Logan's 5th Birthday

That's right...my sweet little handsome baby turned 5 on January 18th. We had a birthday party for him at Chuck E Cheese the Saturday before but since I was running around that day like a mad woman I forgot my camera. Of all days to forget your camera huh! Thankfully my friend Melissa had hers so at least I do have pictures...they are just on her memory card at the moment. So once I get those I'll post about the party.

On Monday, the 18th, we had made big plans to surprise Logan with a full day of birthday fun. Daddy was off of work since it was a holiday and since we are no longer confined to one small town we headed off to Nashville. We took him to the Adventure Science Museum.

This place was packed with hands on learning and fun. We all had a blast. The first thing the boys wanted to check out was the solar system area. There were tons of exhibits that showed how the earth orbited the sun and one large one to show the different sizes of the plants. Just look how small earth is compared to Jupiter!

This little things was just the neatest and we stood there looking up everyone we knew. It was a Google Earth map but you would spin the thing to zoom in and out and then tilt the table to turn east/west/north/south. Our house was too new so we couldn't find our house...but found just about everyone else's except where Aaron grew up! That place was just blank.

After roaming the first floor for a while we headed upstairs and got off the elevator to see two huge dinosaurs and one baby dino. The boys were terrified they were going to be eaten! They are scaredy cats! We were trying to convince them to stand next to them so we could get a picture but they were not having it. There was even this cute little tunnel to crawl in but nope...not having it. So Daddy crawled in to show them everything was ok...not sure he helped much!!!!

Next we checked out our inner workings on the pretend x-rays. The piece would be blank but once you stood behind it different parts would light up. If you look close you can see Logan's eyes in the eye holes...Then on to the respiratory system. There were tons of little areas set up like this. Inside would be different activities to learn about whatever part of the body it was.

Both of my boys are obsessed with emergency vehicles. So they could not contain themselves...especially Logan...when there was a full size ambulance in the middle of the room. They checked out every compartment and then Logan made his way to the drivers seat.This little gadget was pretty neat especially for children who don't understand exactly how are body works. With this they would move the lever up and down or side to side and it would move the bone that way. It was to help them understand how we make our bones move.

This little gadget was pretty neat and I wanted to try it so bad...but all the young kids were in line so I passed so they could have a turn...sometimes it stinks being older!!! Logan and Lane got a try though. Logan was really good at it. He beat a kid that was twice his age. It says that it uses your mind power to move the ball. I'm not sure exactly how that works but Logan put this strap on his head and I told him to think really hard about moving the ball to the other side...and he did! Lane however did not win but he was so excited that he got to try. He felt so big!Lane was the first to find this contraption. He was dancing around like crazy and watching himself on the screen. Once Logan noticed it they danced forever...to no music!!! What we didn't know is that if you walk about to the other side of the screen you can watch all the people doing all kinds of crazy things and they can't see you!!!!

In the middle of this museum is the this large tower...that's loaded with all kinds of things to play on...that goes the full 3 floors of the building and then continues on up. You can climb to the top and see the Nashville skyline. It was super hot at the top but we had to check it out!We headed back down to the first floor to check out a few exhibits that we had missed before. Since Logan is super shy and very reserved it takes him a bit to come out of his shell and really start checking things out. One thing he really wanted to see was the car lift. Here he is trying to lift the car by himself.Just not quiet big enough yet! So with a little help from Daddy and Lane the car was up!!! Now they can say they lifted a car!!!!

After a little more play time we headed out and off to the mall. We walked through the Aquarium restaurant. We had eaten there before when Logan was really little but the boys were fascinated with the "fishees" so the people were nice enough to let us look. There was a huge shark laying on the bottom. He didn't move and I couldn't get a good picture of him. But there was this giant eel that was neon green who was just kind of weird looking. He was just hanging out on a rock and kept opening and closing his mouth like he was yelling at the other fish. I found it funny!We decided to have dinner at the Rainforest Cafe. If you have never eaten there...you should. Not only is the atmosphere amazing the food was wonderful. I had the best Tuscan Chicken ever...it makes my mouth water just thinking about it! We sat right beside the elephants and every few minutes they would make noise and move. There was a thunderstorm with lightening. The place is just beautiful and the boys enjoyed every second. Aaron walked them around to see the monkeys and the water fall. I could eat there everyday and not get tired of it! It is by far my new favorite restaurant! They brought Logan a birthday ice cream and sang to him. He had such a good time. After dinner the boys and I jumped on the little mall train for a ride. They love "chu chus" so we couldn't pass it up. Here they are ready for their ride!The whole purpose of our mall trip was to find Logan the shoes he had been wanting. I had felt awful because those shoes were the only thing he had asked for his birthday but I had looked all over for them and could not find his size. Thankfully we found them on our way out of the mall. Now his shoes can light the way where ever he goes. He loves these things!

Both boys were fast asleep before we even made it out of the mall parking lot. When we got home we asked Logan if he had a good birthday and he smiled so big and said it was the "best birthday ever!"