Month of May Part 2: Alex's 5th Birthday Party and Fun With Friends and Family!!

And now it's time to party!!!  On May 16, we celebrated Alex's 5th birthday at Launch, the indoor trampoline park by our house.  We decided to celebrate it after his actual birthday because Joseph had that weekend off and could join in on the fun.  We invited Alex's classmates from the Pre-K and Kindergarten room at his school and another family friend to his super fun soiree.  My sister Kristen flew in from California to join in on the celebration and stayed for a few days afterwards to spend some quality time with us.

The Franses family is ready to get this party started!

The boys getting riled up for the party to begin!

Alex had a Batman themed birthday party.  He was so excited about his
Batman birthday cake that Kristen and Pete got him for his birthday.
Thanks so much, Tita and Uncle Pete!!

It had the Bat mobile on the top with a flameless candle (because
the venue didn't allow open flames).

Robin's signal on one of the sides of the cake.

The Bat signal on the other.

It was hard to get a picture of the boys standing still, since they were
on trampolines.  Their heads were pretty sweaty after about 10 minutes
of bouncing. 

Alex's party got the dodgeball court all to themselves for a half hour.
They loved having that area all to themselves.

The parents enjoyed jumping with the kids as well!

Joseph and William bouncing around together.

Time for lunch!  Pizza, nachos, popcorn, cake and ice cream for all!
(No outside food was allowed, and this place didn't have any salads.)

The parents and children chowed down!

Joey the kangaroo came in to say hi to all of the birthday guests.

Alex and William with Joey the Kangaroo.

Time for the big guy to blow out the candles!

Blow out the candle!  (The light bulb, really.)

Woo hoo!!

Joseph and the boys.

After the party, it was time to open presents.

William got his own present to open.

William makes a good clean up crew with all of the wrapping paper.

There he goes!

William and Alex in the bed tent that Kristen set up for them.
Thanks Grandpa and Mama B!  The boys loved it.

The next day, we ventured to the nearest park and showed the boys how to bounce and pass a basketball.

William's turn.

Now it's Alex's turn.

Not too shabby!

Joseph passing the basketball around to the boys.

Afterwards, we went to Castle Island to walk around for a little bit.  It was a beautiful day.

Kristen, Alex, Joseph, and William walking around Castle Island.

The boys loved running around on the grass.

The boys, running up and down the hills of Castle Island.

There they go again!

Joseph and the boys looking out at the ocean.

Time to soak up some sun.

These kiddos are a hoot.

Joseph joined in shortly after.

We were excited to soak up the sun that morning.

Here's William holding up a bully stick so that Oscar
could chew on it.  William is really helpful around the house.

Oh my goodness.  I couldn't believe that it was already time for Alex's 5 year check up!  Where has the time gone?

Alex, getting his hearing checked.

Five year check up statistics:
47 inches tall (98th percentile)
50 lbs (93rd percentile)

We've got a legitimately big boy on our hands!

Here's a cute picture of Oscar as he was taking a break
from a long walk in the grass.  He may be old, but he's still
really cute.  :-)

The next day, Kristen and I took the boys to Quincy Market to walk around.  After that, we headed to the Greenway Carousel so the boys could have a ride.

William riding a squirrel while Kristen held onto him.

There goes big boy Alex on a fox!

Here's Kristen and the boys on their second time around
on the carousel.

Before lunch at the Union Oyster House, we stopped by little Italy so Kristen could get some marzipan, cookies, and a cannoli before her trek back to California.

We stopped by a few small fountains on the way to little Italy.

There's a tiny fountain in the center of this maze.

The boys enjoyed running along the paths.

Kristen decided to jump from path to path.

The boys playing with some bubbles one afternoon.

William was pooped when it was time to pick Alex
up from school.

These boys looooooove popsicles!

One morning I felt like making my own sausage egg sandwiches.  I called them "McFranses" sandwiches and the boys were totally into it.  They thought it was hilarious.

Here's Alex, enjoying a McFranses sandwich:

• 1 whole wheat sandwich thin, toasted
• white cheddar cheese
• 1 fried egg, seasoned with salt, pepper, and garlic powder
• 1 Apple Gate farms breakfast turkey sausage patty

William was into it, too.

The boys, playing around.

On May 24, my friend Sharon suggested that we visit Newburyport to go to their Spring Fest.  We had never been before and were excited to explore a new part of Massachusetts.  It had an outdoor market with live music and local artists that had stands.  It was a quaint town to walk around and had a wonderful walkway along the water.

The boys, playing on a playground while Sharon and
I perused the artist's tents.

Time for food!!

William wanted pepperoni pizza.  All they had were the
large New York style slices, and this kid polished off
a whole slice by himself!  (I held it for him so he wouldn't
get it all over himself.)

Go for it, big guy!

Alex requested crab cakes for lunch that afternoon.

Here's the boys watching some Irish Step Dancers perform.
They were completely mesmerized and Alex wanted
to join them.

Time to walk along the waterfront.

They had a cute pier where you could look out
at the boats and the water.

The boys in Newburyport.

The boys were telling Sharon (on the right) which
boats they would have and which ones she could have.  :-p

When we got home, Alex asked me if he could give
his baby sister a hug.  What a sweetheart!

On May 25, Joseph and I decided to take the boys and dog for a hike in the Blue Hills Reservation.  We packed some water bottles and some light snacks and were on our way.

Joseph and the boys at the beginning of the hike.

Normally, this hike takes me about 30 minutes with the boys.
However, this day, we decided to take a different route...
and that was the wrong decision to make.  We got lost
and it took us about 1 1/2 hours to hike around the mountains
and get back to the car. 
By the end, everyone was pretty grumpy, hungry, and tired.

Another break along the walk.

The boys on one of our morning walks.

I asked the boys where they wanted to go one morning before school.  Alex said that he wanted to go to a zoo.  So, one morning before school, we went to Stone Zoo in Stoneham, MA. 

The boys petting a goat at the zoo.

The kiddos checking out some flamingos.  There
were some baby ones that were gray colored!  Pretty cute.

Alex was looking at the leopard who was taking a nap.
We couldn't believe how close we got!

They got a quick ride on the train before we had to head to school.

The boys had some fun with sidewalk chalk one morning
before school.

I had to take a picture of Alex's doodles.  The funny
thing about this picture is that Joseph (throughout
high school, college, medical school, etc.) has always
doodled the same thing on his papers:  Circle, Square, Triangle.
Always the same and in that order.

I looked at what Alex had doodled that morning, and
laughed out loud.  Clearly, Joseph has influenced
Alex in his drawings.  :-)

Another morning where William was tuckered out
before picking up Alex at school.

On May 29, we had a play date with some of Alex's friends from his school.  We met them at the Newton Centre playground for some playing and a picnic before school began for the kiddos.

Chloe (on the structure), William, Avangeline, and Alex
playing around at the Newton Centre playground.
(Chloe and Avangeline are Alex's school mates.)

The kiddos climbed onto a bouncy structure and
were so cute together.

It was so great to get to know these two darling girls and their mothers throughout the school year.  We had a few play dates together and really hit it off.  We look forward to many more play dates in the future!  Thanks, Jennie and Tammy, for a really great time!!  :-)

Joseph had to work that weekend, so I took the boys to Davis' Farmland for some fun with animals.

Alex petting an adorable rabbit.

Alex and William petting a darling calf.

Alex was doing some bird watching with binoculars.

So was William.  :-)

Alex was not interested in petting this big guy, but
William was into it!  In order to avoid the gooey mess
of his mouth, I just poured the food pellets into his mouth.
He was quite friendly and sweet.

The boys loved petting all of the animals that were
roaming freely around the farmland.

Alex rode a mule that morning.

Great job, big guy!

William rode a pony.

What a little ham!

William, riding a pony.

Time for lunch!

And now for a little bit of ice cream to give the kids
just enough of a sugar buzz to keep them awake
for the hour long car ride home.
(I like them to get a full nap when we get back home,
rather than taking a partial nap in the car.)

Alex shared some of his ice cream with William.

Tractor fun with the William Billiam!

Alex was pretending to be a cashier at a grocery store
while William shopped for food.

Isn't this an adorable general store??

Alex's turn at the tractor.

William moved onto the fire truck to fight some fires.

Our little carpenters.

William ran into this cabin and started making breakfast
for me and Alex.

Alex decided to take a load off while William cooked.

Alex then pretended to be a "Dr. Daddy" and wanted
to listen to his baby sister.  What a sweetheart!

Our doctor chef, hard at work!

Now for some playground fun!

The boys tried their hand at fishing.

William enjoyed the water table.

Alex milked a goat that afternoon!

Alex tested his hand at milking a goat.

Alex brushing the fur of a baby goat.  The baby goats
were so darling.

William's turn to brush the goat's fur.

Alex got in a snuggle with the baby goat.

So did William!

Before we left, we gave a couple of goats the rest of our food pellets.

I tried to take a picture, and this goat decided to start
nibbling on my hair.  As you can see, I was quite surprised.

Back off goat, not you too!

William loved feeding and petting all of the animals.

He had to get a couple more pets in before we left.

That evening, Joseph and I went out for an incredible dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, Menton, in Boston.  We indulged in the tasting menu in celebration of Joseph finishing his residency!!  It was a tough two years for all (especially Joseph, of course), and this was definitely a cause for celebration.  Congratulations darling, on your huge accomplishment, and thank you for keeping us in Boston for a few more years!!  We're so proud of you!

Joseph with his wine pairing, and me with my mocktail.

We had many delicious dishes that evening, but our favorite by far
was the foie gras hot dog with fancy fixings.  It was divine, decadent,
and incredibly delectable.

*Phew*!!  The month of May was full of visitors, adventures, and celebrations.  We had a blast and I started to feel better (thank goodness).
Until next time...


Love and kisses,
Nikki