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Magnus' 3rd Birthday Party

Magnus was so excited for his birthday party.  He loves birthday parties, and having one of his own WITH Lightening McQueen decorations was beyond amazing for him.

Magnus blowing out the candles on his Monster Truck cake, before his friends do it for him!

Now time to dismantle the cake and....

...and devour the cake.

Proof I had something healthy to eat, strawberries

After cake, the kids had fun running around the house with balloons.  It is always good to exercise after consuming a lot of calories... :)

 

The boys had fun racing each other on Magnus' new Lightening McQueen race ramp... and Maliah helped a little too.

Keeping with the Lightening McQueen theme, Grandma and Grandpa Newman got Magnus a Lightening McQueen and Tow-Mater hut, which all the kids tried to get into at once... even Dad.

After the party, Magnus enjoyed some time alone with all his new Lightening McQueen gifts.

(This was Magnus' first birthday party not held in our tiny condo in FL.  Ironically we had less guest at this party, but yet more space to have accommodated more people.  Nonetheless, I think a party with multiple toddlers requires more space than an adult party, so the extra space was beneficial.)

Monster Truck Cake

I asked Magnus what type of truck he wanted for his birthday... and he said a Monster Truck.  It wasn't the prettiest Monster Truck cake ever made, but it may have been the quickest one ever made. 

I used a regular-sized bread pan mold for the base, and a min-bread pan for the cab.  I dug out a hole for the truck-bed and lined it with graham crackers.  On top of the red icing a added red sprinkles to 'try to give a metallic look.  I cut aluminum foil to make the windows, and used licorice for the roll bars and bumper.  Next I added the marshmellows on toothpicks for the top floodlights, and yellow peanut M&Ms for the headlights, and threw some extra peanut M&Ms in the bed of the truck for fun.  Then the tires are glazed donuts (which I was going to coat with black icing... but time was running out!).  I sat the truck base on top of a slice of cake that was placed on top of the base cake (a full sheet cake), to give it height and help the tires line-up better.  Then I added crushed graham crackers to the chocolate iced base cake to give the effect of riding over rocks and ruble, and I added a little car under the front wheel for humor (and the 3-yr olds like it!)

Turning Three

The commemorate the prestigious event of Magnus' 3rd year of life, we did a little project. (Magnus always gets excited when I ask him if he wants to do a project... he knows something neat is going to take place.)  We cemented the imprint of Magnus' 3-yr old hand using a step-stone-kit. Magnus helped add the water and hold the tray as we scrapped the cement into the mold.  Then of course he made his hand imprint (he enjoyed covering his hand in Vaseline beforehand to help prevent the cement mixture from sticking to his hand).  He watched patiently as I wrote his name and the date into the cement. And last but not least, he helped sprinkle the glitter on the wet cement, and pushed in colorful rocks to give the stone a pizazzy look!

 

Next we celebrated with some cupcakes (saving the big cake for the birthday party that coming weekend).  And we even let Magnus scoop his own ice cream, which he may have enjoyed more than actually eating the ice cream.

Then for a final celebration, Magnus opened a gift that had arrived on the front porch that very day.  It was a pack of Dr Seuss books from his Aunt Sarah!  AS you can see Magnus was excited, and Mom and Dad have been tongue-tied every night ever since, as Dr Seuss has become a staple in the bedtime books department.

 

Mt Vernon

Mount Vernon was the beloved home of George Washington and his wife Martha, from the time of their marriage in 1759 until George Washington's death in 1799 (served as US president from 1789 to 1797). He worked tirelessly to expand his plantation from 2,000 acres to 8,000 and the mansion house from six rooms to twenty-one.  It is situated along the Potomac River in Northern Virginia, 16 miles south of Washington, D.C. Guests to Mount Vernon can visit the Mansion, more than a dozen original structures, Washington’s Tomb, and nearly 50 acres of his extensive plantation. The estate also includes a working blacksmith shop and the George Washington: Pioneer Farmer site, a 4-acre demonstration farm with a reconstructed slave cabin and 16-sided treading barn. www.mountvernon.org/

On presidents day admission to Mount Vernon is free (normally $15/adult), as such we decided to take advantage of low entry fee.  Luckily the kids get up early (6am), because by the time we arrived at 9am, the parking lots were just filling up and lines were forming.  When we left around 11am, the parking was at such a prime-rate, that a family waited for a good 10-minutes behind our vehicle in the parking lot, while we loaded the kids, their stroller, and other accouterments.  The weather was a bit brisk, but the reasonably priced admission helped make the trip worth it.

Maliah rubbing Washington's nose for good luck!

 Frolicking in the backyard of the Washington's masion, enjoying the views of the Potomac.

                                

Back porch of Washington's mansion

Magnus checking out the Blacksmith's handywork

 Playing in the hay in the 16-sided threading barn....

Hook us up, we are ready to go!