Peter Turns Four

Monday, May 09, 2011

Peter Turns Four

Pictures taken April 12, 2011

For Peter's birthday, Andrew took the day off work.

He spent the morning with Peter and the three of us went out to lunch.

We intended to take him to Panda Express, which was his main request.

Unfortunately, the location we looked up was actually The Panda Restaurant and not at all what we wanted.

We ran out of time, so we hurried to McDonald's instead.

After eating we dropped Peter off at school and went birthday present shopping.

Ammon got home while Andrew was picking up Peter.

He and I worked to wrap all of Peter's presents before he got there.

I planned to have a big party for Peter's fourth birthday.

Scheduling seemed impossible and told myself I would do it during his Spring Break the next week.

But when he woke up that morning, he was ready for his party.

I called my family in desperation,

hoping we could pull something off while to tide him over while we waited for his "real party" the next week.

With it being such a last minute plan, the attendance was spotty.

My sister was able to drop off her three children.

My mom and grandparents were also able to be there.
My dad was out of town, as was my brother and his kids.

Even Andy had other obligations and couldn't come.

Once Peter and Andrew were back from Peter's school, we loaded the family into the car.

On the way to Peter's party, we planned to have a family dinner at Panda Express

(since it hadn't worked out that morning).

After our dinner, Andrew headed to his meeting and the boys and I went to my mom's house.

Carolyn brought some extra guests.

(Her "pet" beetles.)

We sang happy birthday and ate cake.

After the kids were done eating and playing, we opened presents.

Peter is always so fun to give presents to.

He had mentioned that for his birthday he wanted "sixteen presents".

He didn't get quite that many, but we did opt to go with several small things rather than one big thing.

More than once he opened his present and squealed, "I wanted this!"

After presents the kids spent the rest of the night playing.

They enjoyed jumping on the trampoline while Grandma blew bubbles at them.

It was such a fun day!

I still planned to give him a "real" party.

But days later he was planning his fifth birthday party.

With finals quickly coming, I put his party off again.

And eventually, I decided that he was so happy with the party he had, that I shouldn't rock the boat.

Happy Birthday Peter!

1 comment:

KristaMay 11, 2011 at 8:08 AM
Looks like he had a successful birthday! We are sorry we missed it. Happy Birthday, Peter!
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Family Proclamation

The First Presidency and Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

We, the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator's plan for the eternal destiny of His children.All human beings—male and female—are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose.In the premortal realm, spirit sons and daughters knew and worshiped God as their Eternal Father and accepted His plan by which His children could obtain a physical body and gain earthly experience to progress toward perfection and ultimately realize his or her divine destiny as an heir of eternal life. The divine plan of happiness enables family relationships to be perpetuated beyond the grave. Sacred ordinances and covenants available in holy temples make it possible for individuals to return to the presence of God and for families to be united eternally.The first commandment that God gave to Adam and Eve pertained to their potential for parenthood as husband and wife. We declare that God's commandment for His children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force. We further declare that God has commanded that the sacred powers of procreation are to be employed only between man and woman, lawfully wedded as husband and wife.We declare the means by which mortal life is created to be divinely appointed. We affirm the sanctity of life and of its importance in God's eternal plan.Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children. "Children are an heritage of the Lord" (Psalms 127:3). Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, to teach them to love and serve one another, to observe the commandments of God and to be law-abiding citizens wherever they live. Husbands and wives—mothers and fathers—will be held accountable before God for the discharge of these obligations.The family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners. Disability, death, or other circumstances may necessitate individual adaptation. Extended families should lend support when needed.We warn that individuals who violate covenants of chastity, who abuse spouse or offspring, or who fail to fulfill family responsibilities will one day stand accountable before God. Further, we warn that the disintegration of the family will bring upon individuals, communities, and nations the calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets.We call upon responsible citizens and officers of government everywhere to promote those measures designed to maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society.

This proclamation was read by President Gordon B. Hinckley as part of his message at the General Relief Society Meeting held September 23, 1995, in Salt Lake City, Utah.