Kate's 3rd Birthday Party

Since we'll be out of town for Kate's 3rd birthday, we decided to have a party for her this weekend.  The theme (as you will see) was Hello Kitty and Kate had a blast being the center of attention.  

 I sure do miss Edible Art in Charlotte.  This cake made the birthday girl happy, though!

 Ben anxiously waiting for the birthday girl to wake up from her nap (and helping Mommy decorate)

 Kate loved the huge Hello Kitty balloon...

 ...then Ben and Connor accidentally set it free...

...floating in the sky over Rye...

 ...one unhappy birthday girl!

Ben and his buddies, Charlie and Connor.

Spring

Here are a few random pics from the spring...

 Visiting Jones Beach on Long Island.

 Charlotte visit - May 2012

 Lion King - 5.19.12

(Ben found a store with Angry Birds on our way to the theater)

 Ben & Gommy on the train

Hanging with our friends, the Bradys.

Easter in Chicago

This year for Easter we visited Anne and Adam in Chicago.  Babbie organized an egg hunt (with clues!) in their house.  We went to the zoo, aquarium, and an Easter brunch at the Drake hotel.  Good times in the Windy City!

 Egg hunt

My kids LOVE bandaids!  They got some in their Easter baskets.

Face painting at Easter brunch.

 Kate enjoyed the ice cream bar.  Here she is carefully selecting her toppings with Aunt Anne.

We have a 5-year old!

As I say every year, I can't believe I have a __ year old!  I seriously cannot believe our baby boy is 5.  He had a great birthday party (his first in Rye) at the Rye Nature Center.  Below are some pictures of Ben on each of his birthdays.

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#5

Birthday preview

Ben's 5th birthday is quickly approaching. Over the weekend we had an early birthday dinner with our neighbors. We're looking forward to a week full of birthday celebrations!

Snow!

We were wondering when we would see some snow - New York got so much snow last winter and we haven't had any until recently. The kids loved it. They played outside with our neighbors and had a blast. It was my favorite kind of snow - beautiful on Saturday and gone by Monday.

Kate and her buddy, Logan.

Logan, Kate, Charlie, & Ben

Using Jeff's car as a slide.

Christmas 2011

The weekend before Christmas we tried to go to the New York Botanical Garden to see the trai display, but didn't know we had to buy tickets in advance. So, we headed across the street to the Bronx Zoo. Since it was so cold the zoo was completely empty so we were able to ride the carousel, see the Polar Express 4D show, and see plenty of animals without having to fight a crowd.

Grammy paid us a visit before Christmas. One day Grammy and I took Ben to see Peter Pan at Madison Square Garden. We did some sightseeing at Rockefeller Plaza before the show.

The kids paid a visit to Santa on Christmas Eve this year. Kate wouldn't sit on his lap, and thankfully Santa wasn't very busy, so he was able to get down and hang out with her. Later Ben was able to get some one-on-one time with the big man to tell him what he wanted.

Taking a carriage ride in Cincinnati during our visit to Santa.

Opening some presents on Christmas Eve.

Santa's loot

Testing out her new tricycle.

Modeling a new swimsuit from Great Aunt Joani and some jewels from Gigi, Jeff, Lauren & Maddie.

Cincinnati Zoo Festival of Lights.