Seven years old!

Beau turned SEVEN on July 6th! I didn't buy the candy to decorate his bedroom door in time for him to wake up and find it, so I ran to the store before he woke up and then taped it to the front door so he wouldn't hear me. 

He's such an awesome kid! He really wanted just a few things for his birthday:

*Go to IHOP because they give you ice cream for breakfast. check.

*Open presents! We bought him a bird for his birthday and unfortunately it is still a baby being hand fed by the breeder, so he didn't actually get the bird yet. He did get to see his cage, and he got to go to the store to buy a new toy with his birthday money. But the new cockatiel won't get to come home until August 10th or so.

*Have a jungle cake. check. I'm glad his standards are fairly low...he thought it was awesome and that's all that counts! It was two cakes that had a "vine" between them with a gorilla hanging from it.

Other than that he was open to any sort of adventure. My parents had just brought by three nephews and a niece back from Arizona to stay for a week, so they came along with us on a hike. We went to a new place, not too far away from our house (about 20 minutes), called Carlito Springs. It is my new favorite place! SO beautiful!!

Here is our whole crew! I love how Marianne always dresses in a tutu to go hiking.

Look how lush and green this place was! And how cute my parents are!!

Rus just loves having his picture taken...

Preston, Hayden, and Madison are my sister Amanda's kids. Her oldest son Taylor just graduated from high school and was working that week. 

The springs were really so beautiful and serene! Just look at how happy the birthday boy was!

Madison and Bekah are about 9 months apart, with Madison being older (obviously, right? Bekah is so little!) They really enjoy hanging out together, even if it doesn't happen very often.

Madison was very sweet with Marianne. Marianne asked her, "will you be my best friend?"

Here is a terrible picture of Beau blowing out his candles later that night.

I am so grateful for Beau. He is a kind, thoughtful boy with a wonderful crazy/fun streak. He has the most adorable laugh and a good sense of humor. Sometimes he gets anxious about things because he just wants to be able to understand everything that's going on, and he wants things done a particular way. He's so creative and fun and I love him to pieces! Happy birthday Beau!!