Tag: Birthday

Evan’s Seven

Today’s the day! Evan’s seven! We celebrated our boy today with some of his favorites – pizza, cake, and a family board game.

Even though we’d celebrated with family and friends back in November, we made sure to make today special for him, too.

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Evan,

You’ve grown not just in height but in smarts and confidence in this past year.

You’re a great little and big brother, caring for your sisters (and giving them all just enough torture to keep things interesting).

You love playing soccer, being part of the Royal Rangers, and trying your best to be a YouTube kid.

You’re full of the Holy Spirit – singing and dancing to praise music at any chance you get.

You love adventures outdoors with Dad – you’re so good at spotting animals!

May your birthday and the next year be so full of the love and light you bring our way.

Happy Birthday!

xoxo, Mama

A Very Happy Birthday (Party)

Today, we had a very happy birthday party for the Bigs. When you have four kids, four parties are a lot (not just on Mom and Dad’s budget, but also on the guests who get invited). While the Twins are built-in party sharers, we’ve gotten creative with having the Bigs share their days by celebrating both midway between their days – in November. Today was their big day!

We welcomed family and friends into our house and kept it simple this year. Between being busy and trying to lead a debt-free life, simple just made sense. There was no theme, no fancy cake, and not a ton of fussing to get things set up. It just was fun. It felt like I was back to the basics of parties when I was growing up, and frankly felt just right.

Thank you to everyone who came and celebrated Arianna’s 9th and Evan’s 7th birthdays today. We feel so blessed to have had a very happy birthday party and a home full of love and laughs (many that made us laugh ’til we cried!). xoxo

https://www.instagram.com/p/BbXxMP4n097/?taken-by=mrsgregwillis

Our Boy is Six

Evan…

It is your day. Your six day. Six! 

Six years of silly smiles and songs. Six years of guessing games and coloring. Six years of baseball blanket. Six years of those eyes. 

You are a fast learner and are doing awesome at school. You love Ninja Turtles, Star Wars, and Avengers. You love playing soccer and want to be a soccer player when you grow up. You’re fiercely proud of your sisters and are a good helper. 

You have a crazy good love for Jesus and He’s set your soul on fire. You love being part of Rangers and have become good friends with the boys in it, partying with them today even. 

Evan, we hope that you enjoy every day of being six. Keep making us proud, Bubby!

A Thankful Birthday

Today we celebrated The Bigs, a thankful birthday party filled with food, fun, and family. Just the way we like it.

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With an October birthday for Arianna and a December birthday for Evan, we try to go with the middle road and celebrate both in November. While it’s confusing for Evan in December, it’s a nice way to separate his day from the holiday hustle and bustle.

Arianna turned 8 on October 5 and Evan will be 6 on December 17. 

 

It was a day filled with food – the highlight of which was this cake (and cake pops) from Tasty Bakery, an adorable cake shop in Pittsburgh. I totally contemplated running away, just me and the cake because it was so delicious. And the icing was incredible and edible. I’m really blown away by Beverly’s talent.

cake shop pittsburgh

The day was fun, full of laughs (especially comparing Ava to Aunt Wink) and smiles. The kids got some neat gifts and are thankful for their piggy bank builds (because they hope to put it toward a Disney trip with their new suitcases – they’ve been begging since I got home and getting new suitcases upped the ante). Isla made us all giggle with her selfies that kept our family photo from being pinterest perfect but made it this is us perfect.

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And of course, there was family. The glue that holds us together. If you peek in the top left of the photo above, you’ll see the kids four years ago. My, how they’ve grown in front of our eyes. Knowing they’ve grown up with all four of their grandparents, several great aunts and uncles, and uncles and aunts who are so very much part of their lives warms my heart. It’s truly a very thankful birthday, indeed. Thank you to everyone who was part of today being so special. Love you all lots! xoxo

Happy Birthday, Twins!

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Photo: laurierphotography.com

Yup. That’s pretty much how I feel.

Today is the twins’ birthday. It’s been the fastest year ever. Wasn’t I just pregnant with them? I thought so.

Photo: laurierphotography.com
Photo: laurierphotography.com

Both of the girls continue to amaze me every day. We celebrate them today, and look forward to many more milestones.

Photo: laurierphotography.com
Photo: laurierphotography.com

Girls, Mama loves you. xoxo xoxo

Photo: laurierphotography.com
Photo: laurierphotography.com

He is Five

And owning every second of his birthday.

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Photo by Laurie R Photography

Some day you will realize that December birthdays are tough, but today you will relish in your day, filled with love and fun.

Evan, you are turning into quite the big boy. Mama and Daddy are proud of how you love and laugh, smile and play. You are smart and kind. Arianna’s best friend, and the best ever big brother.

Happy 5th Birthday!

The First Time / Five Years

Some ‘lil Burgher is turning five today. Really? Wasn’t it just the other day that we were at Conway Medical Center waiting for bike week accidents to clear out of the OR so she could be born? Surely it was, right?

In five years, ‘lil Miss Arianna has brought so much amazingness to our lives, most importantly love and family. She taught us about love at first sight (with her!), parenting, and raising someone just like me.

Her ‘lil brain is so full, like a sponge (or her favorite animal, the elephant – that never forgets). We don’t blame her, this world is a pretty cool place, especially since she came into it five years ago today.

Love you so much, Arianna!

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