Happy Birthdays!

I can't believe how long it has been since I created a new post!  We still do not have a camera, but I borrowed one from a friend so I could capture some birthday photos:)  I'm glad we had these fun birthdays to break things up around here, because this winter has sure been harsh, and we are all tired of being locked in doors and definitely tired of the freezing weather we've had since December!  I heard a bird singing for the first time a couple days ago...so spring has to be coming soon.  I feel bad for the poor birds who have come back only to find these continued frigid temperatures.  I feel worse for the animals who have had to endure this long harsh winter...it was bad enough enduring it indoors, I hate thinking about anyone or anything having to be outdoors.
BUT, moving on to happier birthday thoughts!  March 1st was Ed's birthday and also the day we had a marathon birthday party here celebrating 5 birthdays!  Ed, the girls, our nephew and Ed's sister-in-law all have a birthday in early March.  So it was definitely birthday party time.

We started Ed's day by serving him chocolate chip banana pancakes in bed.  I think all the kids ate their pancakes on the bed too, so they thought that was pretty fun:)

 Here is Ed's cake.  It still makes me smile:)

 And here are the cousin's on the big birthday party day.  Cousin Will is now 1 year old!

 Down time between birthday celebrations meant being creative to keep the little ones busy.  We tried a game of musical chairs which kept everyone, including adults who participated, entertained!

 Check out these two with their hands on the last chair!

 The girls (and all of the kids) decorated their own cupcakes.  I did this instead of making a big cake this year.  They all seemed to have fun!  I think Mollie had 3 or 4 of them...I lost count and finally had to cut her off as she reached for one more!

 Here are the girls at school on their birthday celebration day:)  I was pretty proud that I was able to make gluten-dairy-nut free chocolate cupcakes for their snack.  That was quite a stressful task, but I was hoping to include everyone.

And this morning (their official birth day) I surprised the girls by serving them breakfast in bed.  They loved it, especially Emmeline, and couldn't believe they got to eat in their beds just like Ed did!

 Mollie - 4 years old

 Emmeline - 4 years old

We went out for lunch to celebrate and then later this afternoon we went sledding.  We only got to go sledding a couple times this year because it was just too cold and the snow wasn't good sledding snow, so we wanted to get another opportunity in.  Plus, we usually just go in our backyard, which is fun, but it was nice to go to a real sledding hill.  The kids loved it, especially the adventuresome Sam and Mollie:) 

Mollie wasn't scared one bit and went down every time like a pro.  She even flew over a bump one time and landed with perfect ease and kept on going.  This girl always amazes us with her desire to conquer and succeed at whatever she does.

Emmeline isn't a thrill seeker, so she either slid down on her bottom (because it was a bit packed and icy from yesterday's above freezing (finally) temperatures), or she went with one of us in a sled.  No thrill seeking for her, but she still had fun!

Happy Birthday to my March birthday hubby and girls!  I feel like these birthdays mark a turning point in this endless, harsh winter.  We are ready to move forward with warmer weather and sunnier days, and ready to make more memories this next year!