The SNAC Pack

The SNAC Pack

Monday, August 9, 2021

Our Food Lover Turns 7!

Once again, it's that time of year when Oliver kicks off our birthday season (pretend that I posted this on May 24th and not August 9th...).  This year when I asked him what he wanted his theme to be, he thought for a minute and then replied, "Since I love food more than anything else, I think....cheeseburgers." So cheeseburgers it was! We took in food and party favors during snack time at school on his birthday.  Nick found some cute McDonald's-esque french fry cartons that we repurposed into goodie bags for his friends.  We also handed out cheeseburger and french fry Hot Wheels cars.  This was the perfect favor as 1) Oliver loves Hot Wheels (remember his party last year?), 2) hello - cheeseburgers and french fries, and 3) every Friday the teacher lets the kids take in Hot Wheels and play at the end of the day.  I found some cheeseburger inspired cupcakes online and sent a picture to the girl who has been making our birthday cakes this past year.  Unfortunately, she gave it a trial run and said they didn't turn out too well, so that fun project fell on my shoulders, haha.  I did my best, but in the end, it was a group of 5 and 6 year olds, so all that mattered was that there was a lot of frosting and they tasted yummy.  It was fun to see Oliver at the center of attention in his class and see how loved he is by his friends and teacher.  

After school, we surprised Oliver with a trip to....where else, but....McDonald's! He even got his OWN happy meal this time! We opened gifts at home, the little two took naps, and then we headed to soccer practice in the evening (where his coach and teammates sang happy birthday to him as well).

It has been such a joy to watch Oliver grow and develop this past year.  Though much of the year was spent at home during the pandemic, Oliver really flourished in his schooling, learning to read and write in Portuguese and doing very well with math! Towards the end of 2020, I began English homeschooling with him and Leine Mae and he is doing such a wonderful job now learning to read in a second language.  He's just graduated from the speech therapy he's been doing for the past year and a half via Skype with a therapist in Atlanta.  He's finally seeming to come out of his shell.  Although he's still a shy boy, he has progressed leaps and bounds and it is so exciting to see him in the middle of a group of children, or being the teacher's helper, or being eager to read aloud to his class or during a church service.  We've also really enjoyed watching him play soccer! The past couple months the kids have been going to soccer lessons and Oliver is really flourishing there.  We joke that he is our little athlete and were all proud when he was asked to play in an upcoming all-star tournament in the capital.  

Our little chubs isn't so little anymore...he's stretched and grown into such a big kid and it is such a blessing to be his mommy.

Here is his annual birthday survey:

How old are you?
7

What makes you happy?
"when someone plays with me, snuggling with Mommy, eating food"

What makes you laugh?
"people tickling me, when Carter is always funny"

What is something Mommy always says to you?
"stop doing this"

What is something Daddy always says to you?
"go to your room"

What is your favorite thing to eat?
"cheeseburger, french fries, hot dogs, pizza"

What is your favorite thing to do?
"play on the screen, eat (eat is the best thing)"

What are you really good at?
"riding bikes, doing a star (cartwheel), soccer"

What is your favorite song?
"Oh, How I Love Jesus" 
"I Love Bread"

Who is your best friend?
"Arthur"

What do you and Mommy do together?
"play games, ride bikes, English"

What do you and Daddy do together?
"play zombies (video game), go to school"

Where is your favorite place to go?
"mall and America...and Africa. I love Africa."

What is your favorite book?
"George" (Curious George)

And now for some pictures!
Oh, and I have to brag on my little bud for a minute...while we were at the mall for lunch, we ran into a friend of Nick's.  He found out it was Oliver's birthday and gave him R$100 (that's the equivalent of $20!).  We told Oliver we could go to the toy store to spend it and he ended up getting something for him and Carter to share (a Treasure X) and an L.O.L. doll for Leine Mae.  He can be pretty sweet when he wants to...

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