Birthday fun at Mercury Gymnastics

I finally started getting pictures off our camera, and boy, are there some old events to blog about! We held Joseph's 4th birthday party at Mercury Gymnastics, where he's been taking weekly lessons. He loves going, so we knew it would be a hit. And I loved the simplicity of the party planning - they do most of it for you!

 

We invited a handful of the kids his age from the neighborhood, his best friend from preschool, Mason and Maddie. I was a bit concerned about the little kids and how they would do - I shouldn't have been worried at all!

Maddie and Mason were right in the thick of things, bouncing and running around. I hardly saw Joseph during the hour of play time, as he was constantly running from one thing to the next with his friends.

All of the parents stuck around, too, which was great when the random 4 year old issues popped up.

Jennifer was hoping to play on the equipment and was a bit bummed when she learned that adults couldn't use the trampolines. She found other ways to have fun, though!

After watching Aunt Toots, Joseph wanted to take a turn. He fit a little bit better :)

Then it was Elliot's turn. Somehow he got stuck with the little boys trying to push him, so he spent a lot of time upside down while waiting for them to get enough momentum to move him!

 

Running down the big trampoline and leaping into the foam pit was quickly a favorite activity.

Even Maddie wanted in on the foam pit action. This child has no fear, especially after watching Joseph do what she wants to do!

Our attempts at a group picture didn't work out so well. We never could get all of the kids to sit still for long enough!

After an hour of playing, we headed upstairs to enjoy cupcakes and open presents. Joseph had said he wanted trains and dinosaurs at his party, so I opted to go with cupcakes decorated with a small dinosaur on top. They were a hit!

The birthday boy! I can't believe how old he's getting :)

I love his friends Luke and Scotty attempting to blow the candle out too while sitting next to him!

Mason had no trouble putting a chocolate cupcake away...Just don't even think about trying to take it away from him! Oh, those eyes :)

Just before the party ended, we opened gifts. The staff party helper suggested having each kid sit next to Joseph when he opened their gift, to help with remembering who gave him what and so that kid could see up close. Such a great idea!

I love how genuinely excited he got opening the gifts. Some got a bigger reaction than others, but he was so good at telling each friend thank you and spending a few minutes with them checking the gift out before moving on to the next one.

Such a fun afternoon! I'm so glad his first "real" birthday party went off without a hitch, and that so many of his friends and family could come. Now if we could just slow down time!