I took a lot of pictures, so you might want to get comfortable.
Reid asked his father to make waffles for a birthday breakfast to which his father lovingly replied:
"Pfffttt! Whatever!!!"
So I made him cinnamon buns.
Isn't that a heartwarming story?
(Disclaimer: I may have over-exaggerated the events of this story. But if I didn't exaggerate, then I just wouldn't be me)
Here is the twelve year old... All grown up. All mature.
Silly, childish, goofy behaviour is a thing of the past!
Yes, sir... it's all seriousness from here on out.
Birthday cards from Aunty Amy always get a great reaction.
A book from his mother... not so much.
Bucky Balls... cheering him up a bit.
(What are bucky balls, you ask? Well! I'd tell you, but I'm way too lazy)
Just because you are all wise and twelve years old doesn't mean there still aren't many life lessons
to be learned. Like the lesson of how when you get a nerf gun for your birthday and later shoot your
little brother with it point blank, it's going to get confiscated for a reasonable amount of time.
He likes Avengers stuff these days.
(I'm a Coates, therefore I leave price tags on)
See that glint in his eye? That's a little spark of happiness. Mixed with a little crazy.
It's his trademark look.
My kids will never, ever, as long as they live, get sick of Lego.
No, really... it's true. I checked my crystal ball.
Before I show you the next couple of pictures, some background info:
A month or so ago, Reid hunted down and captured a little lizard from our backyard.
He kept this lizard (named Doug of course), in a small, nasty plastic container, all the while
dreaming and hoping to buy a nice big fancy home for his new pet. Then rolled along his
birthday, and a whole lot of birthday money (thanks to the grandparents!) and off we skipped
to the pet store, where he purchased the following for his beloved Doug...
Ooooh.... aaaaah.
I think he likes it.
It's hard to tell though... getting this guy to crack a smile is near impossible!
To celebrate his birthday this year, Reid decided to do a little golfing with his friends (mates, if
you care to speak Australian). Mini golf, that is. But thanks to lack of planning on his parents part,
the golfing won't happen until a week after his birthday (how shocking). So we asked him what
would he like to do on his actual birthDAY, and he requested a BBQ with our friends (mates again,
if you care to speak Australian) the Finches.
My husband is not only a talented gingerbread house maker, but a world renowned burger maker too.
Aren't I a lucky gal???
So he whipped out his burger making hat, and created a mass of these beautiful things...
And they were GOOOOOOD!
Usually Wes and I slave for hours on end creating cakes for
our kids' birthdays. This year we put this much effort into it:
Us: "Hey Reid, you want a Costco cake this year?"
Reid: "Sure."
The End.
Happiness is:
A massive chocolate cake that is going to last you until your next birthday.
(Yep, that is the back of my three-crown-head-Conner. You better believe hairdressers
shake with fear when he walks in for a cut.)
You probably don't know this, but Reid suffers from a rare
disease in which he randomly throws his arms in the air.
(Secretly, I think he's just hoping to get tickled)
We love him regardless.
He's talented. Blowing out candles and doing a gorilla impression
all at the same time.
And on to more important matters... For those who don't know (although I'm pretty sure most of you do) we are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. In our church, when a boy turns twelve, he is able to receive the priesthood... so as you can imagine, Reid was pretty excited, and of course we were very happy and excited for him too...
Here he is before the momentous... uh, moment.
I hate to be all cliche and such... but the time, it sure does fly!
This is my twelve year old, twelve years ago.
Yeah. I made him wear that.
Part of a parent's job is to humiliate their kids after all... and I'd
like to think I'm a good parent.
Happy Birthday Reidster!