Nate's b-day- He's already 2!

Nate turned 2 on October 24th! I can't believe my baby's already 2- how time flies! We decided, since he is such a social guy to throw him a birthday party and invite a few friends.We did the party on his birthday, which was a Saturday and did it early, so we could have the rest of the day to relax and enjoy time with grandma and "baca" (Nate's word for grandpa). We had to dress Nate up in his $5 consignment deal pirate costume, since the theme of the party was pirates. He kept this "Jack Sparrow" wig on for about 10 seconds, long enough for a picture, and then refused to put it back on. He was pretty cute in it, though. He was hesitant at first to get in to the party, but once he saw the other kids having fun, he joined in.


We played put the treasure chest on the "x" marks the spot and throw the balls in the jackolantern.

I then sent the boys on a treasure hunt around the house- there were clues, like "where does Nate sleep?" with a picture of a bed and they would have to go there to find the next clue and a gold coin. At the end of the treasure hunt they found swords at the bottom of the bathtub covered in orange balloons. We didn't get a picture of this, for some reason. We then had a sword fight until it got too rowdy. Andrew offered to make everyone a balloon hat, as you can see my dad was the one who liked them the most.

It was then time for the fishing pond and they got their goody bags and some goldfish from the pond. (this pic is actually from after the other boys left and Nate and Spencer wanted to fish again.)
We put on "Bob the Builder" and fed the boys a lunch of hot dogs, cheetos, and apples as they had a picnic in front of the movie. We then brought out the cupcakes- Nate was so excited! - and everyone sang Happy Birthday. The boys helped Nate open his gifts and he was good about letting them help and play with his toys.


The boys helped Nate open his gifts and he was good about letting them help and play with his toys.It was a pretty successful birthday party- no tantrums, potty accidents, fighting, or crying. It was kind of amazing! All of the sources I looked at said to invite the parents to parties for this age, but I think they might behaved better without their parents and they had a really good time. Most of the boys were 3, except for his friend Spencer who is just a few months older than him. He came late, so after everyone left, Nate and Spencer did all of the games again 2 year old style.
Nate got many cool presents from his grandparents. This one is a musical table that has several nursery rhymes and lots of different instrument sounds. It also teaches counting and the alphabet. Nate loves it! He also got a fisher price "play my way" table that has a kitchen bin and a tool bin. He plays with it everyday and is getting really good at hammering nails and using the screwdriver. He now cooks for me from his "chicken" (kitchen) and I order pizza, eggs, and spaghetti. He brings it to me on a plate with a fork. It's kind of a nice role reversal change!

Andrew and I got these cool blocks for Nate. They are cardboard blocks from Melissa and Doug, and they are sturdy enough for kids to stand on. We have a lot of fun building towers, chairs, runways, stairs, and anything else we can think of. His favorite part is destroying what we build, though. They are really fun because you can be so creative with them.


Happy Birthday Nate! We love you:)