Calling all Superheroes! Let's PARTY!

Lukas lives and breathes super-heroes. Like literally. He sometimes goes to sleep wearing a mask, wakes up and puts his cape on, can quote the entire last 10 minutes of the Avengers (the only part he's allowed to watch) and for those that know him well, you know it's not uncommon to see him in his super-hero garb around town. In fact I forget he's in costume and often wonder why so many people smile when we walk by and have even looked over my shoulder when I've heard someone say "look its Captain America!" Really!? Where!? Oh wait, that's my son! Why yes he is, and the cutest one around at that. 

Anywho, as Lukas' 3rd birthday rolled around there was no doubt what kind of party this would be. I was thrilled and even more thrilled when I started searching Pinterest and there's, ummm like 5 million, other moms with super fun ideas throwing superhero parties around the world! Sweet! After much Pinterest-ing, and crafting and what-not, lets let the Super- Hero party unfold! 

First off, the decorations. This was fun. Check out the city scape! Cool, huh? 

These super fun and cute (who knew superheroes could be so cute!?) printables were my favorite. And they are personalized! Cool. Beans. I love matching- color coded personalized parties. In fact color coded anything is awesome. Yes. I loved the decorations for this party. But lets move on to the real fun. 

As the super-hero friends arrived they picked a mask and cape and decorated them with little felt star stickers. Then, out to the training course they went. Dun dun dun. 

After I prepped them that they were indeed real superheroes with their masks and capes, we walked to the beginning of the training course. Jeff did a very enthusiastic demonstration of the course...

                                                             ...and off the superheroes went.

First: The Slide of Terror. 

Second: The Hoop of ummm... Just The Hoop.

 Third: Scale the buildings in one leap!

 Fourth: Walk the Plank! (Don't fall in the hot lava OR it will get yooooooou!!!)

  Fifth: Shimmy thru the Dark Tunnel

Six: The Coaster (this was by far the best obstacle. Ever. Each kid could have done this one like 50 times.)

   And then to finish, to the bounce house to gather all the Heroes. 

Once everyone reached the bounce house I told them how they all WON and are now real superheroes. Which means, if anything were to happen at the party we would need them to SAVE THE DAY! They all politely agreed and eyed the course again hoping for another go around. But much to their wandering eyes did appear, but a bad guy who tossed bombs (crumpled foil) all over!! No! Quickly, I told the Heroes we needed their help and only they could pick up the bombs and get the bad guy! Quickly they picked up the bombs and out came the water balloons for the attack. Yep. They did good. Uncle Dude was a good sport and didn't even seem to mind getting water balloons repeatedly thrown at his face. And Lukas thought he was the coolest Dude. Ever. 

Next up, food. My dad smoked (for 17 hours mind you) some amazing pulled pork for sandwiches, and we had veggies, crackers and dip, Mac 'n Cheese (have you tried the crock pot version? To die for. Seriously. Google it, and make it.), watermelon, grapes, chips and 3-layered jello cups. Yum! 

Oh look, another decoration picture! Haha. Ok I just loved the decorations for this party. 

Once the kids finished eating we got out the Batman piñata. Na Na Na Na... BATMAN! 

Someone got smart and finally made a "pull-string"piñata which is what we invested in. Coming off the piñata you have about 20 strings, and one opens the trap door to open the candy! I've never been a fan of kids whacking to death a regular piñata so lets say this was very exciting. Pulling strings vs Bat-whacking  That's a no brainer. Anyways, the tension was high as we got to the last few strings and out came the candy! My favorite part? Lukas got one and was like "yes! I got one! I'm eating it right now!" When you're 3, it's all about the here and now. He wanted 1. 1 to eat right now. Love that kid.

And then we all gathered up and sang the birthday- hero his birthday song! Lukas started the singing but quickly realized everyone was singing TO HIM and just soaked it all in with a proud little grin and blew out the candle right on que. Look at the excitement in this kid! This face right here is what this party was all about. My son feeling like king of the world for the day. 

Everyone ate cupcakes and cake pops while Lukas opened his presents. Every single present he opened he squealed and quickly said "can I play with it right now!?!" Every single present was also super-hero themed in some way. His friends and family know him well. 












We are so thankful to everyone who joined the fun and made Lukas' 3rd bday party a BLAST! You know who you are, and we appreciate you so much. 


















Gosh I just love birthdays! Tomorrow we celebrate Lukas' true 3rd Birth-day. I can't believe my little baby boy is turning 3! Ugh. I'm starting to see time go too fast which means I'm getting old. Double Ugh. 

Anyways, more to come on the birthday celebrations we will have tomorrow with my favorite little superhero! Hope your day has been SUPER. ( ha. Couldn't help it... Super.) Go enjoy this beautiful summer day and go run thru some grass or jump over... something! Maybe you'll find your inner superhero. hehe. 

San Diego Family Vacaaay!

Oh summer, how I adore you. Sunshine, sand, suntans, memories and the ocean. I'm still smiling and thanking Jesus for blessing our family with the opportunity to take this trip; and of course for the fun memories we made as a little family of 4. Lets just say it was an a.w.e.s.o.m.e. week!  I took seriously over 700 pictures on the trip, so here's a small glimpse into our week. Yep I'm totally one of those moms that's like "pppppicture!!!" My kids will appreciate it someday, I know it. 

We headed down to Phoenix on Fathers day to celebrate with my dad and to cut some time off our travels to Cali. We left bright and early around 4 am for San Diego. We figured we would drive as much as possible while the kids slept. Worked like a charm. We arrived at our first stop, Balboa Park, right around 10am. We rode the trolley around the park (Lukas thought this was amazing!), did some walking around the rose gardens, and rode the kids train and the carousel. 

 A

Addilyn was a bit unsure of the carousel ride, but loved the Rose Gardens! 

Next stop, Mission Beach. I love the beach, I could have spent all week sitting on a towel, sinking my toes in the sand, soaking up the sunshine and watching the waves. But life with 2 little ones, ages 1 and 2, is not that peaceful. I'll save my beach bumming days for another time in life, huh? Anyways, watching my kids just light up at the sight of the ocean and discovering the wonders of the waves and playing in the sand was just awesome.

Lukas was ready right away to jump right in the waves. No holding back for that kid! Addilyn, however, took her time getting used to the water and watching Daddy and Lukas in the waves. In the end, the playing in the sand won over the water. ;)

 After some playing in the sand and waves, and swimming we walked around the boardwalk at Mission Beach, watched the roller coaster, Lukas kept reminding us that one day he will be bigger and can ride that thing, had dinner and headed to the hotel for some much needed sleep. 

Next day, Sea World!! We had been talking to Lukas about "seeing the whales" for like, ever, so you could say he was beyond excited to be at Sea World! The kid never stopped smiling for 8 hours straight!

 We started the day at Sesame Bay where they have fun rides for the kids, a splash zone, a bouncing thing, a super awesome adventure course, and a bunch of other kid-friendly activities.

   

Lukas was set on seeing the whales ASAP but since we had a few hours before the first show, this was a good way to keep him occupied. Addilyn loved the rides, and walking around and climbing thru the fun tunnels. Next stop, the manta rays that everyone got to pet and on to Shamu stadium to wait for the Shamu show. 

Lukas' face was so priceless when Shamu came jumping out of the water for the first time! It was like all he ever dreamed of Sea World being like, came true in that moment. There sure is something amazing about getting to watch your kids experience such things for the first time. Look at that smile!! 

       

Addilyn liked it too, but you know, she's 1, and also loved to watch the birds flying overhead and loved pointing out all the "teeeees" (trees). 



The shows were just amazing and so entertaining! We saw a dolphin show, a sea lion show, a pet show, Elmo and friends, and of course the Madagascar Live show! I must say Jeff and I were just as impressed with the shows as Lukas (and Addilyn was with the birds). 

 

We also saw all the sea creature exhibits and rode the sky tower.

 Somehow our kids made it 8 hours with no meltdowns. I'm still amazed. 
Addilyn of course took several power naps but did SO great overall! She of course had to be sleeping during our family picture, haha, Oh well. 




The kids each got a stuffed Shamu, and back to the hotel we went for showers and baths and the kids were sleeping by 7. 

I think one day I will make an album of just the weird pictures of Lukas making faces and it will be awesome.

Despite the kids sleeping, Jeff and I weren't done at Sea World yet. You see Shamu does a "Rock Show" at 9:30 and, well, you can't miss a whale rocking out, right? So much to our kids dismay, we woke them up and back to Sea World we went. Good thing the hotel was only a few minutes away and good thing they both had smiles when they realized where we were going. Shamu did his rocking thing (and it totally rocked!), Lukas and I got on the mega TV for our sweet dance moves, and we got to watch the nightly fireworks before heading back to the hotel and to bed. 

After sleeping in, we headed off to one of our favorite beaches, Moonlight Beach in Encinitas. I love this beach. Mostly because it's not very busy, it's clean and has a super fun park for the kids to play at. We had a picnic lunch on the beach, buried Lukas and Daddy, made sand castles, played in the waves and played at the park pretty much the whole morning/ early afternoon. (My spacing is about to get really funky- not really sure what happened here, ugh blogger, sometimes you drive me crrraaaaazy!)  










































































We headed home to freshen up, had some dinner and then to La Jolla to see the seals. I've been to La Jolla several times and it still amazes me. It is so beautiful. Check out the view! 



We saw the seals in the cove and the kids chased some seagulls and squirrels around in the grass. 


















And back to our little haven we went. The boys went swimming, and the girls hung out in the room and snacked and read books. 

We were planning on heading to Inflatable World in the morning, but that got delayed a bit when Lukas started feeling sick. Poor thing, he was trying so hard to pretend like he wasn't sick, but when you're 2 you're not very good at pretending such things. We let him rest all morning and then he seemed better so we headed to Inflatable World. I'm sure it wasn't the best parenting move we've ever made- take a sick kid to a place like this... ha. 







Lukas played for about 15 minutes, and was obviously feeling sick again so I got to snuggle him in the shade and observe the fun. On the other hand, Addilyn and Daddy had a ball!! This place was so much fun! They had 20+ giant inflatable slides, obstacle courses, etc to play on and climb in! And the best part, even the adults can play! 







 We carried Lukas through most of it (I'm sure I got buffer after such a feat) and once Addilyn and Daddy had their fun, we headed off to do some shopping and let Lukas relax in the stroller.









This is Lukas' "ICK. I can't believe they drug me here and I feel like I'm going to puke" look. Aw. I just want to pick him up and snuggle that sweet kid!



After dinner we headed back to the hotel early and sweet sick Lukas was sleeping by 6. It was such a bummer that he got sick, but I must say he is the sweetest little sick boy ever. Ah, love him.


Thankfully Lukas woke up feeling almost all the way better and we headed off to my all time favorite place in Southern Cali, Coronado Island, for the last part of our trip. This little place is like a fairy tale, I just love it! Silverstrand beach is just beautiful and it is the perfect place to find the best shells and even sand dollars if you're lucky (we only found broken ones. Poo.).






    Lukas still wasn't quite himself and took a nap on the beach, something he would never had     imagined doing had he been back in full swing! Ha. While in Coronado Island we relaxed on the beautiful glittery beaches, played in the sand, chased some seagulls, had some yummy food and                              

                                                                walked the adorable streets.





 


    

Jeff and I officially decided that one day we want to move to Coronado Island. Someday. You know when we are old and gray and can sit in our little rocking chairs on the front porch and hold hands. And talk about these wonderful days raising these wonderful kids. This place is like a place out of a movie and I just adore it. 




Ah. Again, I am just so thankful for the blessing of being able to take this vacation. It was a blast and we have these memories to hold on to for the rest of our lives! Hope your summer has been bright and beautiful as well, and full of memory-making SMILES!