Slam Dunk! It's Caden's 11th Birthday!

I thought it was April... It's April right? Because from the looks of things outside it is not spring. We got another massive storm that hit right when we got back from the cruise. 

We did not let the cold weather deter us from celebrating our favorite son for his 11th birthday. We started out Caden's birthday celebration early by going out for Caden's birthday dinner, and our favorite place lately is Texas Roadhouse. Caden loved his steak, baked potato, rolls. 

They brought out the saddle and sang happy birthday to Caden, and even though he pretended to be embarrassed, he really loved it. 

Caden has had some pretty memorable birthdays over the years, from the start of the covid shutdown to his birthday on the same day as Easter, but this birthday may have been even more memorable because we woke up to so much snow on the ground that they called another "virtual learning day." I only remember school being shut down one day for snow in my entire life and the kids got 3 snow days this year. Can you believe Caden got a snow day on his birthday? He was pretty excited. 

For breakfast Caden requested cinnamon rolls... and Caden is still on his bacon kick from the cruise, so he got bacon too. 

Caden got to open his birthday outfit which was a new Utah Jazz shirt. 

He also got a new Lego chess set and a new basketball

Brynnli got him surprises from around our house. 

Since the kids were home we decided to go to Chick-fil-a for lunch. 

And all through the day the snow just kept coming down. 

Poor little Bella is just so done with the cold and the snow. 

We sang Happy birthday one more time and Caden blew out the candles on his favorite chocolate cake. 

Caden quickly put together his Lego set and he and Tyler played a few rounds of chess. 

Then just a few days later we got to celebrate Caden again at his friend party, which was so easy and so much fun this year. Caden got to invite a few of his closest friends and we went to a Jazz game!! Caden invited Johnny, Jaron, Logan, and Tanner. We had the boys over for pizza, opened presents, and then we headed to the game. 

Our seats were in the nose bleed section, but we still had so much fun. These boys are so fun and such a good group of friends. 

Check this out.. Caden made the jumbo screen!

We were hoping the Jazz would pull off a win because if they won they would qualify for the playoffs, but if they lost their season would be over the next game. Unfortunately they lost and Caden was sad about it, but he still had a great time at the game with his friends.

The following night we told Caden he could choose his favorite dinner so we had chicken wings, baked potatoes, artichokes, and rolls. 

Our celebration of our favorite boy still continued when just a few weeks later we had Caden's family party. 

Check out this awesome cake! 35 is Caden's jersey number. 

We had family over and played the basketball game. Even the great grandparents played. 

Ryan came in 1st, and Camden and Caden were in 2nd and 3rd place. 

Then we came inside and played a kahoot game that Caden created all by himself. It was so much fun because everyone had to answer questions about Caden as fast as they could and the person who got the most right in the fastest time won. Some of the questions were things like: What is Caden's favorite basketball player, what was Caden's job in Biz town, and what is the name of his current basketball team? If you guessed Lauri Markennan, stock manager at US synthetic, and Mayhem, you would have won 1st place. 

Carson came in 1st, Colton came in 2nd, and Makayla got 3rd place. I think the kids' knowledge of technology helped them to win over the older parents. 

Caden opened presents from the family. He got lots of money, gift cards, Legos, and Utah Jazz stuff. 

Then we sang Happy Birthday for the 11th time and Caden blew out his 11 candles. 

Happy Birthday Caden! We love you so much and love the amazing kid you are becoming. We are so proud of how hard you work in school, basketball, and at home. You are always asking if anyone in the family needs help and you are so aware of others feelings. I love how passionate you are when the team you like is winning, and I especially love watching the Jazz games with you, even though you get mad when they lose. I love how hard you work in basketball and how you are the fastest kid on your team. Everyone comments on how you always hustle. You are doing so well in school and always try your best. I am amazed at how much and how fast you read and how your are always asking really thoughtful questions. You are so helpful. loving, and kind at home and the best brother around. We just love you to pieces and can't wait to see what amazing things you will accomplish this year. Happy Birthday Buddy!!

Here are Caden's answers to his birthday interview questions: 

What are some things that you like or are popular today? "Bluey... but I sure don't like Bluey. Steph Curry is a popular basketball player"

What do you like most about yourself right now? "That I am very good at sports and nice "

What do you think your future job will be? " An engineer ".

What are you good at? " Basketball and school "

Do you have a celebrity crush? " Ya, I just don't want to say. "

Who are your friends and what do you like about them? " Johnny because he is pretty sporty, Tanner an Logan because they're really friendly, and Jaron because he also pretty sporty"

Where is your favorite place to eat? " Texas Roadhouse "

What makes you really annoyed? "When we're like at Lagoon on a ride that is like not scary at all and people act like they are scared. "

What makes you feel proud? "When I do really good in a basketball game. "

Which of your nicknames do you like the most and why? " Boy because it's funny"

What is your favorite subject in school?   "Science"

What do you wish you could do that mom and dad won't allow? "Jump on the couch "

What is your favorite thing about Brynnli? "She has a good imagination "

What is your favorite thing about Makayla? "Well, she likes to hang out with me and play xbox, so I like that"

What is your favorite memory with Dad? "When we built the Lego Piano  "

What is your favorite memory with Mom? "Going on Cannibal '" 

What Happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas

Even though our cruise was over, we still had fun filled adventures ahead with our drive back home. We didn't want to drive the entire way home, so we planned to stay in Vegas for one night. Our plan was to let the kids swim, but the weather was colder than normal, which meant the pool was colder than normal. Don't worry, the kids still swam for a few hours. 

We decided to take the kids to the strip so they could see what it's like. We thought they would have fun at the Bellagio and the Coke and M & M Factory. 

We started out at the Bellagio. The kids thought it was pretty cool to see all the flowers and they were amazed by the size of the hotels. 

Caden loved this chocolate fountain. 

Then we watched the fountains, which were so cool!

After that we walked to the coke factory. 

We decided to try the Around the World Coke tasting. They had 16 different kinds of soda from around the world like Peru, Japan, and Italy. 

Let's just say, some of them did not taste very good. 

But others were great. 

Then we walked next door to the M & M Factory. The kids loved taking pictures with all the characters. 

Look at all of those M & M's... yum!!

We walked past a few more hotels, like the New York, New York, but the kids were getting tired from all the walking, so we headed back to our hotel and went to bed. 

The next morning Makayla somehow convinced me we needed to go to Starbucks so she could get the dragon fruit drink. She is not spoiled at all. 

The one thing I have learned over the years is how much I love to travel with our cute little family. Yes, it takes a lot of work to plan (luckily Tyler takes care of most of that), and it takes a lot of work to pack (I take care of most of that). Sometimes I think I'm going to go crazy with all the fighting along the way (the kids take care of most of that), but the chance to see the world and experience new things makes it all worth it. I love our cute family and I love that we are making so many memories together.