Our special day

We had Tommy's birthday party the weekend before his birthday, so on his actual birthday, I decided to take the afternoon off work and spend time with him doing whatever he wanted to. He had preschool in the morning AND we had the snack basket, so he chose to take chocolate graham crackers and bananas as his birthday treat. Nana picked him up from preschool and took him to Brooke's so they could have a little party there with all the baby-sitting kids.  When I got to her house to pick him up, he was stuffing down a cupcake and sporting his birthday crown from school!

Cutest birthday boy EVER!

He had decided he wanted to eat lunch at the mall and then go shopping with his own money (a boy after my own heart!). We headed to Town East and of COURSE we went in the entrance where they rent out those dang strollers. Tommy spotted them immediately and begged for one. And who can tell the birthday boy no?!? And what mom doesn't want to spend FIVE FREAKIN DOLLARS on a STROLLER?!? Ridiculous! But it was his special day, so I choked down my "you don't need it" response and swiped my debit card for that blasted stroller. 

Then we got him a slice of pizza the size of his head.

Then we hit all the stores! I usually buy the kids' clothes without them there, so they don't have a lot of say in what they wear. I've REALLY been trying to let go of that area in my life--being so particular about what they wear and making sure everything's just right. I know I can't control that forever, so I'm trying one baby step at a time! And let me tell you, that boy picked some......interesting stuff. 

He LOVED these camo aviators (and I agree). We bought those and a bright yellow t-shirt with Olaf and Sven on it (which I did NOT love, but smiled and told him it was wonderful). 

Then we went to Sears and found a Spiderman shirt and a Batman zip-up hoodie.

Our "biggest" purchase for the day was me and Nick's present to him. He LOVES tennis shoes, so we decided to buy him a nice new pair of shoes. That was the most hilarious process ever. He was picking out the UGLIEST shoes--high tops and bright colors.

  I gently steered him in a different (more neutral) direction. He had fun shopping all day, but as we were waiting for them to bring out the shoe he decided on so he could try it on, he sat down and sighed and said, "Mooooommmmyyy..........I don't like this place anymore." I about died laughing. 

But when they brought out his shoes, he LIT UP. He was in love. He tried them on and they fit great, so the salesman said he could wear them out of the store after we paid. I wish SO bad I had my video camera going. It was the best moment ever. He was walking with a swagger and he was SO proud of those shoes! I'm all about saving money and buying things used, but seeing him feel so good about his shoes made every penny worth it!!

After we were done shopping, he wanted to get some ice cream. We headed to Braum's and he kept asking for "ice cream in the pointy thing." I was confused until we saw the waffle cones and he said, "Yes! THAT pointy thing is what I want!" He get peppermint and I got cappuccino chunky chocolate. 

When we got done with ice cream, he said, "Mommy, I want to go to Goodwill!" I almost fainted. He is SO my child. So we went to Goodwill and shopped some more. After that, we went and picked up Tessa and headed home. Dad brought home chicken nuggets and french fries from McDonalds and we ended his birthday night by cuddling on the couch and watching Planes.

I had a PERFECT day with my boy and it was so much fun getting one on one time with him. I loved seeing the stuff he picked while we shopped and listening to all his crazy stories. We couldn't have asked for a better day!