Happy 33rd!!

Happy Birthday to our Daddy!

It was so nice to celebrate Daddy's birthday over the weekend.  We love having him home and love celebrating something special.  

The morning began with gifts.  I love that the kids are finally starting to get involved in this process. Helping to think of what Daddy would like, need and want; wrapping the gifts; and even making gifts of their own.  

 Aren't they cute?  Abigail sure does love her dad.  

Dallin was so excited to give his gift to Dad... a handcrafted surf board to take to Hawaii :).  He told John that the board was "waterproof" because the paper was only on the top :).  

 We decided to head to Central Park -- to the Pond.  This location had been on our list for awhile.  We were waiting for the perfect spring day... and today was it.  This lovely pond/little lake was designed for sailing these awesome remote controlled sail boats.  Every Saturday morning, there are boat races and later in the day you can rent a boat to try out too.   All kinds of people design, build and race their boats around the North East.  It is fun to watch them in action in Central Park.  

There is a little building called the boathouse right next to the pond where people can rent space to store their boats.  The kids were lucky enough to go in and see all the amazing boats.  Some of the gentleman were pretty excited to share their love with the kids.  Some let them drive their boats and others even let the try to hold them to see how heavy they are.  

Around 10am the boat races began.  The kids loved watching the boats race back and forth, up and down the pond.  They would run down the pond and back again following the boats.  They were in heaven and they kept up the chasing for over an hour.  I think one of their favorite parts was pushing the start button on the race clock.  

We soon realized that the rental boats would not be coming out until the races were over. So... we headed to the Alice in Wonderland statue to climb and sat and ate lunch while we past the time.  And soon it was our turn.  It took a bit to figure out the boats (they weren't as nice as the others we were able to try out), but soon John and the kids were loving the boat.  It is pretty cool.  The remote only controls the sail and rudder everything else is powered by the wind.  So fun.  

Abigail, Owen and Mom watching the sailboats on the water's edge. 

The pond was designed with a lip, so that children could lay on the tummy's and watch the boats without falling in.  So smart.  

After an eventful and fun day in the sun,

We ordered pizza and enjoyed Dad's favorite birthday cake... ice cream cake :).  

We love you, Dad!  

Abigail says, "I love my Dad because he tries to spend as much time with me as he can."  

Dallin says, "I love that my Dad likes to play with me." 

Connor says, "I love my Dad because he plays with me every night."  

Mom says, "Thank you sweetheart for being you!  So loving, thoughtful and fun. :)   Thank you for loving our children and making our family a priority.  We are best when we are with you."

Happy Birthday!