Florida Getaway-Happy Birthday, Jonah!!!

Saturday morning was the day of Jonah's party. It was so hard for me to believe that this little boy was turning five. It had only been a few months since I moved to Vidalia that Nicki and Dan found out they were expecting. I was so happy for my friend because I knew how long she had waited to become a Mommy! We were all so thankful that God gave her the desire of her heart :) When Jonah Daniel Glenn made his entrance into the world July 27, 2006, I was there, along with about 30 other people in the hospital. We were all so excited to meet this special little guy! For the next three birthdays, I was the photographer and got to capture such sweet memories from each party. Last year, Nicki's family had already moved to Florida, so it was the first year since Jonah had been born that I didn't get to go to his party or photograph it. I was just a little sad that day :( This year Eli and I were so happy to find out that we were going to be able to attend Jonah's 5th birthday party! I brought my camera with me to take pictures, but I knew I wouldn't be able to take pictures like I used to because I'd be chasing a certain little two year old I know :) Nicki hired a photographer for the day, Karrah Flores, and she captured how much fun the party was for everyone. You can go to Nicki's blog to see more pictures from Jonah's party, but here are a few that I managed to take, along with some from Karrah. 

I mentioned in the last post that Nicki, Dan, and I were up late the night before making decorations for Jonah's party. Nicki didn't have to decorate a huge area because the party was outside, but she did want a focal area for the cake. I have to say we did a pretty good job :)

The PRECIOUS balloon wreath my crafty friend, Nicki, made :)

Everyone said the cake was VERY YUMMY!

The cupcakes and cupcake toppers Nicki and I made.

(She bought the design and we assembled.)

The photographer came about an hour early so she could get some good pictures of the birthday boy and his family. Jonah is probably the most photogenic child I know. He stood there and did exactly what Karrah asked him to do. As a result, all of the pictures that she took turned out SO GREAT!

The birthday boy!

Karrah was AWESOME. 

She really did everything she could to get the best shots possible!

Sweet brothers

Nicki with her two precious boys

Nicki and Micah

Jonah

Eli was such a trooper all day long. He normally naps from about 1:00-3:00, but I knew there was no way he'd take a nap with so much activity going on around him. Jonah's party started at 1:00 and lasted until 4:00. We got there about 11:00 and Eli immediately started playing and having fun. By the time the party actually started, he was a little tired, but wasn't ready to stop. Mrs. Margie, Jonah's Nana, bought him a Lunchable and after eating it, he had a burst of energy. Nicki offered Dan's study to us, but I didn't think Eli would go for that when he knew there were kids right outside playing in the water. I decided to try to make it without a nap and he did great! We definitely opted for an early bedtime that night though ;)

Eli and Jonah

These two boys became fast friends!

Eli didn't smile, but I still LOVE this picture of Nicki and me with our precious boys!

Dan and Nicki

Since Jonah's party was a water slide party, they rented this huge water slide for the kids to play on during the party. This slide was no higher than the slide Eli did at Relay for Life back in June, but it had water coming out of it so it was much slippier. Eli tried his best to climb up the ladder on the back and managed to make it after a little help from Momma and Mr. Dan. I can attest to how hard it was though to climb because both Dan and I fell when we tried to climb it. He only went down the slide two times and this is a picture of his first trip down the slide. He really wasn't a fan of it, so I didn't push the issue. He liked running and playing with all the water toys Nicki had scattered around the church grounds.

Jonah and the rest of the older kids LOVED the slide. If they slid down the slide once, they slid down it a hundred times. They had such a wonderful time playing, sliding, splashing, and laughing. 

Nicki rented the space at the church for the party and it was definitely worth it. There were lots of people who came to celebrate the life of this special little boy. 

After about an hour of playing and splashing it was time to sing "Happy Birthday" and cut the cake. 

After everyone had their fill of birthday cake and cupcakes, all the kids went right back to playing. I love this next picture Karrah was able to capture. This pretty much sums up the entire party...LOTS OF FUN AND LOTS OF SMILES!

When we got back to the Glenn's house, I didn't want Eli falling asleep so I got in the pool with him and Jonah so we could play for a little bit. Eli and Jonah both loved playing with this Spiderman fishing pole. 

After supper, Jonah got to open one of his birthday gifts with some assistance from Eli. Eli is all about birthdays now and loves helping to open gifts. He looks just as excited about the present as Jonah does!

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All in all, it was such a wonderful, busy, memorable day. I'm so glad that Eli and I got to spend it celebrating the birthday of someone so special! Happy 5th Birthday, Jonah!!! We love you!!