On Thursday (8th) Brady celebrated his sixth birthday. I tease the boys that I have a secret potion that I want them to drink that will stop them from growing and they'll stay their same age forever. Sometimes I think Brady half believes me. He always says he's not going to drink it but then he finally said he would stay the same age but only if he still got the presents. Works for me! But seriously, I do often wish they could just stay this little. Of course, Brady with his non-vegetable eating ways may stay this little for a long time even as he ages!
![]() |
| He got to open one present in the morning. |
Since we wanted Duncan to be part of the birthday festivities, we spent the day at home but they did get to watch a movie...
An American Tail. I have never cared for cartoons but for some reason I specifically remember enjoying that movie as a kid. When I was in sixth grade, the first year I went to "real" school after homeschooling, they showed it in the classroom one day and I thought it was just the neatest thing. I didn't have a TV at home so getting to watch something was a big deal (this was back in the day when saying you didn't have a TV really meant something. Now people say they don't have a TV but watch stuff on their computers, phones, etc). The kids enjoyed it and who doesn't get chocked up hearing "Somewhere Out There?" Such a great song.
Later in the day, it was time for the real excitement. Ever since we did laser tag at Wonderworks a few months ago, that's what Brady has said he wanted to do for his birthday. Unfortunately, the options are somewhat limited for laser tag because some of the places have these really heavy laser guns and Brady (not to mention Colby) can't even hold them for more than a few seconds. There's a really neat place that Calleigh and Aubree went to last year but it just wouldn't work for Brady. I researched it a little and found a place right near by here in Ocoee called "Extreme Laser Tag" that has very light lasers. It worked out perfectly! We even got a Groupon and it was $10 a person for three games. As is our tradition, we kept the group small with just Grandma, Grandpa, and our neighbor friend, Nathan, joining us.
![]() |
| Those are supposed to be laser guns they're pointing...not real guns, of course! |
Oh did we have a fun time! The first round it was all nine of us against a team of 10, mostly made up of teenagers and adults. As you can probably guess, they whooped us...doubling our score. But, we didn't care. The playing area was indoors and it was mostly dark. But everyone's vests blinked so you really didn't have a hard time seeing where you were going. There were a lot of passageways, ramps, and places to hide. I had Colby with me for the first game and it's all I could do to remember that he was with me and I couldn't "run" off. The games last 10 minutes which I think is a good amount of time for a kid. We then had to wait about 20 minutes to play the second time. That time there were only 14 people total so we had to split ourselves up. I think Brady probably "shot" me more than any one else on his team. All in good fun!
![]() |
| I went to the bathroom and this is what you used to keep the door closed. A piece of scotch tape at the top. |
Following that we went to eat at Chuck E. Cheese. I am 41 and have never stepped foot in a Chuck E. Cheese so this was a new adventure. The good news was that on a Thursday night it was very slow. I would NOT want to be there on the weekend. I bought a bunch of "points" and each kid got a card that they could use on any of the games that they wanted. Many of the games spit out tickets and they kids pooled all of theirs together and they seemed to have a lot. When we counted them up, it was 228. Poor Aubree had it in her mind that they were going to get some great prize from having so many tickets. When they went to trade them in and she realized they could basically afford a piece of candy and a tiny plastic top, she was so upset. I felt bad for her but I explained that considering I had spent $30 on points for them to play, they weren't going to give out a bunch of really nice prizes or they would lose money. They do have food at Chuck E. Cheese as well and I will say that the pizza wasn't bad. The count down is on though to see if we all get sick. That's sort of my stereotype of Chuck E. Cheese.
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]() |
| Putting in their tickets to get them counted. |
We didn't get home for cake and presents until after 9:30 pm! But that's what happens when you do things on a weeknight and you want Daddy to be involved. Well worth it, I say!
![]() |
| Dinosaur egg |
![]() |
| A "Fitbit" that dad had picked out. |
![]() |
| I just kept snapping pictures and some are so funny. He was pretty excited about the "Fitbit." |
![]() |
| Another random picture. I have no idea what the problem with Aubree was. |
![]() |
| I think this picture montage really shows his personality really well. Just a happy kid most of the time. |
![]() |
| Nathan's parents, Frank and Lupita, joined us for presents and cake. |
We had a pretty slow week otherwise. On Tuesday we went to go get our annual pictures at JCPenney. I was very pleased with the results. Last year I had made the mistake of stopping at Toys R Us first and Brady was so upset that he didn't get to buy something that his eyes were blood shot in the photos. This year, we went straight to JCPenney. He was a completely different kid. He was all smiley and giggly and begging to go first and then was a total ham which the photographer commented on.
A few other pictures from the week...
![]() |
| Box day! Our main curriculum, My Father's World, came this week. We are studying "Rome to the Reformation." |
![]() |
| Birthday at Sabbath School. |
![]() |
| Some weeks you just don't get a good shot. By the way, that is blue lollipop on Calleigh's lips. She hasn't gone goth. |
![]() |
| Sabbath afternoon hike with Dad and the oldest three. |
![]() |
| Meanwhile, I stayed home with my baby. |
![]() |
| For whatever reason, the dogs were regressing and running upstairs to go to the bathroom. They had broken the gate that was there. I was really fed up. We got back from swimming one evening and this is what Duncan had built. My first thought was, "Can't they get through that?" Duncan was quick to tell me, "No way." |
![]() |
| Guess who was right??? By the way, remember the joke.."You might be a redneck if...." Yup, totally fits here. |
Has this ever happened to you? I went to check up on the kids one night about 1:00 am before I went to bed. I was in the boys room and I thought I heard a sound coming from the bathroom. I go in there and low and behold...the faucet was on! The way I figured it had probably been running for at least four hours. Ugh. Even more frustrating is that everyone else was sleeping so I had to keep my aggravation bottled up inside. Nobody admitted to it the next morning but I'm sure it was Brady since it was his room. Chances are he probably didn't even remember he left it on. I was curious to know how much the bill would go up (AND it was the hot water side to boot) but I just got the bill and fortunately it was lower than the month before. Thank goodness! Just another reason though to check on the kids before you go to bed.
Finally, I was chit chatting (his favorite expression) with Colby this evening while waiting for the others to get back from their hike.
Me:"You are SO cute."
Colby:"Daddy is cute too."
Me: "Yes, he is. What about me? Am I cute?"
Colby: "Well, you aren't too cute now but when you get to heaven, you will be!"
Devastating!
Have a great weekend.
