Oh, that's right...they turned 13. 6 months ago.

Well....I won't even say it.  If I did, my kids would just call me Captain Obvious if I said ANYTHING about how long it's been since I last posted.  I have confused myself by being so backed up with the blog.  What do I blog now..old stuff, new stuff....really old stuff??  I did decide that I owe my firstborn children an adequate birthday post, seeing as they became teenagers nearly 6 months ago!  I am so lame.....

So, in May, Gregory and Jacob did celebrate their 13th birthday.  And in what has become hardcore Barry style, our lives were so busy that they had to postpone their birthday party by a week or so. 

Tradition number 1)  decorate the birthday child's room after they go to bed the night before their birthday.  This year we went for shiny and inflatable.  We filled their room with 13 pretty big mylar balloons!



Tradition 2) Birthday gifts in the morning.........with the help of brothers and a sister.  They are getting harder to buy for, that's for sure!  I think it was shoes and soft pellet guns this year.  But it was 6  months ago, what do I know (or remember!)?

 (notice the long hair on G! He's been short haired since August, he looks so different!)
Nana and Papa sent them on a scavenger hunt that led them to the a new hamster cage...yes, they found it in their oven... and an IOU to get 2 hamsters after the boys returned from summer camps and family vacation.

 Tradition 3)  Cake and singing!

Now, at age 13, it gets kind of weird trying to figure out birthday parties......do we have one, do we not have one?  We decided that so long as our kids want to have friends over for birthday celebrations, we'll go with it!  So this year, the boys chose a  hang out/camp out in the front yard sleepover party.  I did briefly wonder if we were mental for having 8 teenage boys at the house.  At the same time.  But the boys have good friends, funny friends, chatty friends.......kids we like!

I turned to nail biting when I saw all the boys on the swing set.  A swing set not really made for 4 thirteen year old boys to hang out on.  Thankfully I did not have to call any parents and explain why their child was injured by a falling swing set!

 Don't let the innocent smiles fool you for a second.......because if you do.....

 this happens!! 

Oh those silly boys, makes my heart smile!

 After the soccer/lacrosse/run around like banshees business was done, they got kicked out to the front yard where silliness ensued.  And smearing chocolate on faces and photo bombing.......

 After a breakfast of homemade waffles (I think that's what I made) of which I made a ton and the boys ate way less than I thought they would, they played some XBOX Kinnect games and styled hair.  Oh Alex, such a good sport!  This picture may come in handy in the future!

All the while, Eric got to have some of his own fun hanging out with Ben.....the little brother of one of the boys' friends.  Ben and Eric enjoyed BB guns, fort building and LOTS of DS playing.....

 It was good they got the opportunity to hang out since the Byus family moved to Virginia in June. 

Well, I probably would have been more entertaining and witty had I actually written this post nearly 6 months ago!  But thank goodness it's documented now!  Hey, only about 6 more motnhs to go until they turn 14.