My eight year old

From early this morning it has been rush, rush, rush. Not because of Christmas, though. My boss and I were complaining last week that Christmas was suppose to be about making cookies with your kids and enjoying time with family and how it just wasn't any fun this year. I made a deal with myself right then that I was going to get my 8 page paper done this last weekend and all my posts done for school so that I didn't have to worry about ANY homework the week of Christmas. I was successful and even though today was so rushed, it wasn't because of my homework! It was just work and I can deal with that because now when I come home this week it will be all about my little family. So after work, we had Levi's 8th birthday party. Before it got started, the kids went crazy with the balloons. Here is Chuck encouraging their screams!

Levi's first birthday party in Oklahoma was a Family Home Evening and it was fitting that on his 8th birthday, the year that he would be baptized, that it would land on a Monday. So I started FHE expressing my love for Levi and his kindness to others.
Friday was the boys last day of school for the year and since Levi wouldn't be in school on his birthday to be able to have goodies brought in for him and his class I decided to have a balloon bouquet (6 latex balloons with one mylar weighed down by chocolate kisses) sent in for him. This morning as I'm heading out the door to go to work, Levi asks me if I would bring home 1 balloon......for Spencer, the newest cousin. Typical Levi; he was going to give his balloons away to his cousins tonight.
On the FHE before or after our kid's birthday we always go through their scrapbooks to remember parts of their lives up to this point. It was so funny watching Hyrum pout because there were not pictures of him in there until the second to last page!

I love it when you catch pictures of excitement. Levi and Brigham LOVED the card that Uncle Chuck got for Levi!

Yes....those would be matches on Levi's cake.....

You might be a redneck if.....

As usual, the missionaries helped save the day. As we ran out of time with me being at work and David trying to get a paper done for school, they picked up the cake, dinner, and helped David make the candles (putting candle wax over the tips of the matches in hopes of trying to get them to last longer).

After everyone left, just Levi and I went out for dinner and a birthday treat. I was so emotionaly sappy tonight! Geez! That poor kid couldn't do anything without it just making my heart swell. I really do love that boy so much.