4 Parties for Turning 4

Sorry that this post isn't in chronological order, meaning before the one about Jake's birthday...I'm a little slow.
It just ended up that we celebrated Ethan's birthday 4 times the year he turned 4, coincidence, right? We are so lucky to have so many friends and family that helped us celebrate and Ethan had such a good birthday that he's ready to turn 5. His first party was in Virginia and my parent's house. We went up to celebrate Ivy's 1st birthday on Saturday, and since everyone was together we had a party for Ethan on Sunday. His next party was at his (pre) preschool and he brought cupcakes in for all of his friends. Next up was his actual birthday which was chocked full of fun activities. We went to Chuck E. Cheese's on the morning and picked up a pizza on the way home, had cake, gave him his present ( a big boy bike), and saw Randy off to work. After nap time we went to see Randy at the bowling alley and we bowled a game. Then I took the boys out for pizza on the way home. Yes, pizza for two meals in a row per Ethan's request. I am not complaining. We may have watched Toy Story 3 when we got home. I don't know, I was in a pizza coma. His 4th and final was a Toy Story carnival themed party the next Saturday, and it was awesome. We rented a bouncy house, had face-painting, a clown, a pinata, basketball game, bean bag toss game, pin the tail on the donkey, food, & cake. At one point Christina told me that Ethan was on his 4th plate of popcorn, m&ms, and cookies. It was that kind of party. Here are a handful of pictures from all of the parties. Thanks to everyone who made his birthday special for him.

Jake's Pre-Birthday Update

Jake is an awesome kid. He has a TON of personality, he's vocal, he knows what he wants (sometimes demanding), he's friendly, and he's rough and tough. I have had many people tell me he is such a sweetie and well behaved. I don't know how those people managed to only see him when he's being sweet! As you all know, Jake has many nicknames. The Goodrich family is known

for giving our pets nicknames...I think Milli had somewhere around 15 different names when it was all said and done. Apparently Ethan inherited the nicknaming trait because he is the one accredited with the name "Jakers". In addition to that one Jake has the following names: Jake-a-saurus, Pooper Plum, Jake-a-dactyl, Sugar Beet, Pooperton, and Honey Bee. These are just the ones that he's called most often. I realize that there will come a time when these names are no longer acceptable, but until that time comes they are keepers.
It seems like Jake has grown up in the last two weeks. His vocabulary has grown exponentially, and he now speaks in phrases and sentences. These are his most used sentences:

"No, not this one"

"What did you say?"

"I'll do it/I'll hold it/I'll come"

"Where's Mommy/Ethan/Daddy?"

"Uh oh, Spaghetti-Os"

"Oh no, problem!"

"Bumpy train track"

"My milk/cup/kitty/race car"

"What was that?"

You get the idea. He knows his colors, which honestly, he learned mostly from Ethan. He can count to 5 forward and backward and now tries to sing along to songs in the car. He is doing great at potty training and like Ethan did, spends his time at home without pants. We, and our neighbors, hope to work up to undies very soon.