Birthday Party #2

We had James' family party later that weekend.

More cake, cupcakes, and decorations to be enjoyed.

I can't believe we have a one year old!

James was VERY interested in the candle during his birthday song.  I thought for a second that he might actually blow it out, but he just grabbed for it.

Mom blew it out just in time!

He showed off his cake eating skills at this party. I mean, he really went for it this time around. This kid loves frosting!

More fun opening presents...

All of the kids were very excited when James opened up "chicken Elmo". He of course started dancing right away. So funny!

To my surprise, he never lost interest in opening the packages.

A great celebration for a great little boy!

Backman Family Christmas

Each year the Backmans have a Christmas celebration, and the whole family gathers. We were a bit late this year because the party was after James' birthday party, but James rallied for another get together nonetheless.

By this time he was becoming quite a pro at opening gifts!

Smiles with Grandpa (actually, it's very hard to get everyone to smile and look at the camera at the same time!)

Even more challening is to get James and Adalae together for a photo!

I think the fun is in trying!

Merry Christmas!

Birthday Party #1

We decided to have two birthday parties for James this year. We have so many wonderful friends and family who wanted to share in the celebration, and we thought we'd be able to enjoy each group more if we split it up a bit. Not to mention we wanted to keep the "overwhelm" factor for James to a minimum. So we started with the friends.

We went with a barnyard theme this year. James really enjoys his farm toys and is learning about farm animals, so we thought it was fitting.

We had all the makings for a fun party, including dress up for the man of honor...

Fun farm- themed decorations...

A personal cake for the birthday boy...

And fun farm cupcakes for the party goers...

The best part- our friends to share in the fun!

Sweet little Aubrey!

 Christina and Colton...

Big girl Ginger, who just had a birthday party a few weeks before.

He loved having everyone sing 'Happy Birthday'

James was not shy about enjoying his cake!

After some play time (LOVE that funny face!)...

We opened presents. James was actually VERY interested in this part.

Afterwards, the kids couldn't wait to try out the new toys.

Such a fun time! Very tiring though. Time to cuddle with dad!



Our New Home!

I'm about a month behind on the blog- but for good reason. The last month has been full of new beginnings for the Backman clan.

We have a family now, and that family is growing! We were ready to find our "forever" home, where we would raise James and the future kiddos. So we set out on our search (this was a few years ago, actually). After looking at many, many neighborhoods and even more houses, we decided on Bonney Lake.

But before I get into the details of our new home (which we LOVE, by the way), I wanted to spend a minute remembering our first house.  Matt and I bought this Des Moines house in 2007.  It is small and simple, but I have the best memories of our time there.

We got engaged in this home (December 2007):

And brought Kona home to this house (October 2007):

We got married while living here (July 2008):

And brought James home in December 2009:

Needless to say, this home has sheltered us through many milestones over the past four years. It will always hold a special place in my heart.

I have to admit, though, we are totally loving Bonney Lake. The neighborhood is fantastic- full of young, friendly families with children.  The line at the grocery store is always short. No crowds.  It's quiet.  It's gorgeous.

The view from our master bedroom is definitely one of my favorite features in the new home. I look forward to watching many sunsets from our deck.

We recently got a few inches of snow, which stuck around much longer in Bonney Lake than in surrounding areas. Another fun perk to living in the mountains!

I look forward to making many wonderful memories here.

Welcome home, Backman Family!