Recently we ate lunch at Tucanos. Carissa ate the whipped cream off my sundae.

Wes ate nothing.

This afternoon I took the kids to Costco to return an item. We couldn’t leave without ice cream–or, as Wes says, “ISCWEEM!”

Costco sells waffle cones with three scoops of gelato (berry, pistacio, and chocolate chip) for just a buck-fifty. Good price. Good eats.

And aside from me helping lick up a few dribbles down the side and sneaking an occasional bite of cone, Wes ate the ENTIRE thing by himself. All of it.

Here’s proof: Wes finishing off the cone tip.

Later in the day we spent a little time at the water at Riverwoods. Wes LOVED playing in the water. Carissa got really excited and screamed happily as she toddled around, until the water squirted her in the face and then she needed some love from Mom or Dad before going back in.

There’s nothing better than seeing your kids happy.

Yesterday we welcomed home my brother–a.k.a. “Uncle Matt”–from his LDS mission.

We were ready with a sign and everything.

Carissa was the Guardian of Balloons.

We waited anxiously at the bottom of the escalator for several minutes and watched other families welcome home their missionaries. Lots of moms in tears and dads with huge grins. We also saw brand new missionaries in their brand new suits with brand new luggage arriving to head to the MTC in Provo.

Until finally, at last, we saw our missionary descend the escalator and we got to give him our hugs.

Today we celebrated Wesley’s 4th birthday with his first-ever party with friends.

This would also be my first-ever experience planning a birthday party for little kids.

Lesson Learned #1: Simple is best!

When I started planning I was kind of extravagant, but I simplified and things were a lot easier to pull together with less time. Plus, the kids are three, four, and five. They don’t care about extravagant. They just want to play and eat cake.

We held it in our backyard. The kids liked to play, but they wanted a little structure, too. Once the thrill of just playing wore off (about ten minutes) we brought out snacks.

I bought some pointed wooden sticks from a cake supply store and mounted fresh fruit on them, ala Edible Arrangements style, only with less style and for a lot less money.

I included strawberries and grapes stacked in three as well as marshmallows and half-bananas that I dipped in melted chocolate/peanut butter (recipe below).

The pictures above were taken after the fruit had been out a few minutes and already attacked by the kids. I think they especially liked the chocolate-peanut butter marshmallows and bananas.

But Wesley’s favorite was the strawberries. I think he may have eaten them all.

Carissa liked the banana.

When snacks were done we pulled out a pinata. This was a smashing success. And, it was the most orderly I’d seen the kids all hour. They lined up and patiently waited their turn to swing at the ball.

We gave each kid a couple swings, and then after a few rounds we just told them to whack at it. That pinata was industrial strength!

Wes needed a little help to realize he was supposed to be hitting the pinata and not the tree, the clouds, etc.

At last it fell and the kids were on that candy like piranhas.

We had cake and ice cream.

When all was said and done and eaten, guests left with a goody bag because I like to say thanks to everyone who came.

The goody bag included bubbles and a chocolate-peanut butter marshmallow that I made myself.

It was easy.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Dipped Marshmallows (and Bananas)

Melt 1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips and 2 Tbsp. peanut butter in the microwave for about 2-3 minutes at 50% power, stirring now and again. Dip the marshmallow (I used a lollipop stick I got at a cake/candy supply store), top with sprinkles, and put in the fridge to harden. Since I used sticks, I stuck them in a piece of Styrofoam to keep the chocolate looking pretty as it hardened.

You can also do this with banana halves and freeze them for a nice alternative to an ice cream bar.

I actually just read about how you can mash bananas and freeze them and it tastes a lot like ice cream, except better-for-you, and now I can see how that’s true.

Last of all, because every mom deserves a little something, they all got a goody bag, too, with cake bites from my favorite place.

Lesson Learned #2: Birthday parties are best with lots of help! So glad a couple moms stayed to help me out!

And now I am One Who Throws Successful Birthday Parties for Little Kids.

Phew. No more until next year.

We’ve been eating spoons.

And playing by doors.

And exploring water.

And sorting markers.

We’ve had a very important birthday.

After the celebration we tried to snag a photo of me and John. Alone.

But that didn’t last long.

Wes is 3 1/2 (quickly approaching 4), and Carissa is almost 10 months. She has two bottom front teeth and is getting a new tooth on top in front.

Wes likes to help Carissa play–mostly by dumping as many toys in her lap as he can find.

Carissa takes it in stride.

Carissa isn’t crawling yet but getting close. She likes to stand. If your fingers are within reach she’ll grab on and pull herself up. Today we found her standing up in her crib for the first time, clinging to the side.

The Parade of Homes is happening, which is a great excuse to walk through multi-million-dollar homes, admire the finery, and think about how much work it’d be to keep it clean. I start looking forward to Parade of Homes every year in January, so not much can keep me away. But it is a lot more effort to go with two little kids.

This year Wes gets to wear the blue booties.