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Leif's 4th Birthday

It feels like Leif just barely turned three--but now he is four!  It feels like he grew up while my back was turned.  He is a light and a joy in our family, living with gusto in the midst of adversity.  Here are the things we did so celebrate him:

1. A few days prior to his birthday, Leif went to primary for the first time!  We sang "Feliz Cumpleanos."

2. He opened presents before his big brothers went to school.  I gave him a book of nursery rhymes, Uncle Brinton sent a ten pound bag of starburst (?!?!?!), and my mom sent giant cardboard bricks.  Carl assembled the bricks, which were used both for building super-tall towers and for pretending to be Block Man from Megaman 11.  

3. I took him to MOPS and when the workers heard it was his birthday, they gave him a gift!  It was a game called Racoon Rumpus, which he and I played later that afternoon.  He won.  The workers at MOPS also taught him about Martin Luther King, Jr, which I thought was an interesting choice for a preschool class.  Leif talked to me about school segregation and assassination for a good hour afterwards.

4. We went to McDonald's for lunch.  The workers gave him a balloon.

5. He got a card from Grandma and Grandpa Duede with a $20 bill!  That was exciting for him; he has lots of big brothers so he knows exactly what money is.  We took it to the grocery store and he bought himself a package of cookies.  When his brothers got home from school, they ate the cookies--along with way too many starburst.  I am still finding wrapper shreds in unlikely places.

6. Leif chose macaroni and cheese for his birthday dinner.  What could be easier? I made the mac and cheese while Carl made his birthday cake.  It was "Carrots are Vegetables Cake" from his new Snoopy cookbook, which he received as a Christmas gift from Nan.  Although it had structural issues, it was very moist and delicious.

7. Scott, Rachel, and Maddy came for cake, bringing more gifts.  Scott and Rachel gave him more games; they also brought books from Nan.  Scott sat on the couch with Leif and read books to him for about half an hour.  Sven was excited about the books as well, which were all at his reading level.


8.  We sang "Happy Birthday" and Leif did his best to blow out the candles.  It took three blows and lots of cheering.  Then we all enjoyed the cake with chocolate ice cream.

9. A few days later, Leif and Sven went to Disney World with Grandma, Grandpa, and Aunt Breezy.  It rolled together a birthday trip with my mom's need to get out of the cold for a week in January.  The boys had a wonderful time and brought home souvenirs that I hate: stuffed animals from Frozen.  Oh well.

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