Posts Tagged ‘birthdays’

Chase LOVES himself some Thomas The Tank Engine. I mean loves.Up until Friday, when I gave him his birthday present early, he hadn’t had any actual trains and only knew about them from the show. He knows ALL of their names and exactly which story goes with what train, and can tell you all about their stories. He is serious about this train thing. For realz.

Cue my mother.

It is no secret that I don’t enjoy her company. I really try to get along with her, but she is just not someone I can spend time with. I wanted her to be able to spend some time with Chase on his birthday (yesterday) so we made plans for her and my Dad to come over at 11am and have lunch with us. She asked him what she should get him. I told her, “Get James, Emily, and Gordon.” Being as that a certain big name toy store was having a “buy 2 get one free” sale on Thomas engines…I figured this was the cheapest…and easiest way to go. She wrote down the names and said she would get them. I should have known it was too easy.

At noon yesterday my parent arrive at my house. My mother immediately begins complaining about the fact that Jimmy is on his way up for his nap. I attempt to calmly tell her that I had asked them to come at 11 so that they could see him before his nap. That doesn’t work, so I drop the subject, put Jimmy up for his nap and do my best to ignore her complaining.

Chase and my Dad are very happily playing on the floor, which I was SO happy to see. My Dad has been so sick recently…I wasn’t sure if he would ever be able to do that again, but he was. My Mom pulls Chase’s gifts out.

James?  Check.

Gordon and Emily? Nope.

Instead, there was a Thomas Backpack.

The same Thomas Backpack that someone else had gotten him, because I told them my Mom was getting the 3 engines. OK. no big deal. I’ll take it back.

We go about our day, and they leave. Later that evening I get a call from my mom telling me that she hadn’t realized James was part of the “buy 2 get one free” deal. I told her that I had given her those 3 names because of the deal, yada yada yada. She asks first if she can have James to take back. I tell her no, just call the store and see if she can bring the reciept in and get two more trains.

9:15 PM. My phone rings. It is a local number but I don’t know it so I don’t answer.

9:17 PM. I call the number back. It is the toy store. I hang up, confused. The only thing I can think is that maybe I was getting a call because Chase is signed up for their birthday club.

9:19 PM. My voicemal notification goes off. I listen. It is MY MOTHER. Calling from the TOY STORE phone asking what trains to get. She wants me to CALL HER BACK. At the TOY STORE. Sigh.

9:21 PM. I call the toy store, so happy that they can’t see me and don’t know me

“Thank you for calling Toy Store, how can I help you?”

“Hi, my name is Ally. My mother just called me from…”

“The Thomas lady?”

*blushes even though she can’t see me”

“Yep. That would be her.”

“Do you want me to relay a message, or drag her over?”

” You better go get her.”

Oh. My. God.

Mom gets on the phone and proceeds into a long drawn out discussion about how she doesn’t want to get Gordon because he looks too much like Thomas. She doesn’t like Emily’s smile. She really likes Hiro though. Blah blah blah. The whole time…ON THEIR PHONE.

Finally I get a word in and just tell her…GET WHATEVER YOU WANT. I DON’T CARE. She says fine. Then tells me that she is keeping them to give him for Christmas.

*HEAD DESK* *HEAD DESK*

I give up.

It’s been a crazy week, filled with birthday wonderfulness. Jimmy turning one was bittersweet, like I think most first birthdays are. My little baby is getting big so fast, and time goes faster and faster each day. However I adore the little person he is evolving into and I am so proud that he is mine.

We began his birthday on the 27th with a trip to Toys R Us. It is something we did on Chase’s first birthday so we decided it was what we would do for Jimmy as well. Since the whole surprise context doesn’t really come in to play at one, we had a good time walking around and letting the boys mess with stuff. Jimmy was out of his mind happy.

It's Toys R Us time, beeshes!

We ended up leaving the store with a variation of the same gift we gave Chase for his first birthday. We also left with a VERY ANGRY toddler in tow, as he was ticked off he couldn’t bring everything home with us. We got home and set up Jimmy’s present. It was love at first sight.

Look at MEEEE!

Then he danced on Daddy for a bit…

We had dinner and a bath and then…wait for it….

BACK INTO THE BALL PIT! The smile on his face just kills me. He is the happiest little person ever in this thing and it makes the 100 play balls that are now covering my living room at all times completely worth it. Sort of. Well, now that I have made it a game for Chase to put them away. Maybe.

Last night we had dinner and cake with the family, it was a great night and Jimmy had a great time rounding out his birthday the right way.

OH YEAH.