to let my kids pick out exactly what they want for a meal and cake for their birthdays and make it for them. So, we had delicious homemade spaghetti and meatballs for dinner. Sam's ABSOLUTE favorite! He was a happy camper! And then it was time to open presents!

And after all was said and done, the biggest hit of the night was a HexBug Nano. I grabbed it on a whim at the very last second when I was birthday shopping because I figured he might like it since he played with Gracie & Rhett's this summer. Oh my gosh, the thing was a riot. He and Tyler loved it! They named it Trixie, which I thought was funny that they named it a girls' name, but then he said it was because it does lots of tricks! (so, they had no idea Trixie was a girls' name!).

Sam got lots of phone calls and played with some of his new toys, then finally, last but not least, it was time for cake and ice cream. Remember how I said I let the kids pick out what they want? Well, the dinner was awesome. The cake & ice cream choice...I wouldn't exactly recommend it to anyone. He wanted more than anything else, a strawberry cake with rainbow chip frosting and Oreo ice cream. Blech! It just didn't go well together, that's for sure! But did he care? Not a bit! And I laughed so hard that he had a pink cake for his birthday. Again, all it was to him was a strawberry cake, NOT a pink cake so what's the big deal, right? But here he is with a PINK birthday cake! :) Too funny!