After while crocodile....

Whenever we leave Grammie's house, she always says "See ya' later alligator" to the kids and Jake replies with the standard "after while crocodile".  Mia replies with her own version.....had to capture it on video before it turns into a more understandable response because it is just too cute!  Sorry for the bad angle....I was in the front seat, so had to make do ;)

2 wheels....

Jake was in the garage "working" and he came inside to let me know that he had taken the training wheels off of his bike, to which I replied "oh, really". I walked outside and he had in fact taken the bolts off and turned his tricycle into a two-wheeler. He is his Daddy's son! I took him out to the sidewalk and did some of my famous training (yes, I do have a special trick) for about 5 minutes. I stopped to answer a call from Brian and while I was talking, I turned around to see him hop on his bike and zip down the street. To my amazement, he was literally racing up and back with NO hesitation. I was sure proud of my BIG boy, but I think he was more proud of himself ;)

Easter

The kids left carrots and a note for the Easter Bunny.  They had a bunch of fun in the morning hunting for eggs.....and of course, eating jelly beans.  We had a nice dinner at Grammie and Gramps, where they also got to have an egg hunt.....

Eggstravaganza 2011

We attended the Eggstravaganza in Dublin for the 3rd year....it was fun seeing both of the kids run around "hunting" for eggs (last year Mia was just a baby!). The funniest part to me is that she LOVED the Easter bunny. This is a kid who sometimes won't even go to immediate family, yet she climbed right up on his lap and laughed hysterically....she would look up at him, laugh some more, and repeat. She was not thrilled to say goodbye....and even Jake gave him a hug.

The Big 4

Here are some pics of Jake's actual birthday.....I told him we could do whatever he wanted.....and here's what he came up with!

Going to get donuts in his jammies....

Eating pickles (from Mr. Pickles) for lunch

His request for dinner was In and Out Burger....but he wanted to eat it in the car.  Dinner was followed by cupcakes and presents!!  What a great day....can't believe my baby is four!!

Lovin' his new Cars sleeping bag.....he slept inside of it (on top of his bed) for several nights.

Jake is FOUR!!!

It was tons of fun celebrating Jake's 4th birthday.....and oh, did we celebrate! I think there were at least 4 days of it?! Here are some pics from his big party....a skateboard theme (of course) that he chose.

Ready to PARTY!

I had ordered a Tony Hawk video to have playing "in the background" during the party.  I came inside to find this....all the kids, mesmerized by the stunts.....we had to coerce them outside to go and have fun in the bounce house!  Needless to say, the video has been a new favorite.....and as a good friend told me, we're gonna need good insurance if our Jake continues to show this much interest ;) 

Not sure what this discussion was about, but the guys had quite a lot to say about this pinata.

Mia was in quite a mood the whole day and I'm pretty sure this was the only moment we had where she wasn't crying or whining!  Cupcakes = silence!

Jake and one of his best buddies!

Couldn't resist this party prop.....my little skater dude!

He's hard core....

He would not take off his new helmet....he does have a little obsession with protective head gear (which comes in handy, given his interests). He has a collection already, but this one takes the cake. It's even personalized with "DeMichiel" on the back....thank you Pappas family!