nine.

We have a nine year old. That's crazy. And awesome. And crazy. And wonderful. Did I mention it's crazy?!? Nine years old is just, well, it's old. It's closer to tween years than little kid status and I'm shocked at how fast the past 9 years flew by. (insert - every mom feels this way...)

To celebrate Carter's 9th birthday we threw him the best football bash he could have hope for.  Outside. In December. On a cold, rainy day. Yep! 

When he asked for a football party back in September I researched every indoor field I could find but they were all asking around $300/hour to rent the space. And I wasn't about to pay that kind of money. Especially for a huge group of 3rd grade boys who run around outside at recess every day, in shorts, in freezing rain. So, we hoped for the best and planned an outdoor party at a local park!

The good news was we had the place to ourselves! The bad news was it was freezing and wet. Luckily the boys didn't mind and most of them showed up in shorts anyways!

 Matt was the official ref while I stayed under the covered area watching over the pizza and party bags. Ha! (In my defense I did plan the entire thing, ordered the cake, assembled the party favors, ordered the pizza and carpooled boys to and from the party).

 After an hour of football we took a break for a pizza lunch. Thank goodness they are only 8 because I can't imagine how many pizzas I'll be ordering when they are 13! Most boys ate 4-5 slices in about 4 minutes besides devouring handfuls of popcorn and guzzling down water. Whew.

 A huge group of boys who are really the greatest 3rd graders ever. Love this community.

 To show a little bit of the chaos that ensued during the party, just take a closer look at the picture below. Yes, a friends foot about 2.5 inches away from the giant cake meant to feed 25 boys and a few younger siblings. Picture lots of shouting, dancing and a potential foot in cake moment happening! (thank goodness it didn't). And ALL the empty pizza boxes!

 We came home, warmed up and opened his gifts. Such truly generous friends. The next day was his actual birthday so I made homemade strawberry waffles with whip cream and sprinkles before school, his request! I later surprised him at school with pizza for lunch and then we went out for his traditional dinner at Old Spaghetti Factory.

 Having a 9 year old is so great. He challenges me on so many levels every single day but he's also such a great kid. He's still the most curious person I've ever known but also smart, athletic, kind, helpful and loving. 9 is going to be a great year!