Mark's 8th Birthday

The 8 year old!

I feel old. Mark turned 8 last week. I was so excited for his 8th birthday and his baptism, as was Mark. But then it came and I felt really old. I still remember the day Mark was born--the horrible labor, the painful delivery (should have been a c-section like the other boys), missing the fireworks on the 4th, but the incomparable happiness of having our first baby boy and of being a mom! And now he is a big 8 year old.

Mark is definitely the boss of the family. It is a good and a bad thing. Good: he helps me keep tabs on the other two boys. Bad: he is constantly bossing his brothers around. I am so grateful for Mark and his willingness to help. He will do ANYTHING I ask him to do and with a good attitude.

Mark is an amazing athlete. Don't tell him. He really excels in baseball, basketball, and soccer. If he is playing outside, it is sports. He spends hours outside hitting balls over our fence, tossing the ball up and catching it, shooting baskets, and lately he and Dax have been playing tennis on our driveway. His true love is baseball. He would pick to play baseball over anything. Mark gets his sports skills from his dad.

Mark is also a great pianist. I am so proud of the progress he is making. He can already play simple hymns and primary songs. He loves to play and never complains about practicing. Mark is also a great student. His teachers at school and at church love him. He is well behaved and answers all the questions. Mark loves to learn and I hope that he always has that passion. He is interested in almost everything and has a great memory of facts and information. Mark gets the intelligence from me!

Mark will still snuggle up next to me, or give me a hug on a whim. I love my oldest boy and hope that we will always be close!

Mark wanted a sports birthday party which ended up being the simplest birthday party ever. We played a few games for each sport, and luckily Randy mostly ran the games. I took pictures and made lunch. We ate ballpark food: hotdogs, root beer, and strawberries (these are Mark's favorites!). It turned out to be a great birthday party with friends.

The cupcakes I made for the party!

Dax competed very well with these big kids. He took 2nd place in Speed.

We timed the boys running the bases...dad won!

Seth gave up half way around.

We threw footballs into bins.

We played soccer games!

Mark got lots of fun presents!

Speed was the most popular game, so we played it again at the end!

Here are the super stars: back row--Tyler, Mark, Brigham, William
front row: Troy, Dax, Seth, Cael

On the fourth of July, we had our standard BBQ/birthday party for Mark. Some family members come and we enjoy each other's company. Mark wanted all four sports on his birthday cake. I spent a lot of time worrying about what to do, but I eventually came up with a plan involving Mark's favorite sports teams. I was pleased with the way it turned out. After the BBQ we went to watch the Pleasant Grove Fireworks. It was a happy birthday!

My fancy cake! I shouldn't brag, but it's pretty awesome, right?

I also made these beautiful 4th of July strawberries for Dax.

We like to decorate doors for birthdays!

So happy!

Blowing out the candles...I like how Dax and Josh are helping in the background.

Lots of presents.

We got Mark his own set of scriptures.
He has loved having them for church and family scripture study.

All Mark wanted to do was have a baseball game for his birthday...
We do it every year, he told me. I think we did it one other year.
Anyway, he got his wish and had tons of fun!

We are a happy family on the 4th of July!
Happy Birthday Mark!