Pajama and birthday fun!

On day 21, Tatum got to wear pajamas to school as well as bring her pillow pet and blanket because it was Polar Express party day!  It started with a viewing of the movie and hot cocoa.  But at the end of the day, the kids had a party with 4 stations of fun.  Here's the frame station.  I guess every party we have, we take their picture and they make one of these frames and at the end of the year, you get a framed picture from each holiday party.  Cute!

There was a beaded candy cane station,...

the edible table where the kids made snowmen out of marshmallows and decorated them with candy,...

and a game station!

Here's Tatum with Katelyn and Nina, making frames.  The kids loved that they got to wear PJs to school!

And school parties are always a blast!

 

Then it was time for the musical book exchange.  Mrs. Kirchmeier really got in the spirit and wore PJs too, the kids loved it. :) 

Around and around go the books,...

until the music stops!

 

Yeah, new books!!!

 

A fun game and a fun party and a great way to end the school year and say good bye to friends.  Tatum said she was sad she had to wait 2 weeks before going to school again.  Oh, if only that enthusiasm for school would last through college. :)

The next morning was day 22 and we drove up to Irvine to celebrate Jenny's birthday.  The kids hung with Grandma while we hit Spaghetti Factory.

 

A happy birthday girl!

And a delicious meal!

 

Then the birthday girl chose to see Christmas lights as our birthday night activity.  We went to two neighborhoods we'd never been too and they were both amazing!  Look at these light balls!

There's huge trees lining the streets and each tree has lighted balls hanging in the them.  So beautiful!

 

And Garrett was enjoying Sadri's vapor.  I guess vaping is just flavored liquid that you smoke but there's no nicotine.  The use-to-be smoker enjoyed remembering the days. :)

   

Some of the houses were so done up, we had to all take a picture in front of this one.

Awww, the girls.  I can't believe we've been together since grade school.  The boys tease and say we share a brain but we definitely share each others hearts. :)

 

Merry Christmas!

 

We even got to sit on Santa's lap and in his sleigh!

Where's Joy?!

The whole night, we were pretty impressed with those hanging ball lights.  And then we found a place that was selling them!

We got a look up close and now we're prepared to create our own next year.  We'll have to drink a lot of wine or beer out of these small plastic cups while we construct our light balls, but we're willing to take the challenge. :)

We ended the night walking by this display of nutcrackers.  The kids love nutcrackers since Grandma has a display at her house and has let them crack nuts with them before.  Can you believe this display?!  That's a lot of big nutcrackers! What a fun birthday night with our birthday girl and friends.