Six!

 Sam is now SIX! A few months before his birthday, Sam decided he would like a LEGO party. It went from Star Wars LEGOs, to LEGO Ninjago, to just a regular LEGO party. I had pinned a few cake ideas on Pinterest, and I really wanted to do an R2D2 cake, but then Sam had to change his mind. ;)

Since it was just a regular LEGO party, I made my own birthday invite by building a LEGO wall, and taking this pic with the cute LEGO mini fig. I used Photoshop to add the details, which started with "Break out the LEGO Bricks! Sam __(last name)__ is turning six!" I thought it was clever. :) He actually ended up with 3 different birthday parties: a big family party, an immediate family party on his actual birthday, and then his very first official friend party that Friday. He chose the friends, and had to keep the guest list rather short. The first set of pics are from his big family party.

You know how I love themed food, so we had a build-your-own-burger bar, complete with bacon, avocado, and all of the regular toppings for burgers. It was DELICIOUS! Avocado on hamburgers is my new addiction. And bacon. I really want a burger now...

 Just so you know, LEGO cakes are NOT as easy to make as they seem. This cake was a royal pain in the butt, and I wanted to cry with the end result. I was pretty happy with the tops of the LEGOs though! I thought it would only take me a couple hours to make the cake, and six hours later, it was finally done. I'm fairly certain I could never do this for a living. I'm an incredibly impatient person, and fondant takes A LOT of patience.

LEGO Cake: From scratch yellow cake, Jell-O Pudding Frosting filling (oh.my.deliciousness), almost buttercream frosting, and marshmallow fondant

 Doesn't Sam look kind of creepy in this pic?

I love him, but turning six has made him kind of weird.

You know, more like a boy. 

Boys are weird,

but in a good, silly way.

I still kind of miss the other, non-weird Sam though. :)

I blame school.

 Sam was VERY particular about his presents this year. Weeks before his birthday, he would borrow my cell phone and take pictures of toys in the store as his "wish-list." In this picture, he wasn't happy with the present Grandma had purchased for him. He got a nice little lecture on being grateful after that. He also decided he really did want the cool LEGOs Grandma got him, and later apologized for his reaction. His "gift assignment" to Grandma and Grandpa was actually a $70 LEGO Batman set. Grandma felt kind of bad that he had a mean mom that wouldn't let her buy it for him. Especially since he only wanted it because it came with a Robin. Sometimes, LEGO kind of kills me.

 He was very excited to get a Ninjago DVD from Grandma and Grandpa. I'm thinking it should stay at their house. :) As usual, Sam was spoiled rotten! He received a lot of LEGOs, which is what he wanted the most!

 He also insisted on Hulk hands, which Amanda called dibs on. :) They were on Sam's list, and he was pretty excited to get them!

 "You won't like me when I'm angry!"

 On his actual birthday, my mom and I took Sam to Chuck E Cheese. We went as soon as it opened, and it was actually rather enjoyable! Except for this one bratty girl that kept hogging the game with the highest payout in tickets. I'm pretty sure my mom wanted to take her down. :)

 For his birthday dinner, I let Sam go to McDonald's, which rarely happens. I hate McDonald's with a passion. Sam went through a phase where that was the only place he ever wanted to eat and it has ruined me forever. I felt kind of bad because he was SO excited to go there. Poor kid never gets to eat there! We also did birthday presents from us that night. He got some clothes, a Captain Underpants book, Sensei Woo (LEGO Ninjago) and a couple small toys. He was so funny opening presents. He loves to gush.

The decorations for his friend party.

The centerpieces were mason jars with LEGO Duplos in them. 

I thought they were cute.

The kids got to build their own pizza,

and while they were cooking,

they colored a paper mini fig.

It kept them quiet for a little while! 

Then it was time for presents...

And time for cake...

I had purchased silicone LEGO molds, 

and used it with the Wilton Candy Melts to make little bricks to put on the cupcakes.

The kids thought they were pretty cool.

Birthday Boy :)

We ended the party watching LEGO Ninjago and playing with LEGOs.

I know, maybe it's lame, but the kids really seemed to like it. 

Instead of doing party favor bags with toys that would break after 2 seconds, 

I bought a LEGO Mini Fig for each child. They thought it was pretty cool!

We are so grateful to have Sam in our family! He's silly, sensitive, and super smart. He loves to draw, and is really good at reading and math. He loves to dress up as super heroes, loves his brothers, and tries hard to do what is right. He is very friendly, and is always ready to make new friends. We are constantly amazed by the things his little brain comes up with. 

Now for the birthday interview (P.S. He answered these questions while wearing a green mask and cape. It was kind of hard to take him seriously): 

What is your favorite color? Green

What is your favorite food? Spaghetti

Who is your best friend? Aaron R

What do you like to do at home? Play Wii, play with my action figures

Who is your favorite super hero? Everyone. Even the bad guys.

What is your favorite movie? Um... Marmaduke

What is your favorite book? Encyclopedia Brown

Where is your favorite place to go? McDonald's

What do you like to wear? Um...my Phineas & Ferb shirts

What things make you happy? New toys that my mommy buys

What things make you sad? When my mommy puts me in time out

What do you do when you're mad? Hurt my brother

What is your favorite TV show? LEGO Ninjago

What is your favorite restaurant? Red Robin

Who is your favorite person from the scriptures? Samuel the Lamanite

What is your favorite Primary song? Once There Was a Snowman