Decker is EIGHT!!! July

How is it almost a year later and I'm just now posting about Decker turning 8?  I don't think I posted about Kaylie turning 1 either!

Anyhow, it started with Mickey Mouse waffle pancakes and a scoop of ice cream.  Breakfast of Champions!

When asking Decker what kind of a cake he wanted for his birthday, he said he wanted a MONEY cake.  What's a money cake?  I thought about his Great Grandma Wood and how she would put money into the cake.  So I asked Grandpa Bob how she used to clean the money.  I boiled the coins on the stove, washed them in Vinegar a couple of times each.
Then from my online searches for Money Cake ideas I found this one....A bag of money with a licorice rope tie and chocolate coins spilling out the top.

That's a lot of BALLOONS!

Kaylie liked the cake too..but she does not like to have a dirty face.

His favorite part!  Opening presents...

We have a special day coming up.  So he has a new white button up shirt and tie along with his junior FUTURE Missionary tag.

whiffle balls and bat for some fun outdoors activities...

Kaylie got her own special pink baseball too.

and Pokemon Cards for both Decker and Cody!

Then the special day came.  Saturday, July 9th
Decker chose his favorite songs...Scripture Power and the 4th Article of Faith.

It turned out that Decker had to be immersed 3 times before they called it good and that Decker was fully under the water.  So proud of his decision to be baptized and follow Jesus Christ's example.

We even had a surprise visitor.  I invited grandma and grandpa to come up for Decker's baptism months ago and grandma said she'd like to come.  I kept asking her if she had made her travel arrangements yet and as it got closer, I kind of gave up on her coming.  Then on Friday morning, Mike was leaving for work, he noticed a car out in the front.  After further investigation, he went downstairs and found grandma and her baby birds.  He ran upstairs and got me out of bed and told me to come downstairs--BOY was I surprised!  The last time I had talked to mom, she was actually on the road on her way to WA state!  She was afraid I would guess that she was driving to WA, but it never entered my mind.   I got the boys up and they had fun watching grandma feed her baby cockatiels.   Their parents had recently deceased and mom fed them by bottle to keep them alive and thriving.    We let them fly around the basement to stretch their wings.  It startled Kaylie a little bit.  The boys loved it!

 
 We just loved having Grandma up here to visit!

We tried to get a picture of everyone who attended.  2 Reynolds children, Silas and Asher Wheeler, Decker, Lincoln Wyndham, ? and Cody.  Ben and Lincoln came out to support Decker too!

The men who stood in the circle.  Skip Wood, Ben Wyndham, Larry Cook, Bishop Iverson and ?

Joe Galusha got to come too!

Our Handsome boys!

Two Grandmas celebrating this fine young man!

Keppi, the baby Whisperer...

After the baptism, we went to Red Robin for lunch.

 Joe held Kaylie for a bit and then she was done.  ;)

 Decker got a special Birthday Sundae.

 Kaylie liked the balloons.  We took off her dress so she wouldn't stain it with Mac n Cheese.  ;)

 

Brother Davis was so sweet and brought Decker the Scripture Mastery stickers for his new scriptures and a bag full of treats.  Brother Davis carries treats in his coat pocket on Sundays and when you shake his hand a chocolate Reeses treat is left in it.  :)

Sweet Girl...

Grandpa Bob hanging out with Kaylie...

We bought a coconut from the grocery store and Mike drilled a hole through it's shell.  I then siphoned out the coconut milk into a glass.

I think we had the coconut for too long sitting on our counter, because the milk tasted fermented and we threw it away.

Naps are always good!

Grandpa and Mike went and got some stones for this awesome firepit for our backyard.  Mike dug the space to make it level.  It turned out great!  Thank you grandpa Bob for the new addition to our backyard!

 Decker's journal entry when he got baptized.

 Grandma Gamble also brought these pictures that Ilee and Quin drew for her several years ago--probably 2006-7ish.  Quin drew the pic of us swinging on a rope swing and jumping into the river when we floated down the river together.

 Ilee's was a sweet rainbow.

We were given this patio table without an umbrella.  I picked up a broken umbrella on the BUY NOTHING Facebook group I belong to and Grandpa Bob fixed it for us and cleaned up the table and then we had a lovely dinner outside at the table.