The One With Parker's 4th!

So today, Monday August 1st is officially Parker's 4th Birthday. I am proud and yet sad all at the same time. 4 sounds so much older than 3. And it makes me know that I am getting old too. ha ha. But seriously, I am almost exactly 20 years older than Parker, so as his age creeps up, it's much easier to count how my age is creeping up too.

So Parker, what can we say about Parker. We went in to be induced at Madison Memorial Hospital in Rexburg on Tuesday July 31st. They started Pitocin at 6am. Parker was born at 3am August 1st. It was a LONG and frankly GRUESOME labor. Parker was posterior (meaning face up) and in all honesty was too big to come out that way. 947 stitches later, we had a beautiful little boy with black eyes (a result of the forceps they had to use to pull him out). Parker was "bald as a billiard ball" until he was 10 months old. He rolled off our couch at 3 days old, started walking at 9 months, and had a FULL set of teeth by the time he was a year old. He has always been WAY too advanced for his age if you ask me.

Parker is almost 40" tall, which means we fudged the numbers a bit in Disneyland, has a huge noggin, his favorite color is blue, he loves Toy Story and Pirates. He still occasionally takes naps, but mostly just gets some quiet time every day. He says please and thank you, has been completely potty trained for awhile with out ever having an accident, loves cars,  and loves his sister.

Now he is the sweetest, and yet toughest little man that a Mommy could ask for. He protects his little sister,

and always wants to play with her. He sneaks into bed with Mom at night to eat chocolate raisins, and he is a good listener. He is very intricately minded, and loves to see how things work. He will take apart an entire toy and put it all back together the right way. He knows right and left, and can tell me how to get home.

Parker wanted a Pirate birthday party. It was a much easier party to decorate for that the last couple have been. It seems pirate stuff is everywhere (thanks to Pirates of the Caribbean) and so Eric and I may have went a bit overboard with decorating.

Vanilla meringue cake with chocolate frosting. The pirate is stenciled out of melting chocolates on wax paper, and then transferred to the cake. First time I have ever tried that one, it was fun . . . I'll probably do it again.

This is part of the house after Daddy got done hanging up all sorts of streamers. He may have gone a "little" crazy, but it was fun, and Parker loved it!

 How could you not love this awesome 4 year old face? He is the funniest boy with the best personality!

 The three little pirates that were running around the whole time, fighting with swords, and yelling YARRR!

 From Mommy and Daddy Parker got some killer pirate clothes (some of them pictured), some killer non-pirate clothes, a bike and a trampoline. He got pirate PJ's, a cool car game, and a pirate helmet from Grandma and Grandpa Lewis. An awesome art set, animal cards, and a book from Great Grandma and Grandpa Lewis. Cool camo sheets that he already has on his bed from Great Grandma and Grandpa Carpender. Pirate shirts, a pirate water bottle, and a train from Aunt Britty and Uncle Jared. Great Grandma and Grandpa Marshall sent down $4 for the 4 year-old and a "hunting" (camo) shirt, that Parker has to wear. Grammy and Papa Marshall sent even cooler pirate clothes and a plasma car, although Preslie seems to think the car is hers and doesn't much care to let Parker use it.