birthday potion #9!

birthday + friends (cake + experiments)= a whole lot of science fun! ethan's 9th birthday party was a blast! our dining room quickly morphed into a science laboratory, complete with test tubes, flasks, and plenty of scientific books to keep those inquisitive minds sharp.


here's a closer look:


test tubes with "potential energy pellets" for party favors:


colored potions ready for mixing:


every good scientist needs to eat!


gram created another fantastic and delicious cake! love the different sized bubbles!


a mad scientist raided the lab and labeled all the foods...





einstein cookies!


that mad scientist went crazy with the drinks, too!




as the scientists arrived, they created their own atoms with toothpicks and marshmallows.



some just ate marshmallows :)




i loved seeing what everyone created!


um, i guess somebody thought i said "adams".


i really hated to throw away gillian's awesome creation!!


once everybody arrived, dr. daddy began the experiments! it was nice to hand over the party reigns for a change! :) for the first experiment, we used baking soda and vinegar to inflate a balloon. an oldie but goodie!





i did step in every so often to help set up the next experiment. wow, it looks like we're mad at each other!! nope, just really focusing! ha!


the next experiment used milk, dish soap, and food coloring to create awesome swirls!




next came the screaming balloons. a hex nut inside a balloon makes a screeching noise when you spin it around!



did somebody say balloons and noise?!

the last experiment was pretty awesome. adding yeast and dish soap to super strong hydrogen peroxide creates a fountain of foam! it just keeps going and going!









my favorite part of the party was the colored drinks experiment!



these scientists were thirsty!


after the party, amelia told me she didn't get to mix any colors. look at her sad face in the above picture! :(





ethan and mackie were having a serious discussion about color theory.


i'm so thankful for friends like gretchen who love my little ones!


i only caught the tail end of the test tube filling... those kids were fast!


i was intending to snap some pictures of madelyn filling her test tubes with candy when i spied a impish grin in the background. hallie was surely up to no good.


she snuck the flask of lemon heads and was enjoying her secret treat.


who knows how many she had in her mouth!


glad i caught madelyn with her candy!


then it was time for cake! i love this birthday boy!


the obligatory family shot-- hallie is obviously still psyched about her lemonheads!


brian is sporting a little geeky star wars humor!


ethan was blessed to have his grandparents (and 1 of his great-grandmothers) there to celebrate him!




ethan was so excited to open each and every present. so thankful for a thankful kiddo. :)







our party guests took home their funnel, screaming balloon, test tube candy, and this little experiment book.


what a great group of scientists! ethan is blessed with such sweet, sweet friends! (and i love their mamas!) God has truly provided.


most everyone left, and there was still one experiment that we didn't do because we ran out of time. it happened to be the one that dr. daddy was looking forward to the most...so he whipped out the rocket balloons, and the fun continued!






and the fun just kept going and going and going....cake and kool-aid for breakfast the next morning! cue bill cosby... "mom is great! give us the chocolate cake!"






after breakfast, hallie concocted a little experiment of her own... kool-aid and chocolate cake. mmmmmm yummmo.




look. at. that. face.


ok jump in the time machine and fast forward a week or so to ethan's actual birthday, july 2. the sisters were ready to sing to the big 9 year old!




what a big grin from the birthday boy! he really does need to stop this growing up stuff.




i had ethan's presents all set up and ready to go the night before as usual. when i walked by the table the next morning, i noticed caroline's little purse sitting there beside his stack of presents. when i asked her about it, she smiled and told me that she was giving ethan $2 of her money for his birthday. i was so thankful for her willingness to part with her hard-earned chore money! her generosity blessed ethan as well.


a few little things for our history/music/star wars lover... no legos from us this year. it was very very strange, but all lego-appropriated funds went toward something else.



"a 1000 piece photo mosaic puzzle!? are y'all crazy?!" yeah, apparently we are nuts. this puzzle is nothing short of impossible.



and the big surprise was.... definitely a surprise!


a sweet friend at church gifted ethan with a kindle last year when she saw how much he loved to read. well, within 6 months, it was broken. he was devastated. he went several months without one, and i think he had pretty much given up on getting another one. another friend gave us a great deal on his kindle fire, and we hope the case we found does a better job than the last one! i loved surprising ethan with this gift!! he really couldn't believe his eyes!



as much as it breaks my heart to watch ethan grow up before my very eyes, it's such a joy to see him maturing in the Lord. he has a tall order ahead of him as the oldest brother to 3 sisters, and it just blesses me every day to be his momma! his jokes are getting funnier, and he is a huge help to me around the house. he loves doing anything and everything with his daddy, and i hope that never changes. happy birthday, ethan! we love you!!