The GRAY Gang: You've had a birthday,Shout Hooray!! we promise not to sing to youtoday!

Just as last year, Julia made it very clear that she did not want to be sang to this year. We started her birthday celebration on Saturday afternoon with a BBQ with our neighbors. Cody has Laconia Bike Week this week and has been pretty much non existant in our life. The kids see him in the morning before he leaves and they tell him, "see you tomorrow" when he jumps on his bike."

Julia requested a swimming pool cake with water, fish, a crab, and a #4 candle. Knowing that we weren't going to find a cake to meet her exact requests I made it this year. We were forecasted for rain all day on Saturday, but we lucked out and although the clouds were dark it was a perfect picnic on the front deck.

Since Saturday, Julia's birthday presents have slowly trickled in. Which I must admit has been really nice to just open one at a time. She has really enjoyed each gift this way.

Each year on the kids' birthdays I try to get a few pictures of them, this year Julia wanted this bouquet of fake flowers in her pictures. It was quite funny because she would have them down by her side out of the picture and by the time I snapped the picture they had snuck right in next to her face. I figure, it's her birthday, have some flowers in your picture. These pictures, although they don't capture Julia's animated facial expressions really capture who she is today. She wants her hair straight with "no pretties" and she is wearing her very favorite cinderella outfit that usually is worn three or four times for every other outfit in her closet. Julia's favorite thing to say when it's picture time is, "Daddy has stinky feet" and it usually produces the most real smile.

Julia also looks exhausted in these pictures. We are currently trying to adjust to less naps because this little gem is waking up 3, 4, and sometimes 5 times a night. Not only is she waking up, she is waking me and sometime Elena up and it's getting to the point where we are both low on patience. She loves quiet time and while she is in her room you can hear her singing songs and talking a million miles an hour to her stuffed animals and she usually comes out all dolled up with lipstick and eye shadow.

In my iphone I keep notes on each of my kids. Things I just don't want to forget. Here are the noteworthy days-

Since moving Julia has adjusted well, she still misses her girlfriends from Wisconsin and is a bit bothered she has yet to find one here. She has told me a few times, "I don't have any friends." It breaks my heart, but makes me so grateful that her and Kevin are so close in age because they do play so well together.

5/8- Julia's favorite primary song is, "Book of Mormon Stories" on this night she came upstairs at almost 11 pm, almost three hours after having gotten in bed and says, "Mom, I know all of the words now." The second verse says, "Lamenties met others who were seeking liberties. Her second verse went like this, "Lamenties met others who were speaking through the trees." It was seriously so cute! I wish I could have had her sweet voice and excitement recorded. Cody and I had a good chuckle after she went to climb back in bed.

Speaking of bedtime, every night when we tuck Julia into bed she talks to us for a minute and we kiss her and the second we walk out the door she says in her whiny voice, "But Mooooooom! I just need to tell you one more thing!" and that one more thing turns to ten things and you feel like you can't get a word in cause she is talking so fast so you end up listening for way to long until she runs out of "one more things" and you can finally tuck Kevin in and climb into bed yourself! It's exhausting. But, as I type this I laugh because it's the exact same thing every night. And every night the last request she makes before you finally leave is, "Can we play the skunk game tomorrow?" (Which is Old Maid with a Skunk instead of an old Maid. Thank you to my Mom who brought this game that gets played no less than 75 times a week!)

Julia LOVES to have made up stories told to her and often requests "a story from your mouth!" She laughs with delight at all of the silly things that happens in these stories and often times can repeat them word for word later.

I took Kevin and Julia to the beach here a few weeks ago and they were so disappointed that there were no waves. Julia had no fear of those ginormous waves and is dying to go back to the ocean in Maine.

As I already mentioned, we had Julia's birthday dinner on Saturday. She requested no singing and was not too keen on opening her presents in front of everyone. Kevin and the neighbor boys helped her out and helped ease the everyone-is-looking-at-me nerves.

Julia knew that on Sunday she would get a birthday gift in primary, she was also asked to give the Fourth Article of Faith which she was not excited about. When it came down to it, she promised to do the Article of Faith as long as I'd promise that no one would sing to her. It worked out well for both of us! :)

Today to celebrate Julia's birthday we went to the Children's Museum. After two and a half hours Lacey was falling apart and starving and I had to beg Kevin and Julia to leave with me with a promise to return on another day and we wrapped up our fun with "chicken that you dip in sauce." Which I discovered was Chinese Food. Cody called and is going to be able to come home a bit earlier tonight. One of his dinners, a BBQ, was canceled due to the weather and Julia has asked for biscuits and gravy for dinner.

Julia Ann, I love you to the moon and back. You make my heart overflow with love and stress all at the same time. I love snuggling you and playing the Skunk game with you. I love listening to your made up stories and I love telling you my own. Every night when I climb into bed I pray to Heavenly Father that I'll know how to teach you love, kindness, and respect for others, I also pray that I'll have patience and energy to keep up with your active mind and body.

I love you super tons!

Love, Mom

Some of the highlights of the children's museum today.

Bubbles