Birthday Fun!

Lexie got a special birthday package all the way from Okinawa. She couldn't wait to open it.

She got a piano from Aunty Catherine, Uncle David and Max. She carries that keyboard around the house and already knows which songs she likes. She has a special dance for each song.

Lexie loves her chanchanko that Mika picked out especially for her. We're so lucky to have such wonderful friends. We're sad that they won't be moving to Hawaii, but California is pretty close.

For Lexie's birthday, we took her to the Discovery Center, which is a hands-on children's museum. She loves trains, so she liked this little wooden one that was on display.

The first area was learning how your body works. Lexie got to clean giant teeth.

Then she got to go inside the stomach and slide down the intestines.

The next section was called "Imagination" where you can pretend to be community helpers. Lexie's first stop was the bank. She loves magnifying glasses and was looking at the different dollar bills. She got to try out the ATM machine. After you punched in your password, you could withdraw money and it gave out pretend $20 bills.

Lexie got to drive the bus and then she showed us that she can do gymnastics anywhere she goes.

Lexie ponders a career in broadcast journalism.

We stopped at the police station and Lexie enjoyed figuring out where to put each traffic sign.

Learning how to fix a car.

Maybe a career in firefighting is in Lexie's future. She loved sliding down the pole.

Lexie loves going to the market, so she enjoyed one that was just her size. She knew exactly what she wanted and even told me that the tomatoes were for our turtle. She liked playing cashier.

Next stop was the post office. Lexie loves to write and draw so she could have spent the whole day here. She wrote a letter and then she put it in the mailbox. She is just like me and had to double check to make sure that the letter went into the mailbox.

Maybe Lexie will be a judge. She loved pounding that gavel!

She went to the Arctic and got to do some sledding and catch some fish.

Lexie made some brownies and visited the library to rest on their comfy chairs. She met her friend George and read him a story.

Lexie got to visit India. She played some drums and learned how to weave.

Lexie went to Japan and wanted to learn how to use chopsticks. She loved the koi pond.

Lexie's favorite was China. I guess it reminded her a bit of Taiwan. She made noodles and told me she was going to serve me dumplings.

Lexie happens to share her birthday with Dr. Seuss and there were lots of fun crafts for her to do. She made a hat in honor of the Cat in the Hat. She decorated fishes from "One Fish, Two Fish". Lexie and her daddy are definitely Thing 1 and Thing 2!

This was the perfect place to celebrate Lexie's birthday. She got a private ride on the carousel and made giant bubbles. Two of her favorite things!

Lexie loved being able to touch everything and she loved using her imagination. It amazed us at the things she could do. In one area, there were puzzles that you had to put together for different countries to show what kinds of foods they ate. I gave her each piece and she told me what food it was and put it in the correct place. Her spatial recognition is incredible. Even Eric couldn't get all of the pieces to fit.

This is some place that we will definitely visit again, maybe even have her next birthday party here!