With Our Sidekick and Chris being away on a residential trip this weekend, it was up to me to hold the fort and make sure Jaxon’s second birthday was celebrated well. It was almost like a warm-up for when the boys are away for nearly two weeks!
As normal Jaxon waited for the alarm music and then came in. He stood next to the bed and smiled at me as usual then looked across the bed for Chris and sort of pulled this face like “Well even when Daddy isn’t home at bedtime he’s normally there in the morning”. We had a cuddle then got settled down for some serious YouTube Kids viewing. Well, Jaxon watched Thomas and Friends amongst other things and I watched Gilmore Girls on Netflix. I had it on really quietly along with subtitles! (Yep Thomas and Friends dialogue with Gilmore Girls visuals – definitely takes some skills to complete!
After just chilling for a bit we opened presents. He really wasn’t a fan of smiling for photos today when I was taking them. We started with the presents from his Great Aunts. They are both so good at “present choosing”. He received clothes, a Very Hungry Caterpillar plate and cup set and some other bits. Following breakfast, I dressed him in one of the t-shirts and the shorts following breakfast but he managed to get something down the new shirt before we had even left the house so I had to change him again (and all clothes from today have gone in the wash ready for Birthday Gathering Part 2). Next up, it was time for presents from Nanny and Grandad, three Thomas DVDs, a shape sorter toy and a hobby horse – it plays hoof noises and then the horse neighing – I don’t think Jaxon has seen real life horses up close so I think he was a bit puzzled! Grandma (Chris’s Grandma) had got Jaxon a Thomas and Friends plate.
We were having a pretty chilled morning so had time to play with the building blocks and hang out. I packed our contributions to the birthday picnic and then we popped to the supermarket to get a small bottle of milk so that Mum could have a cup of tea with her lunch if she wanted. We ran an errand to drop some bits off to Our Sidekick and Chris, in the end Our Sidekick came out to the car and having got the bits I was dropping off from me, he was about to head back in when he then went to the back door of the car and lent across the back seat to kiss Jaxon on the forehead and wish him a happy birthday (big heart explody moment!)
We got to the park a little early and as I pulled up it started to rain. Having prayed that it would stop so we could still have park time, I was about to enact the wet weather plan when it stopped raining! (Thank you Jesus!!).
Jaxon and I played in the little park but I realised that the equipment more suited to him was a bit further along, so I got Jaxon back into the car, texted Mum, Dad and Rich that we were changing park and Jaxon burst into tears (and they were proper angry tears!). As much as him crying was stressing me out, by the time we’d got round to the next park, he was perfectly happy again. I think he’d panicked and thought that was the end of park time.
Mum and Dad were next to arrive and Jaxon face just lit up completely. Dad and Jaxon explored the park while Mum and I chatted. Rich arrived pretty much soon after and chatted to Mum and I. Dad took Jaxon on the smaller slide then Jaxon decided he wanted to the bigger slide which meant it was a bit of a team effort. Dad, Jaxon and I headed up the hill, I climbed up onto the platform, then Dad lifted Jaxon up onto the platform. Jaxon then headed for the top of the slide – I was already to ride down with him on my lap but he’d pushed off and was going down as I was getting settled behind him. I decided then it would probably be easier for me to go down the slide than it would be for me to get back up again and climb down the ladder.
Much to the amusement of Richard and Mum who were stood at the bottom with the camera, I got about half a metre down the slide and either my jeans weren’t agreeing with the slide material or my bottom was just too wide but I wasn’t going very fast, I wiggled my way down and in the end, Dad climbed back up part of the hill with Jaxon in his arms and pulled me down the rest of the slide by the leg of my jeans!
We decided it was time to find a sport for our picnic and it was decided we’d sit the other side of some bushes so that Jaxon wouldn’t be distracted by the play park.
Having played with a selfie stick at my birthday party in April, Mum had decided to purchase one so had a play with it and this time I had got the technique a bit better! 
When the picnic had finished, I figured that as I had the car, we’d head over to the toy shop at the Retail Park but Jaxon had other ideas and before we’d even got to the Bypass he was gone. I ended up turning round and coming home, sitting in the front of the car watching TV on my phone having nipped in the house for my crochet project.
Clearly birthdays are exhausting!
On the Sunday which was like Birthday: Part Deux, Jaxon and I started the day by going to church, he went to crèche during the preach and I stayed in the service. The preach was the final part in a series about Psalm 23. Following church, Jaxon and I were going to collect Daddy and Our Sidekick to go to lunch but they were still busy so we went to the park and had a go on the climbing frame. I ended up climbing one of them to help Jaxon up and then ended up helping a little girl down as it was time for her to go home but she couldn’t get down herself.
We collected the gang and we went out for Pizza as it’s one of Jaxon’s favourites.
All in all it was a great birthday with lots of fun times.
Happy Second Birthday Jaxon!!
