Sam's Birthday Celebration

The boy turned 2 today...and what a day it was! We woke up to snow this morning, which Sam loved. At school they got to play in it, and then later Sam furnished a delicious (and healthy) afternoon snack for his classmates. And was he ready to open presents when he got home! But before that, it was dinnertime, Sam's favorite - pizza! Yum.

A train card!

A new digger book!

oooh, what did Papa Craig and Nana Sue get for Sam?

Cake!

Two tries to blow out the candle. Not too shabby!

Sweet, t-ball set! "Get it out?"

Food cutting set? "Get it out?"

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse! Legos! "Get it out?"

New table and chairs! And what's that package?

Knuffle-Bunny TWO!

Ok, this is hilarious. When Sam was ready to open the food cutting toy that he got from Mom and Dad, he went and got an oven mitt. Can we call him Crab Man?

He chop...(with one hand). Sadly he's not choppin' broccoli, or choppin' broccoliii.

The Seattle Aquarium

Sam and Dad spent the morning of Presidents' Day at the Seattle Aquarium. Letting Sam out of his stroller had its good and bad moments...the kid races around and around and keeps finding new things to explore...it's hard to keep up! But when he finally conks out, it is a serious sleep.

It's Octopus Week at the Aquarium, so the octopi (octopuses, octopodes) were the big hit...and Sam loved all there was about the exhibits, including all the fish. We pretty much toured the aquarium three times, and he was finally worn down. But it was lots of fun, and Sam got to choose his own treat because he did so well, a stuffed animal with eight legs. :)

Here are a couple vids from the trip to the aquarium: Number 1, Number 2

A diver fed the fish.

The octopus wasn't moving, so the starfish was more interesting.

At first, Sam was afraid of the tentacles, then warmed to them.

And he even showed them to others.

Part 1: The Jellyfish

Part 2: The Octopus

In the underwater room, Sam ran around to see all the fish.

The model of an orca's dorsal fin got Sam thinking.

How cool is the aquarium? It's got a play area with books!

We paused in the lobby to chill, Sam found the windowsill.

On our final visit to the octopus, it was moving!

Awestruck.

Playhouse Disney and a couple vids

Sam Sings: Video 1, Video 2
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At the end of January, Mom and Dad took Sam to see Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Manny, the Tools, Mr. Lopart, Tigger, and Pooh...whew. He was super excited to see his Disney pals and was super-attentive (We brought his blanket so that he wouldn't talk the whole time). :)

Of course, it was rather corny; of all the characters, only one was not lip-synced. But the actors did a great job and Sam couldn't stop talking about it.

Garsh, the cast of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse sing and dance.

Clapping along.

Hey look, there's Handy Manny!

Sam and Mom wait for the next scene.

After the show, we posed with the glove.