To Be Two - Kellan Style

Can you believe that the time has come for Kellan to turn TWO?!

Ya... we can't believe it either.

Nana and Papa came down from Wyoming to celebrate Kellan turning TWO.  It took about 2.2 seconds for Kellan to round up Papa to read him a book.

On August 23, 2012, the day of Kellan's birthday, he treated his class to mini cupcakes with their choice of white or chocolate cake.  We hear they were a big hit.  When Kellan came home he had a collection of gifts to open and we sprinkled that activity through the evening.  First up was a big box from Uncle Jeff, Aunt Lindsey, William and Isaac in Texas.

Oliver was excited to help with the unwrapping but he knew full well that this was Kellan's birthday.  Maybe he was being extra aware since his birthday is in nearly two months and he will be reminding his little brother who loves to word "mine".

Choo Choo!!

Thanks to Uncle Jeff, Aunt Lindsey, William and Isaac for the new train 'o blocks.  It's a BIG hit!!

For Kellan's birthday we had a mini cake to celebrate.  The big cake will be coming out for the party on Saturday.  In the meantime, we had a cake labeled as a cake for 2 and we made it a cake for 6.

Kellan was not thrilled with the birthday cake and the excitement.  He went into a slight panic.

He wasn't sure what to make of this flaming dessert that had been put directly in front of him.

He tried a taste of frosting and thought maybe it was worth trusting.

It helped a bit to sit on Daddy's lap, but the cake was still flaming and the anxiety level was high.

He peered around the room either in search of help or secretly hoping that he didn't have to listen to us sing.

He gave the flaming dessert a sideways glance.  Maybe if the cake doesn't notice that he is looking at it, it won't jump up and bite him.

Finally, Daddy helped him blow out the calendar and there was much relief.

Finally, Kellan got to dive into what he really wanted.

The Balloons!!!

All is well now that Kellan has the balloons while Oliver waits patiently for his dessert.

Yay!!  A smile for the birthday boy!!

Kellan didn't eat a single bite of cake, but we celebrated all the same.  Happy Birthday Big Boy!!!

After dinner, Kellan got to open some other gifts after dinner, including this great John Deere truck from Nana and Papa that came complete with headlights that light up and a rumbling motor.

Oliver helped him with a bit tougher gift to open.

A new dinosaur book!

Thanks Nana and Papa!!

Then the time had come to open the gift that Oliver picked out special for his little brother.  We thought maybe he would pick a Thomas Train but when he and Daddy got to the store, Oliver knew exactly what he wanted to get his little brother.

HEX BUGS!!!

He knows his brother well.  The Hex Bugs were a HUGE hit!!

Kellan handed out some Thank You hugs to Papa.

He handed out Thank You hugs to Nana.

Then it was time to set up the Hex Bug track.  The boys laughed and giggled over the Hex Bug track for quite some time.

On Friday, Keith took Nana, Papa and the boys to the zoo.  They had a great time with their personal tour guides, Kellan and Oliver.

The hippo was swimming around to keep cool on another hot Denver day.

They made it over to the monkey mania and saw some great apes, chimpanzees and gorillas having lunch and swinging around.

SinceIt wasn't there, it is tough to have much commentary.  However, I did hear big stories about the time they spent observing the monkeys.  I often wonder if they are observing the people as much as the people are observing them.

It didn't take long for the boys to recruit Papa to be their personal sherpa.

At home that night, Kellan's birthday gift from Mama and Dada (as he calls us) had arrived.

Low and Behold, a BIG box from Pottery Barn Kids.

What on earth could it be?

It was fun to watch the boys tear into the box and discover the mystery that was inside.

Kellan was thrilled to have big squishy building blocks!

Lucky for him, that was just the beginning.

Dada quickly assembled the blocks into a red casing.

Keith assembled, Papa read the directions and the boys supervised. (While Mama gave hints from the sidelines.  Really, it isn't THAT hard.  We've done it once before)

Ta Da!!!  A personalized Pottery Barn Chair just like his big brother Oliver's.  The big difference is this one is brand new and all for Kellan.  No hand-me-downs this time!

Without hesitation, Oliver asked for his from the playroom.  They quickly got comfortable in their matching chairs.

It didn't take them long to maneuver them into the living room and make a mini-fort out of them.

That night, they enjoyed a show and popcorn in their matching lounge chairs.

We knew that Kellan could use his own chair, but we had NO idea how much he would LOVE it!

Happy Birthday Big Boy!

Saturday was the day of Kellan's party with a few frieds.  In Hamilton Party style, we decked out the house in decorations.  Right now, Kellan LOVES trains, so Thomas the Train was the theme.  I'm not sure that he cares if it's Thomas or not.  If it's a "choo choo", it's a win.

Since Saturday was not only Kellan's 2nd birthday party, but also Mommy's much-older-than-2 birthday party, Keith and I posed for a Happy Birthday picture.

It was nice to have a few moments of relaxation before the party started.  The chairs were such a big hit, that we thought we would try them on for size.

As the guests arrived, they filed into the play room.  Every time we have kids here to visit, we are SO thankful that they have a space to go and have fun.  It was exactly what we had envisioned the first time we saw this big empty room that is not-so-empty anymore.

The Hex Bugs track was a big draw (to the right).

We have learned with having kids and having kids parties, keep things moving fast.  Kids don't want to sit around and chat, catch up, talk about the weather.  No, they want to play, eat, play, open presents.  Move, move, move!  So, that's what we did.

Wa-La Pizza Time!

Kellan enjoyed his pizza thoroughly and wasn't shy to tell his Daddy about it.

All of the kids were excited for the hats.  The pizza was good too, but was it time for cake yet?

For Kellan's 2nd birthday cake we had a Thomas the Train cupcake cake made.  It was a CHOO CHOO hit!!

Instead of approaching Kellan from behind like two days prior, Daddy brought the cake in from the front side of Kellan.

He was a little less stressed and a little more interested in the cake and most importantly, the choo-choo that was parked on top.

We quickly sang Happy Birthday and Keith helped Kellan blow out the candle before he got his little fingers on it.

It was then time to explore the decor.

Kellan ate a bite of the cake and licked a bit of the frosting.

Mmmmm

If this party picture is any indication of how much fun we were having, fun was had by all.

How about this one?

Pizza, Cake and Icing sure does have a crazy effect on the Hamilton Boys.

It must be MMmmmMMMmmmm Good!

The kids all had a great time!  

Our goal was to focus on Kellan, so we invited a few buddies that were close to his age and their siblings.  Luckily for Oliver, most of the siblings are older.

I wanted a group photo, but completely spaced it after the party got started.

Left to Right starting with Oliver:

Oliver, Parker, Jonny, Kellan, Cole, Freddie, Evelyn,  and Owen

Oliver, Parker and Jonny

Birthday Boy Kellan!!

Jonny, Parker and Oliver

We can't forget our littlest party goer, two month old Benjamin.  Nana scooped him up and loved snuggling him most of the party.

Mama and the Birthday Boy, Kellan.

Carrie and baby Benjamin.

Such a sweetie pie with endless smiles.

We debated on opening presents with the kids there.  We have noticed that with the older kids' parties they usually don't open gifts with everyone present.  Well.. the older kids clearly missed it because they petitioned the adults to open presents and then made it happen.  These are leaders and entrepreneurs in the making.  Meanwhile, Kellan is off to the side playing with a balloon.  Give it a year and he'll have it figured out too.

"Hey look, a gift in a bag.  Surely this should come out of the bag."

Kellan was a quick learner when it came to whipping the tissue paper out of the bag and off to the side.

Jen and Craig enjoyed a "date" moment (as they called it).  Parker was busy with the gift process and Nana was enjoying time with Benjamin.  Ahhh!!!  They had a few moments to themselves.

Kellan and Parker enjoyed reading one of Kellan's new books.

Hey look... Thomas the Train!

Nana loved snuggling a sleeping Benjamin.

Our first exposure to Hex Bugs was the Hex Bugs track we got for Parker's 3rd birthday.  Parker returned the favor and got a Hex Bug for Kellan.  It was a big hit!  While Daddy, Oliver, Cole and Parker worked on the Hex Bug track assembly, Kellan was in the background petitioning Stephanie to read him the Thomas book.

Ahh... success!

After the assembly and story were complete, Kellan had a great time sending the Hex Bug down the zip line.

Daddy and the Birthday Boy!

Thank you to everyone who came over to celebrate our baby boy turning the BIG TWO!  We had a great time and Kellan had a birthday to remember.  Well... for those of us who are much older than Two.

Happy Birthday to our sweet boy Kellan.

You have been an absolutely rounded out our family.  You are Oliver's best friend and you think that Oliver is the greatest person on the face of the earth.  It was no accident that Oliver (Ober) was your first word.  You are funny and adorable.  Your laugh is contagious and your smile is heart melting.  You're stubborn and particular, but we expected nothing less.  You are loving and snugly, and some days, we wish we could keep you little forever.  However, we know you will continue to grow and your personality will explode.  We look forward to experiencing life through your eyes in the years to come and to watch you and Oliver grow and blossom into the best buddies and brothers that you are.

Happy Birthday

We Love You Bunches!!