Brooke and Brecklyn are Six Years Old!

This past week kicked off birthday season around our house, and we had quite the week celebrating our sweet, youngest babies! 

Brooke and Brecklyn's birthday was on a Wednesday this year, but we started celebrating on Tuesday evening. When I asked the girls what they wanted for their birthday dinner, they got into a spat about it. Brooke wanted a feast . . . ham, turkey, corn casserole, salad, mashed potatoes, rolls, and so on. Brecklyn wanted hot dogs. Brooke kept insisting that her choice was better than Brecklyn's, and I had to agree with Brooke! Is there really any comparison?!?

I finally got Brecklyn to agree with Brooke's menu for their birthday dinner (with a promise we would have hot dogs another time), then cut Brooke's menu back a little bit. Then, Mom offered to cook the meal for me on Tuesday evening, so I gave her all the food I had purchased and let her do just that. Mr. J comes to our house on Tuesdays for music lessons, but as soon as he left we headed out the door for our little birthday party!

These two felt so very special!

I had purchased a cake to share with everyone at Mom and Dad's house, but I was so focused on getting out the door (and trying to get Mr. J out the door, haha) that I forgot the cake at home. Sigh. Thankfully, Chris went back for it as soon as dinner was over. 

Two very excited *almost* six year olds!

Brecklyn and Brooke loved when we all sang to them :-).

Make a wish!

Russ, Lisa, and Chloe had also joined us for dinner and cake. Look at all these big kids!

Thank you to Grampy and G-Jo for hosting a fun evening!

Brooke was so funny . . . she kept asking for photos with this person and that person. Total celeb status ;-).

After we finished cleaning up dinner, it was time to open a few gifts. The girls were SO very excited for this part of the evening!

They receive quite a few joint gifts, but they never mind. They are great at sharing with each other!

Grampy and G-Jo got them a set of miniature horses, and they were both in love as soon as they saw them. I love Brooke's face in this photo!

That night, we put Brooke and Brecklyn to bed for the last time as five year olds. *Sniff*

In the morning, they woke up to the hearth all decorated to celebrate SIX years with our sweet twinbies! 

They requested donuts for breakfast, so that is what they got. Yum!

My youngest baby is now SIX years old!

Brecklyn

Brooke

Brooke is only older by six minutes, but that makes a big difference to her. I can't believe she's now SIX years old!

The two cutest six year olds I know!

Once we finished breakfast and birthday photos, we let the girls open part of their gifts. 

This is a little dishwasher for the playhouse.

It makes me laugh how they always look at each other's gifts, even when they're the exact same thing. These LEGO sets were purchased in Disney Springs while we were in Florida, and I've been saving them for birthdays since our trip.

This year, they each received a weighted blanket as a birthday gift. Brooke has had one for a while, but she needed one that weighed a bit more and was bigger. I felt like Brecklyn could also benefit from one, so I bought two! Each blanket weighs seven pounds, and the girls were thrilled to have them.

Before the girls could finish opening all their gifts, we had to leave to go to the zoo. Our zoo is currently open, but each patron must have a reservation to get in, and you must arrive within a time window. Our window was 9:00-10:00am, which meant we needed to leave our house by 9:30am in order to make it. We didn't tell any of the kids where we were going, so it was a fun surprise when we got there!

Brecklyn

Brooke

I am so thankful Chris was able to take the day off work and come to the zoo with us. It had been over a year since we'd been to the zoo, and it was a lovely day for a visit!

Brianna, Brecklyn, Brenson, Brooke

The elephants are always a favorite, and they were very active during this visit. 

While we were waiting during a bathroom break, I looked over and saw Bren looking especially  handsome. I decided a photo shoot was in order. 

He wasn't thrilled, but he humored me by cooperating. 

Love this face!

We purchased a pizza for lunch from the zoo cafe and enjoyed it outside. What a great day to spend with my newly SIX year olds!

Brooke and Momma

 

Brecklyn and Momma

And this girl? Who gave her permission to get so big?!?

💓💓💓

The giraffes are always a family favorite, and we happened to catch them while all four were being active, snacking, and walking around. Yay!

After walking the entire zoo, we decided to take a train ride. The zoo is currently only running the train round trip, but that was fine with us!

Brianna, Brooke, and Momma

Bren, Daddy, and Brecklyn

Daddy and a birthday girl!

Our whole crew . . . we had to be separated by a plexiglass divider, but at least we got to sit near each other!

Before we left the zoo, I wanted to be sure to get a photo of the kids on the Tulsa Zoo wagon. I have taken many of these photos through the years and was sorely disappointed when we discovered that it was fenced off 😢. I made the photo work, though!

We headed for home around 2:30pm. The zoo had proven to be a great time, and I was happy to see that even six year olds still get tuckered out and fall asleep in the car on the way home :-).

We had a little rest time, then the girls really wanted to open the rest of their birthday gifts. They were blessed with several cards and lots of gifts this year!

I think Brooke's face pretty much sums up our day, haha!

Since we had eaten cake the night before, I didn't want to do cake again. The girls requested brownies and our favorite Mexican restaurant for dinner, so we made that happen (we picked up food and ate at home). Of course, we had to do candles and singing again!

Brooke

Brecklyn

Since it was Wednesday, we went to bible study after dinner. The girls loved seeing our church family on their birthday and getting lots of happy birthday wishes. 

Yesterday, the birthday celebrations continued (we really did make a week of it, haha). I dropped Brianna and Brenson off at Mom and Dad's house before lunch so Brooke, Brecklyn, and I could meet Tia, Sadie, and Caroline at the golf course to eat. Brecklyn finally got her hot dog!

How cute are these four?!?

Then, we headed back to the zoo to enjoy the beautiful day. We knew an artic blast was forecasted to hit today (and it did!), so we wanted to take advantage of the nice weather before it disappeared. 

This time, we spent more time playing at the zoo playground than actually seeing animals, but that's what the girls wanted to do!

Brecklyn

Brooke

Caroline

Sadie and Brecklyn

Sadie and Brooke

These girls were such monkeys climbing all around on the playground! After playing, we visited a few animals and took a ride on the train. We were only at the zoo for a few hours, but we were happy to get to go again!

Brooke, Caroline, Sadie, and Brecklyn

I'm not sure what exactly is going on in this photo, but it makes me laugh!

After a fun day, I picked the big kids up from Grampy and G-Jo's house, then the S family came over for dinner and play time. The kids just have such a great time together, and it was wonderful to have an opportunity to relax, laugh, and visit with Ross and Tia. 

I love celebrating my precious babies, and spending time together and with family and friends was the perfect way to do just that. Happy SIXTH birthday to my babies, my twins, my girlies . . . Brooke and Brecklyn!