Happy 3rd Birthday Zach!

Both of our boys have gone through the "dog" phase at about 2-3 years old. Zach is by far more into it though than Eli ever was. Zach will bust out into dog mode at the most random times...for example, in the middle of the store while shopping. And its not just a little innocent act that he does, he goes full on dog. He gets down on all fours, licks, puts everything in his mouth, and even barks..but its no nice cute little bark, its a really loud high pitched bark that you can hear for miles. We've learned that its not something that he should really get in trouble for, being creative and all. So instead we've gone with the "playing along" route. Say like when he wont brush his teeth at night as "Zach" we turn the tables on him and say "come on doggy time to brush your teeth now" and he plops down on all fours and happily crawls to the bathroom barking to brush his teeth. So where the dog mode has its downfalls, we've definately learned how to take advantage of it also. So when the planning for Zachs party came about and we asked him what kind of party he wanted and he said a doggy one...it was just perfect. I want my boys to always remember how fun their birthdays were growing up, so I try to go all out. I make their cake myself every year to go along with the theme, and we try to do everything we can to make the theme just perfect. We had a "hot dog" bbq and had many varieties and toppings, all served in dog dishes. We even had some "dog food" on the tables as guests arrived (cocoa puffs). I was really suprised at how quick all the kids started eating it, it really did look like dog food! But as Jenna quickly corrected me when I asked why she was eating dog food, she said "no, its chocolate silly!". Kids are so smart.

We set up the pool and water table to keep all the kids as cool as we could in the heat.

Zach opening his gift from big brother Eli. He was truly so excited! Eli picked out a dog grow head, like those chia pets kind of, for him all on his own and wrapped it and everything. That night when I tucked Zach into bed I asked him if he loved his doggy party and he said "yeah, and I love my doggy grow head so much!" How sweet is that? Its things like that when Im reminded that just because they fight like mad all the time, doesnt mean they dont love eachother still.

I just love this picture of him blowing out his candles! He looks so stinkin' cute. I cant believe my baby is 3 years old already. I think this officially takes us out of the baby phase? He's become such a fun little boy. He's our calm, caring, cuddly, funny little guy..I mean doggy. Happy Birthday Zach, we love you so much.