Monday, June 9, 2008

Our 1st Anniversary in NZ & Connor's 6th Birthday!

Hello friends, family and interested strangers . . .

The 7th of June, 2008, marked our first anniversary of the date we first arrived in NZ. It was also the day that we decided to celebrate Connor's sixth birthday, which actually falls in the middle of the school/work week on the 11th of June.


In honour of Connor's birthday, we let him select where we would have our Saturday lunch and he chose Speights Ale House; (no, we aren't starting him on booze early, he just likes their strawberry sundaes which come with every kid's meal).


Connor told us months ago that he did not want to have a birthday party with his friends, he just wanted to spend the day with his "family unit" and help mom bake cupcakes. This was a great relief to Eric & I (and our pocket book), since we were afraid he would get his heart set on a big party with inflatable bouncy castles and professional entertainers - like so many of his friends have for their birthdays. Instead, he was just as thrilled to dress up in his Chef's costume and help mom in the kitchen. (We suspect our anti-social personalities must be rubbing off on the boy.)


As you can see much of the chocolate batter and icing ended up in and on "the Chef" before the cupcakes were even baked. Needless to say, the day was pretty much a constant sugar high for the little man, which made calming him down for bed later a bit difficult. But, all in all, he seemed to have a really great weekend.



He loved the gifts that family mailed him, especially his handmade red afghan from Great Grandma - which he has slept with every night since - and the smaller matching one for his "Baby Kitten" (stuffed animal). We have been told that more gifts are on the way, so it will be a nice surprise when he gets to have a "second party" after they arrive.



For those of you anxious to read something from Eric, he promises me he will be posting to the blog in the next few days - so check back again soon!

Love, Linda

PS: A third box from Grandma arrived the day after Connor's actual birthday and the boy was thrilled to find a t-ball set, notebook and magicians costume, along with the all-important "Shells & Cheese"! (Thank you mom.)

Connor immediately tried out his magicians costume. When the rabbit failed to come out of the hat after several variations of the traditional incantation, he looked quizically at the wand and shook it very dramatically. Finally, his frustration got the better of him and he said "Mom, I think my wand needs batteries."

I have encouraged him to look for a book on magic when he goes to the school library today, so maybe that will help. We hope the weekend will be a bit drier, so that we can try out the t-ball set in the backyard. In the meantime, Connor has been using his new notebook to practice his writing, which is really coming along nicely, and has pretty much worn his magician's costume every waking moment he has been home since it arrived.

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