I can’t believe my baby is 3 years old! He has grown from such a sweet little baby to such a special and funny little boy. He is so independent and every day he amazes me with all the stuff he knows and understands. He is sensitive but really funny and just very nice and helpful. He is the honestly the perfect first kid to have and I feel so lucky that he was my first child.

The past couple years we have had some badass, baller birthday parties for the kid. His first birthday was in my mom’s old condo’s multipurpose room and was Star Wars themed. We went all out with the balloons, decorations, snacks, guest list, gifts and even his smash cake was in the shape of the Death Star, made by Jesse’s amazing chef at Pizzeria Gusto, Connie. There were over 30 guests at his birthday party and he got the most amazing gifts, he was incredibly spoiled and it was way over the top. It was truly Pinterest worthy and the best first birthday party ever. I hope we can do something as awesome for Asher.

Last year we did his 2nd birthday party in one of the meeting rooms at the Alt Hotel (where the Merchant Kitchen is situated). It was Cars themed and we also did cute home cooking food. Homemade corn dogs, grilled cheeses, candy and chips. There were less people than at his first birthday party but the turn out was still good. I asked for optional gifts because I had learned from the previous year that it may even be too much to have all those toys. Our house is only so big anyway and Jaxson has everything he could ever want already. I don’t want to waste more plastic when he has so many toys already and a lot of good stuff, I also want to focus on good quality toys that will last all our kids for years to come. He did get some nice big gifts from grandparents and of course from us but that suits me the most, and honestly he was so young that he didn’t even notice the lack of gifts. My mom bought the furniture for his new big boy room which you can find under Jaxson Myers page of this blog.

This year we are did it completely different. All that money we spent on these large parties for him we put into a hotel night at the Canad Inns Pembina, with the water park. We also went tto Flying Squirrel during the day of his birthday and had dinner with some family members at Pony Corral (it’s not fancy but he’s 3 years old and I wanted something close and family style). Jesse ordered a Spiderman cake from Chocolate Zen which is a bakery up the street from us. We ended up going to Flying Squirrel with some friends, checked into the hotel, went for dinner, stayed up late and had snacks and watched movies. The next day we ended up going to the water park before we had to check out. Both Jesse and I bought Jaxson a couple gifts each and honestly the entire day was about fun activities and family time. We also went to dinner at my dad’s place on the 24th for presents, supper and cake with my dads side of the family.

We started the day off of Jaxson’s birthday, the 19th, by giving Jaxson his gifts. For gifts he got Jurassic Park Duplo, the “Prowler” action figure (Into the Spider-Verse), a Spider-Man water gun, Spider-Man Vans (which sadly I am returning because they are too big), a couple graphic T-Shirts and One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish by Doctor Seuss. Something to play with, something to wear and grow into and something to read and expand his ming. I also personally gave him a very special gift which was Amazonite in the shape of a heart. His first ever crystal. I know that boy is going to be intuitive as hell with all that Pisces in his natal chart and he is already so into my tarot cards and crystals. I am starting him quite young but I think he will grow up and appreciate that I helped him utilize his gifts. Anyway Amazonite is a very soothing and calming crystal. It is also good luck and used for delving deeper into your intuitive nature. After opening gifts we went to Party Stuff and picked up his “3” helium balloon.

We went to Crescent Drive Park for a photo op and then to slide down the slides as that is one of Jaxson’s favourite things to do and with a long winter there has definitely been a lack of sliding. Flying Squirrel was so much fun. My good friends Jenn and Brit came with their kids, they’re all around the same age so it was soooo cute watching the kids hop around on the trampolines and try to shoot basketball hoops. On the way home both kids fell asleep in the car. Jaxson basically only had a 20 minute nap the entire day. We checked into the hotel and got everybody settled in. Jesse got us a suite which had 2 bedrooms which is good because we needed the space with 2 kids and also because we wanted to be able to hang out after the kids went to bed. Asher went down for a nap immediately. Jaxson and I played with his balloons and Spider-Man mask. We hung out until it was time to go for supper. We ended up choosing Pony Corral on Pembina because it was very close to the restaurant and not super fancy and a decent family restaurant. Recently Jesse and I have had some negative experiences with this restaurant to this was definitely their chance to redeem themselves. Dinner and the service ended up being great so we were very happy about that! My mom, her partner Jim, my grandma and both my sister in laws, McKenzie and Sheridan and her boyfriend Derek were able to make it for a small family supper. Jesse’s parents are currently in Florida so they were not able to make it so we will be having supper when they return and we had dinner at my dads on the 24th. Jaxson and Asher were both so well behaved, especially Jaxson considering the day he had and no nap. He got a shark water gun from his auntie Sheridan and a Berenstain Bears book from my mom, his grandma. Both my mom and my grandma gave me cheques to put towards his activities, swimming lessons, soccer and gymnastics. Which honestly I appreciate more than anything and I know Jaxson will too. After we ate supper was time for birthday cake. The staff brought out his cake with candles and they even sang happy birthday to him. He looked shy and nervous but once he realized it was Spider-Man his face lit up and it was the quite possibly one of his cutest moments ever. My heart melted. We packed up the kids quickly after because their happiness threshold was fading and we were moving into cranky baby and toddler territory which I think any parent can agree is one of the most annoying things about being a parent of young children. We got back to the hotel and Asher basically went to bed right away. He was out like a light. Even Jaxson was easy to get to sleep that night. He was so tired from a long day. He ended up passing out in our king sized bed with Ash sleeping peacefully in his pack’n’play beside him. It was the first time they ever slept in the same room together and again so cute and heart melting. Jesse and I had a couple drinks and I actually went and played some VLTs in the hotel bar that my friend Jenn works in. It was a very good day. The next morning we woke up and had Aalto’s breakfast buffet, it was not the best and we all agreed that we should have actually ordered breakfast off the menu instead of the buffet. Then we went to the water park. I was really hoping to get Jaxson down the water slide but he was too scared. And I don’t really blame him for that because it was big and completely covered. Jesse went down it and he said it would have been too much. But we swam in the big pool and in the kiddie pool and he enjoyed himself and so did Ash. Jesse and I took turns in the hot tub and then we got out, got ready for the day and checked out. Jaxson’s birthday was officially over. My boy is 3 I can’t even believe it.

We went to my dads place for birthday supper last night and it was really enjoyable. We spent the evening with my Dad, his partner Cori, my brother Travis, his partner Regan, my nephew Cruz, my Uncle John and my cousin Claire. We opened presents and had veggies with dip and crackers and cheese. Jaxson got Toy Story Duplo and wooden blocks by Melissa and Doug from Claire and my Uncle John. He got a Star Wars space ship complete with BB-8 from Travis, Regan and Cruz. He also got multiple new outfits and pyjamas from my Dad and Cori and I think my dad is planning to buy him a bike soon which is very exciting. My dad made chicken cacciatore with polenta, asparagus, carrots, Caesar salad and 2 different types of bread. Also the good wine. My dad is a great cook so everything was very delicious. We had Jeanne’s cake for dessert which is a definite family tradition that is carrying on. We all sang him happy birthday and again was shy at first but once everyone got into it he loved it. Him and Cruz are very close in age (6 months apart) so it was the best seeing them together and interacting. From being little babies to now actually playing, giggling and running around the place. Even letting Ash play with them. They are all so cute together.

Jaxson also passed his swimming lessons! I made an update on his swim progress under my Jaxson Myers page, the link you can find right here https://mommabat.squarespace.com/jaxson-myers. That is a wrap of my boy’s birthday celebrations. Last week was a very busy week and now we get back into our good routine and healthy eating. We love our boy so much and are so proud of the best 3 year old we have ever known. I didn’t know my heart could be so full but he was the one who made it that way for me and I am forever grateful of my beautiful first born son. I can’t wait to see how he grows and evolves this year and what this year will bring for him. We love you so much Jaxson!