The next week was truly the highlight of our summer. Gavin’s eighth birthday brought us together with family and loved ones and focused us on the things that are most important in our lives. First for the birthday story:My parents arrived early in the week in anticipation of Gavin’s birthday and baptism.
We were lucky enough to get a perfect afternoon at the beach. Grandpa was only too happy to build sand castles, hang out in the surf and help bury Arwen and Gavin in the sand. We got to introduce Grammy and Grandpa to our favorite beach friends too.
A special tradition when Grandma and Grandpa come is kid dates. Gavin and Arwen love one-on-one time with their grandparents. This time Grammy took Arwen to Chuck E Cheese, and Gavin visited the driving
range with Grandpa.With everything else going on, we decided to double up on Camp Liberty and Gavin’s birthday party. Gavin selected a Corps of Discovery theme, and after learning the basics about Lewis & Clark and Sacagawea the kids designed their own ‘buckskin vests'.
Then they were off on an expedition of their own. Grandpa led them through a series of activities carefully planned by Chad (who was picking his parents up at the airport). They first portaged the kayak, scaled a mountain, and 
navigated a narrow mountain ridge, finally taking refuge at Fort Clatsop (our woodshed) where they discovered their ‘winter provisions’ (goody bags).
The Camp Liberty moms joined us for lunch and the birthday celebration. We were thrilled to have Chad pull up with his parents just in time for a round of 'happy birthday' and the cutting of the Corps of 
Discovery cake.At our family party later in the day Gavin was thrilled to receive an archery set, a model airplane (which he was soon working on with Grandpa), and all the equipment he needed to launch his
Cub Scout career. What a fun birthday!The next day we took both sets of grandparents back to the beach, where more kayaking, sand castle building, and swimming took place.
Dinner afterwards was at a burger joint in nearby Niantic. That night the women folk held a cooking fest in the kitchen in preparation for the REALLY big day.
2 comments:
Elise, that cake is amazing! Did you decorate it yourself?! It looks like a really fun party, and the baptism sounded so nice. Hard to believe we'll be planning one ourselves next year. It seemed so far away when we used to get together in Seattle.
The cake was a community effort - Gavin dreamed up the design, Grandpa built the boat, Chad built the teepees, Grandma figured out how to get the map on the cake, and I tracked down the pearlescent blue sprinkles for the river. It was a fun project!
They really are growing up, aren't they?
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